Computational high-resolution optical imaging of the living human retina.

Abstract

High-resolution in vivo imaging is of great importance for the fields of biology and medicine. The introduction of hardware-based adaptive optics (HAO) has pushed the limits of optical imaging, enabling high-resolution near diffraction-limited imaging of previously unresolvable structures1,2. In ophthalmology, when combined with optical coherence tomography, HAO has enabled a detailed three-dimensional visualization of photoreceptor distributions3,4 and individual nerve fibre bundles5 in the living human retina. However, the introduction of HAO hardware and supporting software adds considerable complexity and cost to an imaging system, limiting the number of researchers and medical professionals who could benefit from the technology. Here we demonstrate a fully automated computational approach that enables high-resolution in vivo ophthalmic imaging without the need for HAO. The results demonstrate that computational methods in coherent microscopy are applicable in highly dynamic living systems.