Application of polarization for optical motion-registered SPECT functional imaging of tumors in mice

The use of small animal models to investigate human diseases is an integral part of the development of new diagnostic and treatment regimens. Consequently, functional imaging modalities such as single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) are increasingly being utilized to streamline the screening of animal phenotypes and to monitor disease states, progressions, and therapies. This paper focuses on the utilization of polarization filtering to minimize specular reflection from a glass tube used for holding live human-tumor-mice during functional imaging in a dedicated small animal SPECT system. The system presented is potentially useful for the real-time non-invasive investigation of diseases, such as cancer, and drug therapies in small animals because it utilizes optical motion-registered functional imaging that minimizes the effects of motion artifacts.