Cho Seonghee, Baik Jinwoo, Managuli Ravi, Kim Chulhong
School of Interdisciplinary Bioscience and Bioengineering, Pohang University of Science and Technology (POSTECH), Pohang, 37673, Republic of Korea.
Department of Creative IT Engineering, Pohang University of Science and Technology (POSTECH), Pohang, 37673, Republic of Korea.
Photoacoustics. 2020 Mar 10;18:100168. doi: 10.1016/j.pacs.2020.100168. eCollection 2020 Jun.
Photoacoustic (PA) imaging (or optoacoustic imaging) is a novel biomedical imaging method in biological and medical research. This modality performs morphological, functional, and molecular imaging with and without labels in both microscopic and deep tissue imaging domains. A variety of innovations have enhanced 3D PA imaging performance and thus has opened new opportunities in preclinical and clinical imaging. However, the 3D visualization tools for PA images remains a challenge. There are several commercially available software packages to visualize the generated 3D PA images. They are generally expensive, and their features are not optimized for 3D visualization of PA images. Here, we demonstrate a specialized 3D visualization software package, namely 3D Photoacoustic Visualization Studio (3D PHOVIS), specifically targeting photoacoustic data, image, and visualization processes. To support the research environment for visualization and fast processing, we incorporated 3D PHOVIS onto the MATLAB with graphical user interface and developed multi-core graphics processing unit modules for fast processing. The 3D PHOVIS includes following modules: (1) a mosaic volume generator, (2) a scan converter for optical scanning photoacoustic microscopy, (3) a skin profile estimator and depth encoder, (4) a multiplanar viewer with a navigation map, and (5) a volume renderer with a movie maker. This paper discusses the algorithms present in the software package and demonstrates their functions. In addition, the applicability of this software to ultrasound imaging and optical coherence tomography is also investigated. User manuals and application files for 3D PHOVIS are available for free on the website (www.boa-lab.com). Core functions of 3D PHOVIS are developed as a result of a summer class at POSTECH, "High-Performance Algorithm in CPU/GPU/DSP, and Computer Architecture." We believe our 3D PHOVIS provides a unique tool to PA imaging researchers, expedites its growth, and attracts broad interests in a wide range of studies.
光声（PA）成像（或光声成像）是生物和医学研究中一种新型的生物医学成像方法。这种成像方式在微观和深层组织成像领域中，无论有无标记物，均可进行形态、功能和分子成像。一系列创新提升了三维PA成像性能，从而为临床前和临床成像带来了新机遇。然而，PA图像的三维可视化工具仍然是一个挑战。有几种商业软件包可用于可视化生成的三维PA图像。它们通常价格昂贵，而且其功能并非针对PA图像的三维可视化进行优化。在此，我们展示了一个专门的三维可视化软件包，即三维光声可视化工作室（3D PHOVIS），它专门针对光声数据、图像和可视化过程。为了支持可视化和快速处理的研究环境，我们将3D PHOVIS集成到具有图形用户界面的MATLAB中，并开发了用于快速处理的多核图形处理单元模块。3D PHOVIS包括以下模块：（1）马赛克体积生成器，（2）用于光学扫描光声显微镜的扫描转换器，（3）皮肤轮廓估计器和深度编码器，（4）带有导航地图的多平面查看器，以及（5）带有电影制作器的体积渲染器。本文讨论了该软件包中存在的算法并展示了它们的功能。此外，还研究了该软件在超声成像和光学相干断层扫描中的适用性。3D PHOVIS的用户手册和应用文件可在网站（www.boa-lab.com）上免费获取。3D PHOVIS的核心功能是由浦项科技大学的一门暑期课程“CPU/GPU/DSP中的高性能算法及计算机架构”开发而成。我们相信我们的3D PHOVIS为PA成像研究人员提供了一个独特的工具，加快了其发展，并在广泛的研究中吸引了广泛的兴趣。
