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The use of a computerized algorithm to determine single cardiac cell volumes
Author(s) -
Marino Thomas A.,
Cook Larry,
Cook P. g,
Dwyer Samuel J.
Publication year - 1981
Publication title -
journal of microscopy
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.569
H-Index - 111
eISSN - 1365-2818
pISSN - 0022-2720
DOI - 10.1111/j.1365-2818.1981.tb01243.x
Subject(s) - volume (thermodynamics) , algorithm , mathematics , surface (topology) , biomedical engineering , geometry , physics , medicine , quantum mechanics
SUMMARY Single cardiac muscle cell volume data have been difficult to obtain, especially because the shape of a cell is quite complex. With the aid of a surface reconstruction method, a cell volume estimation algorithm has been developed that can be used on serial sections of cells. The cell surface is reconstructed by means of triangular tiles so that the cell is represented as a polyhedron. When this algorithm was tested on computer generated surfaces of a known volume, the difference was less than 1·6%. Serial sections of two phantoms of a known volume were also reconstructed and a comparison of the mathematically derived volumes and the computed volume estimations gave a per cent difference of between 2·8% and 4·1%. Finally cell volumes derived using conventional methods and volumes calculated using the algorithm were compared. The mean atrial muscle cell volume derived using conventional methods was 7752·7 ± 644·7 μm 3 , while the mean computerized algorithm estimated atrial muscle cell volume was 7110·6 ± 625·5 μm 3 . For AV bundle cells the mean cell volume obtained by conventional methods was 484·4 ± 88·8 μm 3 and the volume derived from the computer algorithm was 506·0 ± 78·5 μm 3 . The differences between the volumes calculated using conventional methods and the algorithm were not significantly different.