Structural and functional imaging of brains

Zhichao Liu; Ying Zhu; Liming Zhang; Weiping Jiang; Yawei Liu; Qiaowei Tang; Xiaoqing Cai; Jiang Li; Lihua Wang; Changlu Tao; Xianzhen Yin; Xiaowei Li; Shangguo Hou; Dawei Jiang; Kai Liu; Xin Zhou; Hongjie Zhang; Maili Liu; Chunhai Fan; Yang Tian

doi:10.1007/s11426-022-1408-5

Structural and functional imaging of brains

Sci China Chem. 2023;66(2):324-366. doi: 10.1007/s11426-022-1408-5. Epub 2022 Dec 9.

Authors

Zhichao Liu^#¹, Ying Zhu^#², Liming Zhang^#¹, Weiping Jiang^#³, Yawei Liu^#⁴, Qiaowei Tang², Xiaoqing Cai², Jiang Li², Lihua Wang², Changlu Tao⁵, Xianzhen Yin⁶, Xiaowei Li⁷, Shangguo Hou⁸, Dawei Jiang⁹, Kai Liu¹⁰, Xin Zhou³, Hongjie Zhang^{4

10}, Maili Liu³, Chunhai Fan¹¹, Yang Tian¹

Affiliations

¹ Shanghai Key Laboratory of Green Chemistry and Chemical Processes, School of Chemistry and Molecular Engineering, East China Normal University, Shanghai, 200241 China.
² Interdisciplinary Research Center, Shanghai Synchrotron Radiation Facility, Zhangjiang Laboratory, Shanghai Advanced Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, 201210 China.
³ State Key Laboratory of Magnetic Resonance and Atomic and Molecular Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan National Laboratory for Optoelectronics, Wuhan, 430071 China.
⁴ State Key Laboratory of Rare Earth Resource Utilization, Changchun Institute of Applied Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Changchun, 130022 China.
⁵ Interdisciplinary Center for Brain Information, Brain Cognition and Brain Disease Institute, Shenzhen-Hong Kong Institute of Brain Science-Shenzhen Fundamental Research Institutions, Faculty of Life and Health Sciences, Shenzhen Institute of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenzhen, 518055 China.
⁶ Lingang Laboratory, Shanghai, 201602 China.
⁷ School of Biomedical Engineering, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 200240 China.
⁸ Institute of Systems and Physical Biology, Shenzhen Bay Laboratory, Shenzhen, 518055 China.
⁹ Department of Nuclear Medicine, Union Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430022 China.
¹⁰ Department of Chemistry, Tsinghua University, Beijing, 100084 China.
¹¹ School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Frontiers Science Center for Transformative Molecules, Institute of Translational Medicine, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 200240 China.

^# Contributed equally.

Abstract

Analyzing the complex structures and functions of brain is the key issue to understanding the physiological and pathological processes. Although neuronal morphology and local distribution of neurons/blood vessels in the brain have been known, the subcellular structures of cells remain challenging, especially in the live brain. In addition, the complicated brain functions involve numerous functional molecules, but the concentrations, distributions and interactions of these molecules in the brain are still poorly understood. In this review, frontier techniques available for multiscale structure imaging from organelles to the whole brain are first overviewed, including magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), computed tomography (CT), positron emission tomography (PET), serial-section electron microscopy (ssEM), light microscopy (LM) and synchrotron-based X-ray microscopy (XRM). Specially, XRM for three-dimensional (3D) imaging of large-scale brain tissue with high resolution and fast imaging speed is highlighted. Additionally, the development of elegant methods for acquisition of brain functions from electrical/chemical signals in the brain is outlined. In particular, the new electrophysiology technologies for neural recordings at the single-neuron level and in the brain are also summarized. We also focus on the construction of electrochemical probes based on dual-recognition strategy and surface/interface chemistry for determination of chemical species in the brain with high selectivity and long-term stability, as well as electrochemophysiological microarray for simultaneously recording of electrochemical and electrophysiological signals in the brain. Moreover, the recent development of brain MRI probes with high contrast-to-noise ratio (CNR) and sensitivity based on hyperpolarized techniques and multi-nuclear chemistry is introduced. Furthermore, multiple optical probes and instruments, especially the optophysiological Raman probes and fiber Raman photometry, for imaging and biosensing in live brain are emphasized. Finally, a brief perspective on existing challenges and further research development is provided.

Keywords: biosensing and bioimaging; brain chemistry; brain function; brain structure; chemical signal.

Publication types

Review