Numerous methods of observation of biological samples (satellite, microscopy, macro, microarray…), provide digital images, which represent the source of information for scientific analysis. Simple visual inspection of the images is a comparative analysis that provides qualitative information of samples but the scientific method requires the development of methods for the quantitative analysis that allow to obtain objectively the maximum of information from images.
The objective analysis of digital image requires a comprehensive strategy at all stages of the image: 1) the acquisition is critical to ensure the technical reliability of the images and the sampling procedure will condition the statistical value of information, 2) the image processing is essential to present the results without introducing artifacts and 3) the analysis of the images requires computational methods to obtain a specific binarization that allow to the recognition of specific structures in the image and its morphometric quantification, the study of populations or the densitometric analysis.
Bioimaging offers a programme for dealing with the study of biological images with a basic content of fundamentals of digital imaging and extensive practical experience in acquisition, processing, and analysis of images.