RESUMO
Rapid advancement of novel optical spectroscopy and imaging systems relies on the availability of well-characterised and reproducible protocols for phantoms as a standard for the validation of the technique. The tissue-mimicking phantoms are also used to investigate photon transport in biological samples before clinical trials that require well-characterized phantoms with known optical properties (reduced scattering (µ's) and absorption (µa) coefficients). However, at present, there is limited literature available providing well-characterized phantom recipes considering various biomarkers and tested over a wide range of optical properties covering most of the human organs and applicable to multimodal optical spectroscopy. In this study, gelatin-based phantoms were designed to simulate tissue optical properties where India ink and Intralipid were used as absorbing and scattering agents, respectively. Multiple biomarkers were simulated by varying the gelatin concentration to mimic the change in tissue hydration and hydroxyapatite concentration to mimic bone signature. The recipe along with biomarkers were optimized and characterised over a wide range of optical properties (µa from 0.1 to 0.5 cm-1; µ's from 5 to 15 cm-1) relevant to human tissue using a broadband time-domain diffuse optical spectrometer. The data collected showed a linear relationship between the concentration of ink/lipids and µa/µ's values with negligible coupling between µa and µ's values. While being stored in a refrigerator post-fabrication, the µa and µ's did not change significantly (<4% coefficient of variation, 'CV') over three weeks. The reproducibility in three different sets was validated experimentally and found to be strong with a variation of ≤6% CV in µa and ≤9% CV in µ's. From the 3 × 3 data of µa and µ's matrices, one can deduce the recipe for any target absorption or reduced scattering coefficient. The applicability of the phantoms was tested using diffuse reflectance and Raman spectrometers. A use case application was demonstrated for Raman spectroscopy where hydration and hydroxyapatite phantoms were designed to characterize the Raman instrument. The Raman instrument could detect the change in 1% of HA and 5% of hydration. This study presents a first-of-its-kind robust, well-characterized, multi-biomarker phantom recipe for calibration and benchmarking of multimodal spectroscopy devices assisting in their clinical translation.
Assuntos
Gelatina , Análise Espectral Raman , Humanos , Reprodutibilidade dos Testes , Biomarcadores , DurapatitaRESUMO
Early diagnosis of oral cancer is critical to improve the survival rate of patients. Raman spectroscopy, a non-invasive spectroscopic technique, has shown potential in identifying early-stage oral cancer biomarkers in the oral cavity environment. However, inherently weak signals necessitate highly sensitive detectors, which restricts widespread usage due to high setup costs. In this research, the fabrication and assembly of a customised Raman system that can adapt three different configurations for the in vivo and ex vivo analysis is reported. This novel design will help in reducing the cost required to have multiple Raman instruments specific for a given application. First, we demonstrated the capability of a customized microscope for acquiring Raman signals from a single cell with high signal-to-noise ratio. Generally, when working with liquid samples with low concentration of analytes (such as saliva) under a microscope, excitation light interacts with a small sample volume, which may not be representative of whole sample. To address this issue, we have designed a novel long-path transmission set-up, which was found to be sensitive towards low concentration of analytes in aqueous solution. We further demonstrated that the same Raman system can be incorporated with the multimodal fibre optical probe to collect in vivo data from oral tissues. In summary, this flexible, portable, multi-configuration Raman system has the potential to provide a cost-effective solution for complete screening of precancer oral lesions.
Assuntos
Neoplasias Bucais , Humanos , Neoplasias Bucais/diagnóstico , Razão Sinal-Ruído , Análise Espectral Raman/métodos , MicroscopiaRESUMO
Non-linear materials such as upconverting nanoparticles (UCNPs) are emerging technology with fast-growing applications in various fields. The power density dependence of the emission quantum yield (QY) of these non-linear materials makes them challenging to characterize using currently available commercial QY systems. We propose a multimodal system to measure QY over a wide dynamic range (1:104), which takes into account and compensates for various distorting parameters (scattering, beam profile, inner filter effect and bandwidth of emission lines). For this, a beam shaping approach enabling speckle free beam profiles of two different sizes (530 µm or 106 µm) was employed. This provides low noise high-resolution QY curves. In particular, at low power densities, a signal-to-noise ratio of >50 was found. A Tm-based core-shell UCNP with excitation at 976 nm and emission at 804 nm was investigated with the system.
RESUMO
The in vivo diagnosis and monitoring of pulmonary disorders (caused for example by emphysema, Covid-19, immature lung tissue in infants) could be effectively supported by the non-invasive sensing of the lung through light. With this purpose, we investigated the feasibility of probing the lung by means of time-resolved diffuse optics, leveraging the increased depth (a few centimeters) attained by photons collected after prolonged propagation time (a few nanoseconds). We present an initial study that includes measurements performed on 5 healthy volunteers during a breathing protocol, using a time-resolved broadband diffuse optical spectroscopy system. Those measurements were carried out across the spectral range of 600-1100 nm at a source-detector distance of 3 cm, and at 820 nm over a longer distance (7-9 cm). The preliminary analysis of the in vivo data with a simplified homogeneous model revealed a maximum probing depth of 2.6-3.9 cm, suitable for reaching the lung. Furthermore, we observed variations in signal associated with respiration, particularly evident at long photon propagation times. However, challenges stemming from both intra- and inter-subject variability, along with inconsistencies potentially arising from conflicting scattering and absorption effects on the collected signal, hindered a clear interpretation. Aspects that require further investigation for a more comprehensive understanding are outlined.
Assuntos
Óptica e Fotônica , Fótons , Humanos , Análise Espectral/métodos , Pulmão/diagnóstico por imagemRESUMO
Breast cancer is the second leading cause of cancer death in women. Current clinical treatment stratification practices open up an avenue for significant improvements, potentially through advancements in immunohistochemistry (IHC) assessments of biopsies. We report a high contrast upconverting nanoparticles (UCNP) labeling to distinguish different levels of human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) in HER2 control pellet arrays (CPAs) and HER2-positive breast cancer tissue. A simple Fourier transform algorithm trained on CPAs was sufficient to provide a semi-quantitative HER2 assessment tool for breast cancer tissues. The UCNP labeling had a signal-to-background ratio of 40 compared to the negative control.
RESUMO
Phantoms simultaneously mimicking anatomical and optical properties of real tissues can play a pivotal role for improving dosimetry algorithms. The aim of the paper is to design and develop a hybrid phantom model that builds up on the strengths of solid and liquid phantoms for mimicking various anatomical structures for prostate cancer photodynamic therapy (PDT) dosimetry validation. The model comprises of a photosensitizer-embedded gelatin lesion within a liquid Intralipid prostate shape that is surrounded by a solid silicone outer shell. The hybrid phantom was well characterized for optical properties. The final assembled phantom was also evaluated for fluorescence tomographic reconstruction in conjunction with SpectraCure's IDOSE software. The developed model can lead to advancements in dosimetric evaluations. This would improve PDT outlook as a clinical treatment modality and boost phantom based standardization of biophotonic devices globally.
RESUMO
In this work, we used a hybrid time domain near-infrared spectroscopy (TD-NIRS) and diffuse correlation spectroscopy (DCS) device to retrieve hemoglobin and blood flow oscillations of skeletal muscle microvasculature. We focused on very low (VLF) and low-frequency (LF) oscillations (i.e., frequency lower than 0.145â Hz), that are related to myogenic, neurogenic and endothelial activities. We measured power spectral density (PSD) of blood flow and hemoglobin concentration in four muscles (thenar eminence, plantar fascia, sternocleidomastoid and forearm) of 14 healthy volunteers to highlight possible differences in microvascular hemodynamic oscillations. We observed larger PSDs for blood flow compared to hemoglobin concentration, in particular in case of distal muscles (i.e., thenar eminence and plantar fascia). Finally, we compared the PSDs measured on the thenar eminence of healthy subjects with the ones measured on a septic patient in the intensive care unit: lower power in the endothelial-dependent frequency band, and larger power in the myogenic ones were observed in the septic patient, in accordance with previous works based on laser doppler flowmetry.
RESUMO
Time (or path length) resolved speckle contrast optical spectroscopy (TD-SCOS) at quasi-null (2.85 mm) source-detector separation was developed and demonstrated. The method was illustrated by in vivo studies on the forearm muscle of an adult subject. The results have shown that selecting longer photon path lengths results in higher hyperemic blood flow change and a faster return to baseline by a factor of two after arterial cuff occlusion when compared to SCOS without time resolution. This indicates higher sensitivity to the deeper muscle tissue. In the long run, this approach may allow the use of simpler and cheaper detector arrays compared to time resolved diffuse correlation spectroscopy that are based on readily available technologies. Hence, TD-SCOS may increase the performance and decrease cost of devices for continuous non-invasive, deep tissue blood flow monitoring.
RESUMO
SIGNIFICANCE: Gas in scattering media absorption spectroscopy (GASMAS) is a technique for gas sensing in cavities surrounded by scattering materials. GASMAS could be translated to the clinic to monitor lung function continuously and noninvasively in neonates. Accurate tissue phantoms are essential to assess the strengths and limitations of gas spectroscopy in gas-containing cavities in the human body. AIM: The aim is to develop a detailed protocol to produce a long-lasting, multistructure tissue phantom of the thorax of a neonate. The phantom mimics the geometry and the optical properties of the main organs of the thorax and has an empty pulmonary cavity that facilitates GASMAS monitoring of gas content. APPROACH: The anatomic geometry of heart, lungs, bones, muscle, fat, and skin was obtained from a neonatal computed tomography scan. Once segmented, organs were 3D printed and used to create negative rubber molds. The entire thorax was built in phantom material (silicone as matrix, black ink as absorber, and silica microspheres as scatters) by placing all phantom organs inside the muscle structure. Our phantom recipe was customized by mixing specific ratios of ink and spheres to match the optical properties of the different organs that were consider to be homogeneous. RESULTS: An anthropomorphic thorax phantom with the desired optical properties (µa and µs') at 760 nm was built and used to obtain "transdermal" GASMAS measurements of oxygen content within the lung cavity. CONCLUSION: A protocol to build a robust optical phantom of the thorax of a neonate was used to conduct benchtop studies. This recipe can be implemented to reproduce the geometry and optical properties of any human or animal tissue.
Assuntos
Recém-Nascido Prematuro , Tórax , Humanos , Recém-Nascido , Pulmão/diagnóstico por imagem , Imagens de Fantasmas , Tórax/diagnóstico por imagem , Tomografia Computadorizada por Raios XRESUMO
The human abdominal region is very heterogeneous and stratified with subcutaneous adipose tissue (SAT) being one of the primary layers. Monitoring this tissue is crucial for diagnostic purposes and to estimate the effects of interventions like caloric restriction or bariatric surgery. However, the layered nature of the abdomen poses a major problem in monitoring the SAT in a non-invasive way by diffuse optics. In this work, we examine the possibility of using multi-distance broadband time domain diffuse optical spectroscopy to assess the human abdomen non-invasively. Broadband absorption and reduced scattering spectra from 600 to 1100 nm were acquired at 1, 2 and 3 cm source-detector distances on ten healthy adult male volunteers, and then analyzed using a homogeneous model as an initial step to understand the origin of the detected signal and how tissue should be modeled to derive quantitative information. The results exhibit a clear influence of the layered nature on the estimated optical properties. Clearly, the underlying muscle makes a relevant contribution in the spectra measured at the largest source-detector distance for thinner subjects related to blood and water absorption. More unexpectedly, also the thin superficial skin layer yields a direct contamination, leading to higher water content and steeper reduced scattering spectra at the shortest distance, as confirmed also by simulations. In conclusion, provided that data analysis properly accounts for the complex tissue structure, diffuse optics may offer great potential for the continuous non-invasive monitoring of abdominal fat.
RESUMO
We present a systematic characterization of the optical properties (µa and µs') of nine representative ex vivo porcine tissues over a broadband spectrum (650-1100 nm). We applied time-resolved diffuse optical spectroscopy measurements for recovering the optical properties of porcine tissues depicting a realistic representation of the tissue heterogeneity and morphology likely to be found in different ex vivo tissues. The results demonstrate a large spectral and inter-tissue variation of optical properties. The data can be exploited for planning or simulating ex vivo experiments with various biophotonics techniques, or even to construct artificial structures mimicking specific pathologies exploiting the wide assortment in optical properties.
RESUMO
In the last years bioresorbable materials are gaining increasing interest for building implantable optical components for medical devices. In this work we show the fabrication of bioresorbable optical fibers designed for diffuse optics applications, featuring large core diameter (up to 200 µm) and numerical aperture (0.17) to maximize the collection efficiency of diffused light. We demonstrate the suitability of bioresorbable fibers for time-domain diffuse optical spectroscopy firstly checking the intrinsic performances of the setup by acquiring the instrument response function. We then validate on phantoms the use of bioresorbable fibers by applying the MEDPHOT protocol to assess the performance of the system in measuring optical properties (namely, absorption and scattering coefficients) of homogeneous media. Further, we show an ex-vivo validation on a chicken breast by measuring the absorption and scattering spectra in the 500-1100 nm range using interstitially inserted bioresorbable fibers. This work represents a step toward a new way to look inside the body using optical fibers that can be implanted in patients. These fibers could be useful either for diagnostic (e. g. for monitoring the evolution after surgical interventions) or treatment (e. g. photodynamic therapy) purposes. Picture: Microscopy image of the 100 µm core bioresorbable fiber.
Assuntos
Fibras Ópticas , Absorção Fisico-Química , Fosfatos de Cálcio/química , Difusão , Vidro/química , Modelos Lineares , Fatores de Tempo , Temperatura de TransiçãoRESUMO
Thyroid plays an important role in the endocrine system of the human body. Its characterization by diffuse optics can open new path ways in the non-invasive diagnosis of thyroid pathologies. Yet, the absorption spectra of tyrosine and thyroglobulin-key tissue constituents specific to the thyroid organ-in the visible to near infrared range are not fully available. Here, we present the optical characterization of tyrosine (powder), thyroglobulin (granular form) and iodine (aqueous solution) using a time domain broadband diffuse optical spectrometer in the 550-1350 nm range. Various systematic errors caused by physics of photo migration and sample inherent properties were effectively suppressed by means of advanced time domain diffuse optical methods. A brief comparison with various other known tissue constituents is presented, which reveals key spectral regions for the quantification of the thyroid absorbers in an in vivo scenario.
Assuntos
Iodo/análise , Análise Espectral/métodos , Tireoglobulina/análise , Glândula Tireoide/diagnóstico por imagem , Nódulo da Glândula Tireoide/patologia , Tirosina/análise , Humanos , Iodo/química , Fenômenos Ópticos , Tireoglobulina/química , Tirosina/químicaRESUMO
Elastin is a key structural protein of dynamic connective tissues widely found in the extracellular matrix of skin, arteries, lungs and ligaments. It is responsible for a range of diseases related to aging of biological tissues. The optical characterization of elastin can open new opportunities for its investigation in biomedical studies. In this work, we present the absorption spectra of elastin using a broadband (550-1350nm) diffuse optical spectrometer. Distortions caused by fluorescence and finite bandwidth of the laser source on estimated absorption were effectively accounted for in measurements and data analysis and compensated. A comprehensive summary and comparison between collagen and elastin is presented, highlighting distinct features for its accurate quantification in biological applications.
Assuntos
Elastina/química , Animais , Bovinos , Elastina/metabolismo , Matriz Extracelular/metabolismo , Espectrofotometria InfravermelhoRESUMO
Non-invasive in vivo diffuse optical characterization of human bone opens a new possibility of diagnosing bone related pathologies. We present an in vivo characterization performed on seventeen healthy subjects at six different superficial bone locations: radius distal, radius proximal, ulna distal, ulna proximal, trochanter and calcaneus. A tailored diffuse optical protocol for high penetration depth combined with the rather superficial nature of considered tissues ensured the effective probing of the bone tissue. Measurements were performed using a broadband system for Time-Resolved Diffuse Optical Spectroscopy (TRS) to assess mean absorption and reduced scattering spectra in the 600-1200 nm range and Diffuse Correlation Spectroscopy (DCS) to monitor microvascular blood flow. Significant variations among tissue constituents were found between different locations; with radius distal rich of collagen, suggesting it as a prominent location for bone related measurements, and calcaneus bone having highest blood flow among the body locations being considered. By using TRS and DCS together, we are able to probe the perfusion and oxygen consumption of the tissue without any contrast agents. Therefore, we predict that these methods will be able to evaluate the impairment of the oxygen metabolism of the bone at the point-of-care.