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A 3D‐printed optical microscope for low‐cost histological imaging.

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Title: A 3D‐printed optical microscope for low‐cost histological imaging.
Authors: Christopher, Jay1 (AUTHOR), Craig, Rebecca2 (AUTHOR), McHugh, Rebecca E.3 (AUTHOR), Roe, Andrew J.3 (AUTHOR), Bauer, Ralf1 (AUTHOR), Patton, Brian2 (AUTHOR), McConnell, Gail4 (AUTHOR), Rooney, Liam M.4 (AUTHOR) liam.rooney@strath.ac.uk
Source: Journal of Microscopy. Jun2025, Vol. 298 Issue 3, p274-282. 9p.
Subjects: Optical microscopes, Histology, Three-dimensional printing, Diagnostic services, Imaging systems, Customization, Cell imaging, Open source software
Abstract: We present the manufacture and characterisation of a 3D‐printed, low‐cost optical microscope using both a 3D‐printed chassis and 3D‐printed illumination and imaging optics. The required commercial components, consisting of a basic camera for image acquisition and light emitting diode controlled by a Raspberry Pi for illumination, are integrated into the 3D‐printed microscope with the full design shown for ease of replication. Our 3D‐printed microscope uses a single 3D‐printed objective lens with a 2.9× magnification and a numerical aperture of 0.07. To benchmark the imaging performance of the system, we used standard test targets and histological specimens, namely, a Giemsa‐stained blood smear sample and a thin section of mouse kidney stained with haemotoxylin and eosin. We demonstrated that subcellular resolution was obtained, and we corroborated this by imaging individual red blood cells and intricate anatomical details of the stained mouse kidney section. All of this was achieved using entirely 3D‐printed hardware and optics, at a fraction of the cost of a commercial bright‐field microscope, while presenting remarkable potential for customisation and increased accessibility for diagnostic imaging applications. LAY DESCRIPTION: 3D printing has become a useful tool for fast, reproducible and accessible manufacturing of optical components and microscope hardware, but often is only used to part‐build imaging setups or specimen holders. We have combined a 3D‐printed microscope body with transparent 3D‐printed lenses to produce the first fully 3D‐printed microscope setup, which can be made using open‐source designs and low‐cost 3D printers. Each microscope takes only a few hours to manufacture and has a total manufacturing cost of £7.00, opposed to the thousands of pounds that a commercial microscope may cost. We tested the performance of our fully 3D‐printed microscope using standard optical verification approaches, using microscopic rulers and resolution test targets to determine the magnification and resolution of the system. We also demonstrated the utility of our fully 3D‐printed microscope to histology imaging, using commonly found clinical specimens such as blood smears and stained tissue sections. The 3D‐printed microscope could resolve individual blood cells across a 1.7 mm field of view and detecting anatomical features in thin kidney tissue sections. These applications show great promise for diagnostic imaging in the field where users can easily design, manufacture and implement the low‐cost microscope in low‐resource settings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
Copyright of Journal of Microscopy is the property of Wiley-Blackwell and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
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  Data: A 3D‐printed optical microscope for low‐cost histological imaging.
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Christopher%2C+Jay%22">Christopher, Jay</searchLink><relatesTo>1</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Craig%2C+Rebecca%22">Craig, Rebecca</searchLink><relatesTo>2</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22McHugh%2C+Rebecca+E%2E%22">McHugh, Rebecca E.</searchLink><relatesTo>3</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Roe%2C+Andrew+J%2E%22">Roe, Andrew J.</searchLink><relatesTo>3</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Bauer%2C+Ralf%22">Bauer, Ralf</searchLink><relatesTo>1</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Patton%2C+Brian%22">Patton, Brian</searchLink><relatesTo>2</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22McConnell%2C+Gail%22">McConnell, Gail</searchLink><relatesTo>4</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Rooney%2C+Liam+M%2E%22">Rooney, Liam M.</searchLink><relatesTo>4</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<i> liam.rooney@strath.ac.uk</i>
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="JN" term="%22Journal+of+Microscopy%22">Journal of Microscopy</searchLink>. Jun2025, Vol. 298 Issue 3, p274-282. 9p.
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Optical+microscopes%22">Optical microscopes</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Histology%22">Histology</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Three-dimensional+printing%22">Three-dimensional printing</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Diagnostic+services%22">Diagnostic services</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Imaging+systems%22">Imaging systems</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Customization%22">Customization</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Cell+imaging%22">Cell imaging</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Open+source+software%22">Open source software</searchLink>
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  Label: Abstract
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  Data: We present the manufacture and characterisation of a 3D‐printed, low‐cost optical microscope using both a 3D‐printed chassis and 3D‐printed illumination and imaging optics. The required commercial components, consisting of a basic camera for image acquisition and light emitting diode controlled by a Raspberry Pi for illumination, are integrated into the 3D‐printed microscope with the full design shown for ease of replication. Our 3D‐printed microscope uses a single 3D‐printed objective lens with a 2.9× magnification and a numerical aperture of 0.07. To benchmark the imaging performance of the system, we used standard test targets and histological specimens, namely, a Giemsa‐stained blood smear sample and a thin section of mouse kidney stained with haemotoxylin and eosin. We demonstrated that subcellular resolution was obtained, and we corroborated this by imaging individual red blood cells and intricate anatomical details of the stained mouse kidney section. All of this was achieved using entirely 3D‐printed hardware and optics, at a fraction of the cost of a commercial bright‐field microscope, while presenting remarkable potential for customisation and increased accessibility for diagnostic imaging applications. LAY DESCRIPTION: 3D printing has become a useful tool for fast, reproducible and accessible manufacturing of optical components and microscope hardware, but often is only used to part‐build imaging setups or specimen holders. We have combined a 3D‐printed microscope body with transparent 3D‐printed lenses to produce the first fully 3D‐printed microscope setup, which can be made using open‐source designs and low‐cost 3D printers. Each microscope takes only a few hours to manufacture and has a total manufacturing cost of £7.00, opposed to the thousands of pounds that a commercial microscope may cost. We tested the performance of our fully 3D‐printed microscope using standard optical verification approaches, using microscopic rulers and resolution test targets to determine the magnification and resolution of the system. We also demonstrated the utility of our fully 3D‐printed microscope to histology imaging, using commonly found clinical specimens such as blood smears and stained tissue sections. The 3D‐printed microscope could resolve individual blood cells across a 1.7 mm field of view and detecting anatomical features in thin kidney tissue sections. These applications show great promise for diagnostic imaging in the field where users can easily design, manufacture and implement the low‐cost microscope in low‐resource settings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
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  Data: <i>Copyright of Journal of Microscopy is the property of Wiley-Blackwell and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract.</i> (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
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      – Type: doi
        Value: 10.1111/jmi.13398
    Languages:
      – Code: eng
        Text: English
    PhysicalDescription:
      Pagination:
        PageCount: 9
        StartPage: 274
    Subjects:
      – SubjectFull: Optical microscopes
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Histology
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Three-dimensional printing
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Diagnostic services
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Imaging systems
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Customization
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Cell imaging
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Open source software
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      – TitleFull: A 3D‐printed optical microscope for low‐cost histological imaging.
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              M: 06
              Text: Jun2025
              Type: published
              Y: 2025
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