Abstract | BACKGROUND & AIMS: Imaging of supramolecular structures by multiphoton microscopy offers significant advantages for studying specific fibrillar compounds in biological tissues. In this study, we aimed to demonstrate the relevance of Second Harmonic Generation (SHG) for assessing and quantifying, without staining, fibrillar collagen in liver fibrosis. METHODS: We first showed the relationship between SHG signal and collagen forms over-produced and accumulated during fibrosis progression. Taking this property into consideration, we developed an innovative method to precisely quantify the fibrosis area in histological slices by scoring of fibrillar collagen deposits ( Fibrosis-SHG index). RESULTS: The scoring method was routinely applied to 119 biopsies from patients with chronic liver disease allowing a fast and accurate measurement of fibrosis correlated with the Fibrosis-Metavir score (rho=0.75, p<0.0001). The technique allowed discriminating patients with advanced (moderate to severe) fibrosis (AUROC=0.88, p<0.0001) and cirrhosis (AUROC=0.89, p<0.0001). Taking advantage of its continuous gradation, the Fibrosis-SHG index also allowed the discrimination of several levels of fibrosis within the same F-Metavir stage. The SHG process presented several advantages such as a high reliability and sensitivity that lead to a standardized evaluation of hepatic fibrosis in liver biopsies without staining and pathological examination. CONCLUSIONS: Second harmonic microscopy emerges as an original and powerful tool in the assessment of liver fibrosis and offers new possibilities for the evaluation of experimental protocols. We expect that this technology could easily be applicable in the study of other fibro-proliferative pathologies.
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Authors | Luc Gailhouste, Yann Le Grand, Christophe Odin, Dominique Guyader, Bruno Turlin, Frédéric Ezan, Yoann Désille, Thomas Guilbert, Anne Bessard, Christophe Frémin, Nathalie Theret, Georges Baffet |
Journal | Journal of hepatology
(J Hepatol)
Vol. 52
Issue 3
Pg. 398-406
(Mar 2010)
ISSN: 1600-0641 [Electronic] Netherlands |
PMID | 20149472
(Publication Type: Evaluation Study, Journal Article, Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't)
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Copyright | Copyright (c) 2010 European Association for the Study of the Liver. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. |
Chemical References |
- Extracellular Matrix Proteins
- Collagen
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Topics |
- Biopsy
- Cohort Studies
- Collagen
(metabolism)
- Extracellular Matrix Proteins
(metabolism)
- Humans
- Liver
(metabolism, pathology)
- Liver Cirrhosis
(diagnosis, metabolism, pathology)
- Microscopy, Fluorescence, Multiphoton
(methods)
- Reproducibility of Results
- Sensitivity and Specificity
- Severity of Illness Index
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