X-ray and neutron μCT of biomedical samples: from image acquisition to quantification
Author
Summary, in English
The doctoral work presented in this thesis joins a collective effort from the imaging community to demonstrate potential applications of advanced x-ray and neutron imaging methods to preclinical medical research, with the hope of contributing to reach a “critical mass” in the medical community and in the public opinion as well.
Two main lines of work are detailed, one focused on the ex vivo evaluation of corrosion processes of magnesium-based biodegradable implants for osteosynthesis, the other dedicated to the assessment of neuropathy in human gastroenteric dysmotility. The aimed endpoint was to develop pipelines, from image acquisition all the way to data quantification, that could be used by other research groups with similar questions and may inspire future interdisciplinary collaborations between medicine, natural science and engineering.
In the first line of work, we have attempted to employ synchrotron-radiation micro-computed tomography (µCT) coupled with in situ loading tests to assess the mechanical properties of the bone-implant interface (Paper I). We have revealed the crucial importance of the radiation dose deposited on the sample, and that the mechanical loading geometry should be accurately determined in the planning steps of the experiment. Moving away from the mechanical testing, we have also explored a novel three-dimensional analysis of the corrosion by-products of biodegradable implants by combining x-ray µCT, neutron µCT and x-ray fluorescence mapping (Papers IV and V).
The second line of work has assessed the potential of x-ray phase-contrast µCT and nano-resolution holotomography as ways to perform virtual histology of unstained peripheral and autonomic neural tissue. In full-thickness biopsies of the myenteric nervous system, qualitative and potentially quantitative differences have been shown between controls and patients affected by gastrointestinal dysmotility (Paper II). In unstained skin biopsies, the methods have failed to visualise peripheral nerves, but we could identify structural changes in the connective tissue of some patients when compared to controls and other patients (Paper III).
Publishing year
2021-11-22
Language
English
Full text
- Available as PDF - 10 MB
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Document type
Dissertation
Publisher
Media-Tryck, Lund University, Sweden
Topic
- Physical Sciences
- Radiology, Nuclear Medicine and Medical Imaging
- Medical Image Processing
Keywords
- x-ray imaging
- neutron imaging
- μCT
- synchrotron radiation
- x-ray phase-contrast
- nanoholotomography
- x-ray elemental mapping
- biomedical applications
- virtual histology
- biodegradable implants
- Mg-alloys
- enteric nervous system
- peripheral neuropathy
- gastroenteric dysmotility
- Fysicumarkivet A:2021:Peruzzi
Status
Published
Project
- X-ray and neutron μCT of biomedical samples: from image acquisition to quantification
Research group
- X-ray Phase Contrast
Supervisor
- Martin Bech
- Rajmund Mokso
- Ann Wennerberg
ISBN/ISSN/Other
- ISBN: 978-91-8039-091-0
- ISBN: 978-91-8039-092-7
Defence date
16 December 2021
Defence time
09:00
Defence place
Föreläsningssalen 2, Plan 1, Alwallhuset, Barngatan 2, Skånes universitetssjukhus, Lund. Join via zoom: https://www.msf.lu.se/evenemang/disputation-niccolo-peruzzi
Opponent
- Bert Müller (Prof. Dr.)