Micro Computed Tomography as an Accessible Imaging Platform for Exploring Organism Development and Human Disease Modeling

ABSTRACT Understanding how events at the molecular and cellular scales contribute to tissue form and function is key to uncovering mechanisms driving animal development, physiology and disease. Elucidating these mechanisms has been enhanced through the study of model organisms and the use of sophisticated genetic, biochemical and imaging tools. Here we present an optimized method for non-invasive imaging of Drosophila melanogaster at high resolution using micro computed tomography (μ-CT). Our method allows for rapid processing of intact animals at any developmental stage, provides precise quantitative assessment of tissue size and morphology, and permits analysis of inter-organ relationships. We then use the power of μ-CT imaging to model human diseases through the characterization of microcephaly in the fly. Our work demonstrates that μ-CT is a versatile and accessible tool that complements standard imaging techniques, capable of uncovering novel biological mechanisms that have remained undocumented due to limitations of current methods.