Object level association
In this page we give an overview of the distance map-based approach for defining object-level associations
Overview
We present a simple, yet general framework for object-level association between biological objects and/or elements present in the different channels of multi-channel images. The proposed object-level association framework assumes that any association rule is defined between two elements. The first one, which we call the reference element, is the segmented object (such as cells/nuclei) for which we want to quantify some associative relationships. The second element, which we call the target element, is a biologically meaningful element in a different channel. The target element does not have to be segmented or undergone under any kind of processing.
Two association examples are shown in Figure 1 below. In both examples, the reference element is a segmented cell nucleus. However, the target element in the first example (panel A) is a segmented blood vessel. Hence, association occurs between two segmented objects. In the second example (panel B), the target element is a molecular signal (yellow) that may surround some cell nuclei and available in a different channel.
