Super-resolution functional photoacoustic microscopy via label-free cell tracking

Fenghe Zhong; Zhuoying Wang; Youngseop Lee; Jiaxiao Han; Naidi Sun; Shuo Yang; Shengyun Ji; Hao F. Zhang; Cheng Sun; Song Hu

doi:10.1038/s41377-026-02235-3

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Super-resolution functional photoacoustic microscopy via label-free cell tracking

Original Articles

- Super-resolution functional photoacoustic microscopy via label-free cell tracking
- Super-resolution functional photoacoustic microscopy via label-free cell tracking
- Light: Science & Applications 2026年15卷第5期页码：1581-1593
- Affiliations：
  
  1.Department of Biomedical Engineering, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO 63130, USA
  2.Department of Biomedical Engineering, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL 60208, USA
  3.Department of Mechanical Engineering, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL 60208, USA
- Author bio：
  
  Song Hu (songhu@wustl.edu)
- Funds：
- DOI：10.1038/s41377-026-02235-3
  中图分类号：
- 收稿：2025-10-13，
  
  修回：2026-02-02，
  
  录用：2026-02-08，
  
  网络首发：2026-03-03，
  
  纸质出版：2026-05-31
- Accepted：
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Fenghe Zhong, Zhuoying Wang, Youngseop Lee, 等. Super-resolution functional photoacoustic microscopy via label-free cell tracking[J]. Light: Science & Applications, 2026,15(5):1581-1593.

Zhong, F. H. et al. Super-resolution functional photoacoustic microscopy via label-free cell tracking. Light: Science & Applications, 15, 1581-1593 (2026).
Fenghe Zhong, Zhuoying Wang, Youngseop Lee, 等. Super-resolution functional photoacoustic microscopy via label-free cell tracking[J]. Light: Science & Applications, 2026,15(5):1581-1593. DOI： 10.1038/s41377-026-02235-3.

Zhong, F. H. et al. Super-resolution functional photoacoustic microscopy via label-free cell tracking. Light: Science & Applications, 15, 1581-1593 (2026). DOI： 10.1038/s41377-026-02235-3.

摘要

Abstract

Microvascular function and oxygen metabolism are central to tissue and organ health. However

label-free methods for imaging oxygen dynamics in three-dimensional (3D) microvascular networks at the level of single red blood cells (RBCs)—the fundamental units of oxygen transport in vivo—remain lacking. Here

we introduce super-resolution functional photoacoustic microscopy (SR-fPAM)

which spatiotemporally tracks RBC movements under dual-wavelength excitation. SR-fPAM reconstructs super-resolved 3D microvascular architecture comparable to two-photon microscopy while providing quantitative measurements of RBC flow and oxygenation. In live mice

SR-fPAM revealed redistribution of oxygen and hemodynamics across 3D microvascular networks following a single-vessel stroke. These findings establish SR-fPAM as an enabling tool that bridges a critical gap in oxygen-metabolism imaging and opens new avenues for studying microvascular health and disease with unprecedented functional insights.

关键词

Keywords

references

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