Integration of an optical coherence tomography (OCT) system into a new environmental chamber to facilitate long term in vivo imaging of cardiovascular development in higher vertebrate embryos

摘要

High-resolution 3-D in vivo imaging of embryonic development over long periods of time under constant physiological conditions (e.g. temperature, humidity) was a challenging task for researchers working on early cardiovascular development. Without appropriate maintenance of temperature, for example, the embryonic heart rate declines rapidly and often results in an increase in regurgitant flow. However, preload, afterload, and the effects of blood flow on cardiac morphodynamics are critical parameters that have to be examined more closely for a better understanding of normal and abnormal cardiovascular development. Here we demonstrate, to the best of our knowledge, the first realization of an optical coherence tomography (OCT) system integrated into a new environmental incubation chamber (EIC) to facilitate real-time in vivo imaging of cardiovascular development in chick embryos. The EIC provides stable conditions for embryonic development with respect to temperature, humidity, and oxygen levels. An OCT probe is integrated into the EIC and facilitates visualization of embryos at micrometer resolution, including the acquisition of M-mode, Doppler OCT, and Doppler M-mode data.