Abstract
We recently developed an algorithm for multiplexed fluorescence tomographic imaging of at least four fluorophores concurrently in the red and near-infrared wavelength region by jointly using spectral and temporal data. We report the design of a fluorescence tomography instrument that acquires spectral and temporal data, and validate its use in tissue-mimicking phantoms with four embedded fluorescent targets with highly overlapped spectral signatures. Critically, this requires measurement or computation of extended fluorophore signature libraries, which capture the variability in the measured signal due to the unknown position of the targets in the media. We demonstrate that we can demix and tomographically image all four fluorophores with zero image cross-talk, and 1 mm or better spatial resolution.