Nondestructive cryomicro-CT imaging enables structural and molecular analysis of human lung tissue.

Unlabelled: Micro-computed tomography (CT) enables three-dimensional (3D) imaging of complex soft tissue structures, but current protocols used to achieve this goal preclude cellular and molecular phenotyping of the tissue. Here we describe a radiolucent cryostage that permits micro-CT imaging of unfixed frozen human lung samples at an isotropic voxel size of (11 µm) under conditions where the sample is maintained frozen at -30°C during imaging. The cryostage was tested for thermal stability to maintain samples frozen up to 8 h.

Compact cold stage for micro-computerized tomography imaging of chilled or frozen samples.

High resolution X-ray microCT (computerized tomography) can be used to image a variety of objects, including temperature-sensitive materials. In cases where the sample must be chilled or frozen to maintain sample integrity, either the microCT machine itself must be placed in a refrigerated chamber, or a relatively expensive commercial cold stage must be purchased. We describe here the design and construction of a low-cost custom cold stage suitable for use in a microCT imaging system.