A new method to visualize brain and skull vessels using high speed camera and fluorescent particles.

What is it about?

Scientists at the University Hospital and University of Zurich have developed a new way to create live images of blood vessels in the brain and the skull with more clarity. This new tool allowed to uncover how the vascular network in the brain adapts to ischemic stroke.

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Photo by Harrison Leece on Unsplash

Photo by Harrison Leece on Unsplash

Why is it important?

Imaging the brain vessels is crucial for understanding the functions and diseases of the brain. For example, doctors would really like to be able to watch blood flowing in the brain in real time- that would allow them to see blockages, clots, tumors and a host of other neurological diseases, including stroke, vascular dementia, autism spectrum disorder and Parkinson's disease. Unfortunately, despite their importance for proper brain functioning, quantitative hemodynamic information of the brain and skull vascular networks remained scarce, given that commonly used bioimaging methods did not enable precise measurements of these vessels. In this new effort, the team of Dr. Mohamad El Amki (Neurology Department, University Hospital of Zurich) and Prof. Bruno Weber (Institute of Pharmacology and Toxicology, University of Zurich) report that they have taken a step closer using an approach that involves combining high speed cameras and microscopic fluorescent particles injected into the bloodstream of living mice. This approach enabled fast, quantitative and brain wide monitoring of blood vessels properties including morphology, topology, flow speed, flow direction and vascular diameters.

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