Groningen Reduction of Image Data:A Microbiological Image Processing System with Applications in Immunofluorescence and Morphometry

The interaction between the intestinal flora and the immune system is complex, and as yet little understood. The Groningen Reduction of Image Data (GRID) image processing system is a relatively new tool in the investigation of this interaction. The image processing approach allows measurement of morphological and immunological characteristics of faecal bacteria, which have not been cultured, and should therefore represent the flora in the intestinal lumen well. In this review, the main application programs of GRID in the field of bacterial morphology and (immuno-)fluorescence detection are presented. Its low cost hardware set-up, based on ordinary personal computers is described. Examples of the research done and data acquired with the system are given. Future plans include multi-colour fluorescence measurement. The system allows rapid quantification of morphology and immunofluorescence, and can combine both types of data in "fluoromorphometry": quantifying patterns of fluorescence as a function of shape. These patterns could lead to new insights into the interaction between intestinal flora and immune system, though the interpretation is as yet not simple