New in vivo optical molecular imaging modalities

Recent advances in optical molecular imaging technology have led to great improvements in image resolution, and are increasingly being applied to non-invasively delineate in vivo physiological and pathological processes at cellular and molecular levels. It provides the potential for the understanding of integrative biology, earlier detection and characterization of disease and the evaluation of treatment. This paper focuses on the typical in vivo optical molecular imaging modalities as well as their potential clinical applications and future development.