3-D reconstruction of biological material from serial section and stereo modeling
Stereo visualization of biological fine structure has long been useful for the appreciation of three-dimensional structure in high voltage electron micrographs of thick specimens. Quantification of specimen geometry by this method is difficult, however, since reproducible placement of a 3-D cursor in a gray-scale object with a single pair of stereo views is difficult. Serial thin sectioning and electron microscopy has been used to obtain quantitative three-dimensional information about biological structures, but when high resolution is required, serial section tracking can be problematic because distortions of as much as 5% between successive sections are common, impeding section alignment and reliable 3-D reconstruction.We are experimenting with computer image processing methods to overcome the above mentioned difficulties. A MicroVax III hosting a Parallax board set is being used to process images obtained from electron micrographs with a DAGE -81 video camera and displayed on a Mitsubishi high resolution color monitor.