Advanced in-vivo imaging through implantable micro-optics integrated on a miniaturized imaging window

We developed an implantable integrated imaging window made of microlenses and microscaffolds to perform advance non-linear excitation microscopy on living organisms. This device, enhanced with fluorescence beacons, acts as an innovative in-situ microscope objective correcting spherical aberrations for high-resolution longitudinal observations. Prototyped by using a novel streamlined protocol involving the two-photon polymerization (2PP) of the biocompatible photoresist SZ2080, the process consists in the fabrication of the microscaffolds and microlenses in a continuous sequence, improving manufacturing efficiency and precision. We validated the device in-vivo by implantation in chicken embryos, achieving high-quality imaging of integrated tissues by non-linear fluorescence microscopy. These findings pave the way for the real-time, continuous in-vivo observation of complex biological processes, enabling for instance the evaluation of capillary damage due to drug toxicity.