Nexus: Interactive Visual Exploration of 3D Spatial Connectivity for Tissue Analysis

• DOI: 10.31219/osf.io/nypmf_v1
• Publication Date: 2025-04-18T17:17:29Z
• Authors: Eric Moerth; Benjamin Beinder; Renata Raidou; Nils Gehlenborg
• Keywords: Interactive visual analysis

We introduce Nexus (Network-based EXploration and Connectivity Analysis for Understanding Spatial Tissue Organization), a method designed to provide unified network exploration interface the analysis of connectivity derived from high-resolution three-dimensional (3D) tissue imaging. Advancements in imaging technologies have revolutionized our ability map human bodyat unprecedented levels detail, enabling single cell-resolution functional units individual cells. This capability has significantly improved understanding organ function disease progression. A key challenge remains analyzing between structures at different scales, as they communicate through complex signaling pathways. addresses this two complementary components. The first is computational pipeline that generates surface meshes network-based abstractions segmented volumetric data, incorporating novel suggesting connections incomplete tubular meshes. second an interactive visualization tool synchronizes 3D spatial view with twoabstract views, facilitating comprehensive visual analysis. effectiveness demonstrated throughthree case studies: kidney glomeruli-nerve connectivity, investigating intraepithelial lesion interactions within pancreatic ducts,and exploring single-cell melanoma datasets. These studies underscore potential deeperinsights into organization its implications health disease. Source code web-based prototype implementation ofthe proposed will be made available upon publication.