Aziz D C, Barathur R B
OncQuest, Inc., Division of Specialty Laboratories, Inc., Santa Monica, CA 90404-3900.
J Cell Biochem Suppl. 1994;19:120-5.
Digital image analysis provides objective measurements of tissue and cell analytes previously interpreted subjectively. Both analyte concentration determination and morphometric analyses are possible. Calibration of the instrument and the use of standards and controls are essential for precise and reproducible quantitation of the analyte. Multi-tissue blocks ensure reproducible staining of the batch in quantitative immunohistochemical assays such as breast cancer estrogen and progesterone receptors. These multi-tissue blocks can be shared among laboratories to reduce interlaboratory variation and to objectively quantitate estrogen and progesterone receptors in clinical trials. In colon carcinoma, p53 can be quantitated objectively by image analysis. In prostate carcinoma, morphometric analysis of nuclear shape, nuclear roundness factor, and variations in nuclear size are objective measurements which constitute the pathologist's nuclear grade. Developments in instrumentation have now made it possible to combine analyte determination (such as DNA ploidy) and morphologic analysis of tumors, a diagnostic improvement over either method alone. A study employing image analysis to detect and quantitate androgen receptors and p53 in formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded prostate cancer biopsies is underway to determine the utility of androgen receptors in predicting response to hormonal therapy. Histopathological features such as nuclear size, shape, and pleomorphism must be converted to image features such as area, shape factor, and variance of the area; this feature vector must be correlated with the pathologist's expert opinion or diagnosis. Other applications of image analysis include quantitation of immunofluorescent assays such as anti-nuclear antigen or anti-cytoplasmic nuclear antigen. Fluorescent image analysis provides more precision and greater reproducibility, as well as reduced test costs.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
数字图像分析可对以往靠主观判断的组织和细胞分析物进行客观测量。分析物浓度测定和形态计量分析都可行。仪器校准以及标准品和对照品的使用对于分析物的精确和可重复定量至关重要。多组织块可确保在乳腺癌雌激素和孕激素受体等定量免疫组织化学检测中批次染色的可重复性。这些多组织块可在各实验室间共享，以减少实验室间差异，并在临床试验中客观定量雌激素和孕激素受体。在结肠癌中，p53可通过图像分析进行客观定量。在前列腺癌中，细胞核形状、核圆度因子和核大小变化的形态计量分析是构成病理学家核分级的客观测量指标。仪器设备的发展现已使肿瘤的分析物测定（如DNA倍体）和形态学分析相结合成为可能，这比单独使用任何一种方法都有诊断上的改进。一项利用图像分析检测和定量福尔马林固定、石蜡包埋的前列腺癌活检组织中雄激素受体和p53的研究正在进行，以确定雄激素受体在预测激素治疗反应中的效用。核大小、形状和多形性等组织病理学特征必须转化为面积、形状因子和面积方差等图像特征；该特征向量必须与病理学家的专家意见或诊断相关联。图像分析的其他应用包括抗核抗原或抗细胞质核抗原等免疫荧光检测的定量。荧光图像分析提供了更高的精度、更大的可重复性以及更低的检测成本。（摘要截短于250字）
