肝脏独特的解剖结构、循环系统和区域免疫特性，使其成为肿瘤发生和转移的高发部位。在生物体真实的系统环境下直观可视化地观察肝脏的区域免疫状态及其对肿瘤细胞的作用，是探寻肝脏肿瘤免疫治疗靶点和控制免疫激活程度的关键途径。光学分子成像在活体动态监测细胞与分子功能方面极具优势。然而，如何光学表征肝脏的区域免疫状态，如何将免疫系统作为一个真正的系统来研究，是研究者们所面临的技术瓶颈问题。基于此，本项目拟建立肝脏免疫状态的光学表征与可视化研究新方法，发展适用于活体内部脏器的跨层次光学成像技术体系。活体内动态监测肝脏和专职免疫器官内多种免疫细胞间的相互接触，免疫突触形成和肿瘤细胞的命运，以表征肝脏的区域免疫状态。进而，将组织结构、循环信息与免疫细胞的功能信息相关联，系统性研究区域免疫对肿瘤肝转移的作用。本项目将为揭示区域免疫特性与重大疾病的内在联系提供创新性的研究手段。

The liver is a high incidence site of tumorigenesis and metastasis, due to its unique anatomical structure, circulatory system, and regional immunity characterization. Visualization of liver regional immune status and its effect on tumor cells in the real system environment of living organism is the critical pathway to explore the tumor immunotherapeutic target and controlling the level of immune activation in liver. Optical molecular imaging has many advantages in dynamic monitoring the cellular and molecular function in vivo. However, how to optically characterizing the liver regional immune status and how to investigate the immune system as a real system are the bottleneck problems for optical imaging. Therefore, in this project we aimed to establish novel approaches of optical characterization and visualization for the liver regional immunity status, and develop the cross-level optical imaging techniques for living internal organs. To characterize the regional immunity status, we will dynamic monitor the interaction of multiple immunocytes, the formation of immune synapse, and the fate of tumor cells in liver and/or immune organs. Furthermore, the information of tissue structure and circulation will be associated with the functional information of immunocytes to systematic investigate the effect of regional immunity on tumor liver metastasis. Thus, our project will provide the innovational research techniques to reveal the internal relation between regional immunity characterization and serious diseases.