World's first 3D hologram of the brain unveiled in Edinburgh
The first ever hologram of the human brain has been developed, with new 3D images revealing its complex wiring.
Holoxica, the specialist holographic 3D visualisation company, has created the first ever 3D digital hologram of the human brain fibre connections from an MRI scan which will have a profound impact on medical science, giving neurosurgeons and clinicians a fresh insight into identifying, diagnosing and treating a wide range of neurological conditions.
Such conditions, including Alzheimer’s’, Motor Neuron Disease (MND), Stroke and Cancer, affect not only the ageing population, but a broad spectrum of society.
The brain fibre image is based on an advanced medical scanning technique known as functional MRI (Magnetic Resonance Imaging) or fMRI. The hologram of a healthy brain was made via Fibre Tractography - an advanced technique to track nerve fibre pathways inside the brain using Diffusion Tensor Imaging (DTI) that measures the movement of water molecules in the brain’s white matter.
For example, holograms based on DTI-MRI could be used to assess neuron damage in ALS/Motor Neuron Disease (MND) patients before clinical symptoms appear, thus contributing to earlier diagnosis, for a degenerative condition which is normally difficult to detect at an early stage of the disease.
Holographic 3D visualisation of medical images is one of the best ways of understanding the complexities of human anatomy in the future. True 3D holograms are very effective for education, enabling clinician and teaching trainees to take information in quickly and precisely, as Dr Javid Khan, CEO of Holoxica reveals: “A recent study concluded that 3D visualisation is up to 75 percent better than 2D for certain types of tasks including spatial manipulation, finding, identifying or classifying objects, but our future plans is to take 3D imaging to the next level using our holographic video display, which is being designed for medical imaging machines including MRI, CT and Ultrasound scanners. This technology is supported by the European Union Horizon 2020 Programme for SMEs. The Brain Fibre holographic image continues our strategy for making 3D holograms from individual human organs to help advance the frontiers of biomedical science.”
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