Brillouin spectroscopy: From biomedical research to new generation pathology diagnosis

Brillouin spectroscopy has recently gained considerable interest within the biomedical field as an innovative tool to study mechanical properties in biology. The Brillouin effect is based on the inelastic scattering of photons caused by their interaction with thermodynamically driven acoustic modes or phonons and it is highly dependent on the material's elasticity. Therefore, Brillouin is a contactless, label-free optic approach to elastic and viscoelastic analysis that has enabled unprecedented analysis of ex vivo and in vivo mechanical behavior of several tissues with a micrometric resolution, paving the way to a promising future in clinical diagnosis. Here, we comprehensively review the different studies of this fast-moving field that have been performed up to date to provide a quick guide of the current literature. In addition, we offer a general view of Brillouin's biomedical potential to encourage its further development to reach its implementation as a feasible, cost-effective pathology diagnostic tool.The research was funded by the Ministerio de Ciencia, Innovación y Universidades, Instituto de Salud Carlos III grants PI18/00462; was co-financed by the European Regional Development Fund, “A way of making Europe”; and the CNIC is supported by the Ministerio de Ciencia, Innovación y Universidades and the Pro CNIC Foundation and is a Severo Ochoa Center of Excellence (SEV-2015-0505). The ICMM-CSIC was supported by the Ministerio de Ciencia, Innovación y Universidades under the project RTI2018-096918-B-C41

Review of in-vivo characterisation of corneal biomechanics

The study of corneal biomechanics in vivo has been evolving fast in recent years. While an organised corneal structure is necessary for its transparency, resistance to occasional external insults and bearing the intraocular pressure (IOP), which several clinically relevant events can disturb. This review focuses on three techniques that are available for clinical use, namely the Ocular Response Analyzer (Reichert Ophthalmic Instruments, Buffalo, NY, USA), the Corvis ST (Oculus Optikgeräte GmbH, Wetzlar, Germany) and the Brillouin Optical Scattering System (Intelon Optics Inc., Lexington, MA, USA). The principles and the main parameters of each device are discussed along with their strategies to improve accuracy in the IOP measurement, corneal ectasia diagnosis, evaluation of corneal cross-linking procedures, and planning of corneal refractive surgeries

From micro to nanostructure: an investigation into the connective tissue of the ageing human optic nerve head

The purpose of this thesis was to investigate the micro- and nanostructural changes of the optic nerve head (ONH) regions, namely lamina cribrosa (LC), peripapillary sclera (ppsclera) and region of insertion (RoIns) as a function of age and glaucoma. The microstructure of ageing and glaucomatous ONHs have been explored following nonlinear microscopy [two-photon excited fluorescence (TPEF) and second harmonic generation (SHG)]. Small-angle (SAXS) and wide-angle (WAXS) X-ray diffraction have been used to explore into the nanoarchitecture of collagen and elastic fibre in the ageing ONH. X-ray microtomography (XMT) was used to assess microstructural changes of the ONH in age and glaucoma. Micro- and nanomechanics have been explored following Brillouin microscopy and the combination of SAXS/WAXS, respectively. In the ageing ppsclera, collagen crimp period increased from 19.64 ± 6.41 µm at the age 2 to 22.04 ± 10 µm at the age of 88 years (p=0.004). Elastic fibre content significantly increased from 0% in the 2 years old up to 29% in the 88 years old (p=0.003) in the LC and from 0% up to 49% (p=0.019) in the region of insertion. Significant increase in collagen fibril diameter [from 98.98 nm ± 0.9 at 22 years old to 113.01 nm ± 1.5 at the age of 85 (p=0.026)] and intermolecular Bragg spacing [from 1.44 nm ± 0.12 to 1.53 nm ± 0.32 (p=0.022)] were found along with a decreased interfibrillar spacing [from 37.63 nm ± 7.22 to 12.6 nm ± 4.54 (p=0.003)]. Collagen crimp significantly increased in the LC and region of insertion in moderate (p=0.013, p=0.013) and advanced (p=0.021, p=0.033) glaucoma. XMT enabled the discrimination of the connective tissue from the surrounding neuronal pores and 3D reconstruction of XMT dataset showed altered LC and pore shape in glaucomatous ONH. In conclusion, changes in the connective tissue of the ageing and glaucomatous ONH at both micro- and nanostructure aided in a better understanding on how the ONH responds to intraocular pressure elevation

Nanocolloids for Nanomedicine and Drug Delivery

This Special Issue highlights novel nanocolloids like magnetic nanoparticles, nanomicelles, nanoliposomes, nanocapsules, and nanoclays, stimulating novel interests and ideas in research groups involved in the development of novel nanotools within the different areas of nanomaterials. The publication of original articles contributes to scientific progress in the area of personalized medicine and further stimulates the entering into clinical praxis of such new nanosystems

Microscopy Conference 2017 (MC 2017) - Proceedings

Das Dokument enthält die Kurzfassungen der Beiträge aller Teilnehmer an der Mikroskopiekonferenz "MC 2017", die vom 21. bis 25.08.2017, in Lausanne stattfand

Microscopy Conference 2017 (MC 2017) - Proceedings

Das Dokument enthält die Kurzfassungen der Beiträge aller Teilnehmer an der Mikroskopiekonferenz "MC 2017", die vom 21. bis 25.08.2017, in Lausanne stattfand

Charakterisierung von ultrakurzen Laserpulsen mittels Einzelschuss-VAMPIRE

Für Bestimmung des Feldverlaufs von Femtosekunden-Laserpulsen existieren viele Verfahren. Das verhältnismäßig neue VAMPIRE-Verfahren ist das erste, bei dem auch komplexe Pulse eindeutig bestimmt werden können. Zur Untersuchung einzelner Laserpulse wurde in dieser Arbeit erstmals ein Einzelschuss-VAMPIRE realisiert. Der vorgestellte VAMPIRE kann Pulse ab 50 fs im Spektralbereich von 700 nm bis 1000 nm eindeutig bestimmen. Dabei konnten Pulse mit nur 200 pJ bestimmt werden, allerdings über viele Pulse integriert. Bei höheren Energien genügt ein einzelner Puls für seine Bestimmung