Observation system
A fixed region at an outer periphery or an inner periphery of a sample that has a three-dimensional structure is selectively analyzed with accuracy. Provided is an observation system including a CPU that recognizes the 3D shape of an observation target, such as a spheroid, from a 3D image of cells, that sets a 3D mask of which the radial distance from a circumscribed surface of the recognized 3D shape is fixed over the entire region of the circumscribed surface and of which the shape is similar to the circumscribed surface, and that identifies a cell contained inside the set 3D mask.
1. An observation system comprising at least one processor that is provided with hardware,
wherein the at least one processor is configured to perform control so as to:
recognize a 3D shape of an observation target from a 3D image of a cell cluster formed by an aggregation of a plurality of cells serving as the observation target;
set a similar region a distance of which in a radial direction from a circumscribed surface of the recognized 3D shape is fixed over an entire region of the circumscribed surface and a shape of which is similar to the circumscribed surface, the similar region being set according to a thickness, that is specified by a user, in the radial direction of the similar region;
identify a cell that is contained inside the set similar region or a cell component that constitutes the cell; and
display, on a display, at least one cross-sectional image of the 3D image on which the similar region and the cell or cell component that is contained inside the similar region is displayed in an overlapping manner.
2. The observation system according to claim 1 , further comprising a storage that stores at least one computer program to be executed by the at least one processor.
3. The observation system according to claim 1 , further comprising an input device that is configured to accept input from the user,
wherein the at least one processor is further configured to perform control so as to set the similar region according to a distance, that is specified by the user, in the radial direction from the circumscribed surface, and
wherein each of the thickness and the distance is specified by the user using the input device.
4. The observation system according to claim 3 , wherein the at least one processor is further configured to perform control so as to extract the cell or the cell component that is contained inside the similar region and to output information about the extracted cell or cell component.
5. The observation system according to claim 1 , further comprising the display,
wherein the at least one processor is further configured to perform control so as to display, on the display, three cross-sectional images that constitute the 3D image and that are perpendicular to one another, in association with one another, and
wherein the at least one processor is further configured to perform control so as to display the similar region and the cell or the cell component that is contained inside the similar region in an overlapping manner on the respective cross-sectional images displayed on the display in such a way that the cell or the cell component that is contained inside the similar region is displayed in a manner distinguishable from the cell or the cell component that is contained outside the similar region.
6. The observation system according to claim 1 , wherein the at least one processor is further configured to perform control so as to:
recognize the 3D shape of the cell cluster;
set the similar region inside the circumscribed surface of the cell cluster; and
identify the cell that is contained inside the set similar region.
7. The observation system according to claim 1 , wherein the at least one processor is further configured to perform control so as to:
recognize the 3D shape of a nucleus of the cell;
set the similar region outside the circumscribed surface of the nucleus of the cell; and
identify the cell component that is contained inside the set similar region.
8. A non-transitory computer-readable medium that stores a computer-readable program for implementing a control method for controlling an observation system, the method comprising:
recognizing a 3D shape of an observation target from a 3D image of a cell cluster formed by an aggregation of a plurality of cells serving as the observation target;
setting a similar region distance of which in a radial direction from a circumscribed surface of the recognized 3D shape is fixed over an entire region of the circumscribed surface and a shape of which is similar to the circumscribed surface, the similar region being set according to a thickness, that is specified by a user, in the radial direction of the similar region;
identifying a cell that is contained inside the set similar region or a cell component that constitutes the cell; and
displaying, on a display, at least one cross-sectional image of the 3D image on which the similar region and the cell or cell component that is contained inside the similar region is displayed in an overlapping manner.