Tissue-mimicking Phantom

The development of innovative imaging and therapeutic techniques requires both in vitro and in vivo testing. However, in vivo experiments demand previous characterization of the technology, aiming for the most ethical use of animals. In this context,  methodologies can be first carried out on tissue-mimicking materials, known as “phantoms.” Originally designed as tools for training in imaging techniques, these simulators have evolved to play a fundamental role in research and the development of advanced technologies, as they can mimic the format, size, and different mechanical properties equivalent to biological tissues, according to demand (Vieira et al., 2013). Their application for advancing ultrasound techniques has been a subject of study by GIIMUS in various contexts, with variations in their composition depending on the research objectives (Cabrelli et al., 2017, 2021; Pavan et al., 2012). (Figure 1)

Acoustic simulators allow the mimicking of interactions between magnetic nanoparticles and biological tissues, providing a profound understanding of magnetic responses in controlled environments. They play a crucial role in validating and refining magneto-motive ultrasound techniques, contributing to the understanding of microvibrations induced by magnetic nanoparticles (NMPs) and their interactions with magnetic fields, as mentioned earlier (Almeida et al., 2015; Hadadian et al., 2021). The research group also participated in the development of various medical simulators, such as a biomimetic brain phantom for the validation of brain image volumetric measurements (BVM) (Figure 2), a breast phantom used for medical training in ultrasound-guided biopsy (Figure 3) and a lung phantom that simulates ultrasound artifacts commonly seen in Covid-19 patients (Figure 4).

This combination of cutting-edge research and realistic simulation drives significant advances in diagnosis and therapy, especially in the detection of medical conditions such as cancer, using different mixtures of styrene-ethylene/butylene – styrene gel and paraffin to mimic white matter (WM), gray matter (GM), and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) were used in this work (Figure 2).