德国伯恩大学Koen J. A. Martens等研究人员表明，相对距离的时序分析（TARDIS）是单粒子跟踪的一种稳健、无参数的替代方法。该研究于2024年1月15日在线发表于国际一流学术期刊《自然—方法学》。

研究人员介绍了单粒子追踪的一种稳健、无参数的替代方法：相对距离的时序分析（TARDIS）。在TARDIS中，随着时间移动的增加，定位之间会进行全对全的距离分析。这些成对的距离代表源自同一粒子的粒子内距离或源自不相关粒子的粒子间距离，并通过分析拟合获得粒子动态的定量指标。研究人员在不同复杂度的模拟和实验数据上展示了TARDIS优于跟踪算法的性能。

研究人员进一步表明，TARDIS在粒子密度高、发射器闪烁强烈或假阳性定位等复杂条件下都能准确地执行任务，而且实际上受到了定位算法能力的限制。TARDIS的稳健性使测量时间缩短了五倍而不会丢失信息。

据悉，在单粒子跟踪中，对单个粒子进行定位并随时间跟踪，以探测它们的扩散和分子相互作用。轨迹的时间交叉、闪烁粒子和假阳性定位带来了计算上的挑战，一直难以克服。

附：英文原文

Title: Temporal analysis of relative distances (TARDIS) is a robust, parameter-free alternative to single-particle tracking

Author: Martens, Koen J. A., Turkowyd, Bartosz, Hohlbein, Johannes, Endesfelder, Ulrike

Issue&Volume: 2024-01-15

Abstract: In single-particle tracking, individual particles are localized and tracked over time to probe their diffusion and molecular interactions. Temporal crossing of trajectories, blinking particles, and false-positive localizations present computational challenges that have remained difficult to overcome. Here we introduce a robust, parameter-free alternative to single-particle tracking: temporal analysis of relative distances (TARDIS). In TARDIS, an all-to-all distance analysis between localizations is performed with increasing temporal shifts. These pairwise distances represent either intraparticle distances originating from the same particle, or interparticle distances originating from unrelated particles, and are fitted analytically to obtain quantitative measures on particle dynamics. We showcase that TARDIS outperforms tracking algorithms, benchmarked on simulated and experimental data of varying complexity. We further show that TARDIS performs accurately in complex conditions characterized by high particle density, strong emitter blinking or false-positive localizations, and is in fact limited by the capabilities of localization algorithms. TARDIS’ robustness enables fivefold shorter measurements without loss of information.

DOI: 10.1038/s41592-023-02149-7

Source: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41592-023-02149-7