Mantis Shrimps

1
Mantis Shrimps Eyes Inspire Cancer-detecting
Camera

• Mackenzie Mitchell
• BME 281 Section 2

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Mantis Shrimp

• Evolved for 400 million years
• Highly complex
• Detects circular and linear polarized light
• Most animals have 3 photoreceptors, mantis shrimp
  have 12

SUPER VISION
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Human vision v. Mantis Shrimp vision

• Humans
• 3 photoreceptors
• Natural/visible light (unpolarized)

• Mantis Shrimp
• 12 photoreceptors
• Visible and ultraviolet light
• Polarized light (linear and circular)

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How Mantis Shrimp Eyes Work

• Ommatidia long, thin clusters of photoreceptor
  cells
• 4 rows of ommatidia in the midband
• Sensitive to different wavelengths
• Focus light

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How Mantis Shrimp Eyes Work (cont.)

• Focused light is passed through multiple
  photosensitive R-cells
• These cells contain microvilli that filter
  polarized light
• Brain receives visual information

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Engineers Try To Mimic This System

• Aluminum nanowire polarizers
• Polarization filters
• Like microvilli
• Current mode CMOS image sensor
• Complimentary metal-oxide-semiconductor
• Like photosensitive R-cells

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Polarization Imaging Sensor

• Small enough to take images of cancer inside the
  body
• Cancer is easily detected under polarized light
• Structures are disorganized and invasive
• Scatter light differently than normal body cells

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Difference Between Cancer Cells and Normal Cells
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Diagnosis of Cancer Today

• The Problem

• The Possible Solution

• Endoscope only allows doctors to see the tissue
  using his/her eyes (3 photoreceptors)
• Biopsy, removal of tissue to be tested for
  cancer, is a necessary follow-up

• Attaching a polarization imaging sensor to the
  endoscope to see what the Mantis Shrimp would see
  (12 photoreceptors)
• Eliminate the need for biopsies

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Results on Mouse with Colon Cancer

• Applied fluorescent dye to the suspect cancer
  tissue
• Used the endoscope with the polarization imaging
  sensor

• Cancerous cells- blue
• Healthy cells-yellow
• Areas of uncertainty- all other colors

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Limitations

• When the doctor is removing the cancer, where
  will he/she stop cutting the tissue?
• Areas of uncertainty
• Lack of depth shown in the image
• Nanofabrication techniques and nanomaterials need
  to be more advanced
• Very expensive technology

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Works Cited

• Pappas, Stephanie. "Aggressive Mantis Shrimp Sees
  Color Like No Other." LiveScience. N.p., 23 Jan.
  2014. Web.
• Safford, Matt. "A Mantis Shrimp Inspires a New
  Camera for Detecting Cancer." Smithsonian. N.p.,
  3 Oct. 2014. Web.
• Spector, Dina. "No Other Animal In The World Sees
  Color Like The Mantis Shrimp - And Researchers
  Finally Know Why." Business Insider. N.p., 23
  Jan. 2014. Web.
• Yong, Ed. "The Mantis Shrimp Sees Like A
  Satellite." Phenomena The Mantis Shrimp Sees Like
  A Satellite Comments. N.p., 23 Jan. 2014. Web.
• York, Timothy. "Bioinspired Polarization Imaging
  Sensors From Circuits and Optics to Signal
  Processing Algorithms and Biomedical
  Applications." IEEE Xplore. N.p., 20 Aug. 2014.
  Web.