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Journal of microscopy
Feb 25, 2025;

A 3D-printed optical microscope for low-cost histological imaging.

Jay Christopher, Rebecca Craig, Rebecca E McHugh, Andrew J Roe, Ralf Bauer, Brian Patton, Gail McConnell, Liam M Rooney
Author Information
  1. Jay Christopher: Department of Electronic and Electrical Engineering, University of Strathclyde, Glasgow, UK. ORCID
  2. Rebecca Craig: Department of Physics, University of Strathclyde, Glasgow, UK. ORCID
  3. Rebecca E McHugh: Department of Bacteriology, School of Infection & Immunity, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, UK. ORCID
  4. Andrew J Roe: Department of Bacteriology, School of Infection & Immunity, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, UK. ORCID
  5. Ralf Bauer: Department of Electronic and Electrical Engineering, University of Strathclyde, Glasgow, UK. ORCID
  6. Brian Patton: Department of Physics, University of Strathclyde, Glasgow, UK. ORCID
  7. Gail McConnell: Strathclyde Institute of Pharmacy and Biomedical Sciences, University of Strathclyde, Glasgow, UK. ORCID
  8. Liam M Rooney: Strathclyde Institute of Pharmacy and Biomedical Sciences, University of Strathclyde, Glasgow, UK. ORCID
PMID: 39996362 DOI: 10.1111/jmi.13398

Abstract

We present the manufacture and characterisation of a 3D-printed, low-cost optical microscope using both a 3D-printed chassis and 3D-printed illumination and imaging optics. The required commercial components, consisting of a basic camera for image acquisition and light emitting diode controlled by a Raspberry Pi for illumination, are integrated into the 3D-printed microscope with the full design shown for ease of replication. Our 3D-printed microscope uses a single 3D-printed objective lens with a 2.9�� magnification and a numerical aperture of 0.07. To benchmark the imaging performance of the system, we used standard test targets and histological specimens, namely, a Giemsa-stained blood smear sample and a thin section of mouse kidney stained with haemotoxylin and eosin. We demonstrated that subcellular resolution was obtained, and we corroborated this by imaging individual red blood cells and intricate anatomical details of the stained mouse kidney section. All of this was achieved using entirely 3D-printed hardware and optics, at a fraction of the cost of a commercial bright-field microscope, while presenting remarkable potential for customisation and increased accessibility for diagnostic imaging applications.

Keywords

additive manufacturing diagnostic imaging microscopy open microscopy optics

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Grants

  1. EP/T517938/1/Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council
  2. EP/T517938/1/Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council
  3. EP/S032606/1/Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council
  4. MR/V011499/1/Medical Research Council
  5. EP/T517938/1/EPSRC
  6. EP/T517938/1/EPSRC
  7. EP/S032606/1/EPSRC
  8. BB/Z51486X/1/Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council
  9. BB/Z51486X/1/Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council
  10. BB/P02565X/1/Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council
  11. CHG/R1/170017/Royal Society
  12. MR/K015583/1/MRC
  13. BB/Z51486X/1/BBSRC
  14. BB/Z51486X/1/BBSRC
  15. BB/P02565X/1/BBSRC
  16. BBT011602/BBSRC
  17. /Leverhulme Trust
Journal Article
Article has an altmetric score of 30

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