Fig. 1.

a) Polarized light imaging set up for examining distended ex vivo rat bladders. The ureters and urethra are ligated and the bladder is suspended by the urethra. The CCD and detection arm are along the z-axis, and the illumination arm is θ = 25° off angle with respect to the detection arm (it is 25° away from the z-axis). P₁ and P₂ are polarizers, QW₁ and QW₂ are quarter waveplates and L₁, L₂ and L₃ are lenses. The image is not to scale. b) Schematic showing the anatomy of the dorsal region of the bladder. Two areas of the dorsal region were imaged: the dorsal urethal (DU) and the dorsal dome (DD). c) Schematic showing the anatomy of the ventral region of the bladder. Two areas of the ventral region were imaged: the ventral urethal (VU) and the ventral dome (VD)