ABSTRACT
The use of contrast agents with microcomputed tomography (microCT) allows for the quick, nondestructive, and quantiable 3D visualization of a wide variety of organs and tissues. Rigorous morphometric and attenuation density analyses of microCT images have facilitated improved understanding of structure-function relationships in organs such as the heart, bone, and kidneys while also providing quantitative metrics for evaluating therapeutics for diseases such as cancer, osteoarthritis, and pulmonary disorders. This chapter introduces a range of contrast enhancement techniques and their application in combination with microCT imaging to visualizing various physiological systems.
