Fabrice Moret

See below: What to learn, from which discipline, and alumni.

Neurobiology course on functional imaging of the retina: (a) recording of fundus images with a clinical Optical Coherence Tomograph (red) modified to visually stimulate the retina (green) while controlling the laser entry point in the eye (blue). (b) shows a close-up of the instruments and (c) the subject's perspective.

Imaging the retina, and beyond...

What can you learn in this lab? After all you may be reluctant to study such a specialized field... Well, it is specialized indeed but we try to do what we think imaging should be in all disciplines. We see way more in imaging than just a tool with a button to push to get fancy readily publishable images.

We see imaging as a way to acquire massive amounts of spatial data and we believe it is of the uttermost importance to master the imaging chain. It starts with the light projection in the eye, the way photons propagate through, where they go and how and what they interact with. Then how they travel back out, how we collect and detect them, digitize the information, process it with the complete model still in mind, then visualize the information knowing the strengths and limitations of the visual system of the observer; and finally (here it really starts...) try to understand the images, figure ways to learn about aetiopathology and design better diagnoses. This approach is similar in all fields involving biomedical imaging.

Multidisciplinarity – Practicals, internships or theses

The tissue of interest, its enclosing organ, its enclosing body and the imaging chain are complex, thus a wealth of specialties is required. Projects do not involve all the tissue and imaging complexity as we focus on a specific point at once. Still we enjoy people who appreciate the need for an overall approach. Fields include:

- Medicine, ophthalmology, neurology, radiology, cardiology

- Physics, optics, electronics, micro-techniques

- Computer sciences, mathematics, signal and image processing

Projects range from instrument design, data analysis/visualization and modelization, to pilot studies with healthy volunteers and/or patients.
Please email to enquire, but first ask the alumni if they liked it (below).

Alumni

- 2010, Roland Berkemeier - Practical (Biology) - at/from Univ. of Freiburg
roland.berkemeier@jupiter.uni-freiburg.de, Project: "Functional imaging of the human retina - Study of pulsatile and functional components".

- 2010, Stephan Rubach - Practical (Biology) - at/from Univ. of Freiburg
Project: “Photoreceptors vs. retinal neural cells in in-vivo intrinsic imaging”.

- 2010, Jan König - Practical (Biology) - at/from Univ. of Freiburg
Project: “Pulse retrieval from fundus images by Principal Component Analysis”.

- 2001–02, Sylvain Bolay - Diploma thesis (Electrical engineering)
at NASA/GRC, from the Haute Ecole Valaisanne - contact at www.bolay.co
Project: “Characterization of the differentiated blood flow measurements of the two layers of the human choroid by laser Doppler flowmetry using photon propagation modelization”.

Teaching

- Laboratory sessions and introductory lecture: Module “Functional imaging of the retina” in the course “Introduction to neurobiology”, Univ. of Freiburg, Dept. Biology, summer terms 2008 and 2009.

- Journal Club, Univ. of Freiburg, Dept. Ophthalmology, 2006–11.

- Seminars for Neurobiology/Biophysics: “Vision – from Eye to Cognition”, 1 day, Univ. of Freiburg, with 3 other lecturers. Sessions in 2009 and 2010.

- Promotion of science in colleges: Animation of pilot Lego Robolab sessions, for the Studying Incentives Commission of the Swiss Academy of Engineering Sciences, Sion, Bex and Thun, 2000–01.