Longitudinal dark-field CT tracks lung microstructure changes over 12 weeks in mouse disease models

Longitudinal dark-field CT in mice revealed microstructural lung changes earlier than attenuation, with distinct trajectories in COPD and injury models, while attenuation remained stable. May serve as early biomarker.

• Dark-field signal showed model-specific temporal trajectories and greater variation than attenuation, reflecting microstructural changes.
• In inflammatory-injury model, pronounced left-right heterogeneity was observed; in COPD, inter-subject variability was captured with within-subject design.
• The dark-field coefficient changed earlier than attenuation, with findings consistent with terminal histology.

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