Measurements of Mean Nuclear and Cell Sizes Using Ultra-Short Diffusion Times

Junzhong Xu¹, Jingping Xie¹, Ke Li¹, Jerome Jourquin², Mark D. Does¹, Daniel F. Gochberg¹, Vito Quaranta², John C. Gore¹

Tumor cell nuclear size usually can be found only by invasive biopsy. In the present work, a novel approach, which employs an oscillating gradient spin echo (OGSE) method, has been developed to measure nuclear size with ultra-short diffusion times (low as ~0.13ms). Both simulations and experiments were performed and the results obtained from OGSE diffusion measurements are consistent with light microscopy, proving the feasibility of our method. This new approach provides structural parameters which may be helpful for the assessment of tumor malignancy, tracking intracellular changes in tissues, and potentially monitoring tumor response to treatment in vivo.