Imaging is developing very quickly in various study bases. Nowadays, due
to the desire for the technology coming to imaging, it is widely used to detect
molecular and structural targets in in vivo studies. The aim of developing new non-invasive imaging methods is to provide affordable, high-resolution images with
minimal known side effects for studying the biological processes of living organisms.
For this purpose, X-ray-based computed tomography (CT), magnetic resonance
imaging (MRI), ultrasound (UI), Nuclear imaging methods (positron emission
tomography (PET), single-photon emission computed tomography (SPECT)), and
optical imaging, are techniques widely used in imaging. Each of these has unique
advantages and drawbacks. The background of imaging techniques and their
developments have been shown in this chapter and we discuss in detail the use of
optical imaging through bioluminescence, fluorescence, and Cerenkov luminescence
techniques in various diseases for preclinical applications, early clinical diagnosis,
treatment, and clinical studies.
Keywords: Bioluminescence, Biological processes, Computed tomography, Clinical diagnosis, Cerenkov luminescence, Fluorescence, High-resolution images, in vivo imaging, Imaging technique, Living organisms, Molecular imaging, Magnetic resonance imaging, Nuclear method, Non-invasive method, Optical imaging, Positron emission tomography, Single-photon emission computed tomography, Technology, Ultrasound and X-ray.
