Accurate 3D morphological computational model reconstruction of suspended cells imaged through stratified media by the precise depth-varying point spread function method

Accurate three-dimensional (3D) morphological computational models of cells are important in a number of biological studies. This study proposes a precise depth-varying point spread function (PDV-PSF) method for reconstructing 3D computational models of suspended cells from two-dimensional (2D) confocal image stacks. Our approach deblurs the 2D images in horizontal plane and corrects the deformation in vertical direction to overcome the refractive index mismatch problem caused by suspended cells imaging through stratified media. Standard fluorescent polystyrene spheres and Jurkat T-lymphocytes are selected to evaluate the validity and accuracy of this PDV-PSF method. Qualitative and quantitative results demonstrate that our approach has superior performance in 3D morphological computational models reconstruction of suspended cells. (C) 2022 Optica Publishing Group under the terms of the Optica Open Access Publishing Agreement

Automated summary

This study proposes a precise method for reconstructing three-dimensional computational models of suspended cells from two-dimensional confocal images. The approach involves deblurring the images and correcting for deformation, resulting in superior performance in 3D morphological reconstruction of suspended cells.