Vessel Metrics: A python based software tool for automated analysis of vascular structure in confocal imaging

Images contain a wealth of information that is often under analyzed in biological studies. Developmental models of vascular disease are a powerful way to quantify developmentally regulated vessel phenotypes to identify the roots of the disease process. We present vessel Metrics, a software tool specifically designed to analyze developmental vascular microscopy images that will expedite the analysis of vascular images and provide consistency between research groups. We developed a segmentation algorithm that robustly quantifies different image types, developmental stages, organisms, and disease models at a similar accuracy level to a human observer. We validate the algorithm on confocal, lightsheet, and two photon microscopy data in zebrafish. The tool accurately segments data taken by multiple scientists on varying microscopes. We validate vascular parameters such as vessel density, network length, and diameter, across developmental stages, genetic mutations, and drug treatments, and show a favorable comparison to other freely available software tools. Vessel Metrics reduces the time to analyze experimental results, improves repeatability within and between institutions, and expands the percentage of a given vascular network analyzable in experiments. Summary statement Vessel Metrics is an automated software tool designed to standardize and streamline the analysis of vascular microscopy images.