Accuracy verification of protoacoustic measurements in a heterogeneous phantom by an optical hydrophone.

Background: Protoacoustics has emerged as a promising real-time range measurement method for proton therapy. Optical hydrophones (OHs) are considered suitable to detect protoacoustic waves owing to their ultracompact size and high sensitivity. In our previous research, we demonstrated that the time-of-arrival (TOA) measured by an OH showed good agreement with the simulated ground truth in a homogeneous medium.

Label-free differentiation of functional zones in mature mouse placenta using micro-Raman imaging.

In histopathology, it is highly crucial to have chemical and structural information about tissues. Additionally, the segmentation of zones within a tissue plays a vital role in investigating the functions of these regions for better diagnosis and treatment. The placenta plays a vital role in embryonic and fetal development and in diagnosing some diseases associated with its dysfunction.

Examination of annulus fibrosus and nucleus pulposus in cervical and lumbar intervertebral disc herniation patients by scanning acoustic microscopy, scanning electron microscopy and energy dispersive spectroscopy.

Intervertebral disc herniation (IVDH) is observed in humans as a result of the alteration of annulus fibrous (AF) and nucleus pulposus (NP) tissue compositions in intervertebral discs. In this study, we studied the feasibility of scanning acoustic microscopy (SAM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) in characterizing the herniated segments of AF and NP tissues from male and female patients. SAM determined the acoustic property variations in AF and NP tissues by calculating the acoustic impedance values of samples of 15 patients.

Technical note: Application of an optical hydrophone to ionoacoustic range detection in a tissue-mimicking agar phantom.

Background: Ionoacoustics is a promising approach to reduce the range uncertainty in proton therapy. A miniature-sized optical hydrophone (OH) was used as a measuring device to detect weak ionoacoustic signals with a high signal-to-noise ratio in water. However, further development is necessary to prevent wave distortion because of nearby acoustic impedance discontinuities while detection is conducted on the patient's skin.

Comparison of the human's and camel's red blood cell deformability by optical tweezers and Raman spectroscopy.

Red blood cells of vertebrates have undergone evolutionary changes over time, leading to the diversification of morphological and mechanical properties of red blood cells (RBCs). Among the vertebrates, camelids have the most different RBC characteristics. As a result of adaptation to the desert environment, camelid RBCs can expand twice as much of their total volume in the case of rapid hydration yet are almost undeformable under mechanical stress.

Application of scanning acoustic microscopy for evaluation of MMP activation in multiple cancer cell lines with a smart probe.

Background/aim: Matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) play an important role in the evaluation of many cancer types; however, the detection usually presents a challenge. Further assays for a better understanding of the fundamental roles of MMPs in pathophysiology are still needed. We aimed to use an activatable probe in scanning acoustic microscopy (SAM) to evaluate acoustically if the probe can aid the visualization of the effects of in vitro MMP activity.

Differentiation of advanced generation mutant wheat lines: Conventional techniques versus Raman spectroscopy.

This research aimed to assess the feasibility of utilizing Raman spectroscopy in plant breeding programs. For this purpose, the evaluation of the mutant populations set up the application of 4 mM NaN to the somatic embryos obtained from mature wheat ( L. Adana-99 cv.

Label-Free Identification of Exosomes using Raman Spectroscopy and Machine Learning.

Exosomes, nano-sized extracellular vesicles (EVs) secreted from cells, carry various cargo molecules reflecting their cells of origin. As EV content, structure, and size are highly heterogeneous, their classification via cargo molecules by determining their origin is challenging. Here, a method is presented combining surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) with machine learning algorithms to employ the classification of EVs derived from five different cell lines to reveal their cellular origins.

Ionoacoustic application of an optical hydrophone to detect proton beam range in water.

Background: Proton range uncertainty has been the main factor limiting the ability of proton therapy to concentrate doses to tumors to their full potential. Ionoacoustic (IA) range verification is an approach to reducing this uncertainty by detecting thermoacoustic waves emitted from an irradiated volume immediately following a pulsed proton beam delivery; however, the signal weakness has been an obstacle to its clinical application. To increase the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) with the conventional piezoelectric hydrophone (PH), the detector-sensitive volume needs to be large, but it could narrow the range of available beam angles and disturb real-time images obtained during beam delivery.

Assessing the therapeutic response of tumors to hypoxia-targeted prodrugs with an in silico approach.

Tumor hypoxia is commonly recognized as a condition stimulating the progress of the aggressive phenotype of tumor cells. Hypoxic tumor cells inhibit the delivery of cytotoxic drugs, causing hypoxic areas to receive insufficient amounts of anticancer agents, which results in adverse treatment responses. Being such an obstruction to conventional therapies for cancer, hypoxia might be considered a target to facilitate the efficacy of treatments in the resistive environment of tumor sites.

Quantification of salt stress in wheat leaves by Raman spectroscopy and machine learning.

The salinity level of the growing medium has diverse effects on the development of plants, including both physical and biochemical changes. To determine the salt stress level of a plant endures, one can measure these structural and chemical changes. Raman spectroscopy and biochemical analysis are some of the most common techniques in the literature.

Quantifying the influences of radiation therapy on deformability of human red blood cells by dual-beam optical tweezers.

Radiation therapy is widely used as a treatment tool for malignancies. However, radiation-related complications are still unavoidable risks for off-target cells. Little is known about radiation therapy's possible effects on mechanical features of the off-target cells such as human red blood cells (RBCs).

Atrial fibrillation designation with micro-Raman spectroscopy and scanning acoustic microscope.

Atrial fibrillation (AF) is diagnosed with the electrocardiogram, which is the gold standard in clinics. However, sufficient arrhythmia monitoring takes a long time, and many of the tests are made in only a few seconds, which can lead arrhythmia to be missed. Here, we propose a combined method to detect the effects of AF on atrial tissue.

Chemotherapy response prediction with diffuser elapser network.

In solid tumors, elevated fluid pressure and inadequate blood perfusion resulting from unbalanced angiogenesis are the prominent reasons for the ineffective drug delivery inside tumors. To normalize the heterogeneous and tortuous tumor vessel structure, antiangiogenic treatment is an effective approach. Additionally, the combined therapy of antiangiogenic agents and chemotherapy drugs has shown promising effects on enhanced drug delivery.

Aortic aneurysm evaluation by scanning acoustic microscopy and Raman spectroscopy.

Aortic aneurysm is observed as a result of the extensive alteration in the elasticity of the aortic wall due to the breakdown of elastin and collagen. In this study, we studied the feasibility of scanning acoustic microscopy (SAM) and Raman spectroscopy (RS) in characterizing the dilated segments of the aorta from male and female patients with aortic aneurysm. SAM determined the acoustic property variation in the aorta by calculating the acoustic impedance values of aorta samples of 18 patients.

Raman tweezers as an alternative diagnostic tool for paroxysmal nocturnal hemoglobinuria.

Paroxysmal nocturnal hemoglobinuria (PNH) is a rare disease characterized by hemolysis of red blood cells (RBC) and venous thrombosis. The gold standard method for the diagnosis of this disease is flow cytometry. Here, we propose a combined optical tweezers and Raman spectral (Raman tweezers) approach to analyze blood samples from volunteers with or without PNH conditions.

Technical Note: Range verification of pulsed proton beams from fixed-field alternating gradient accelerator by means of time-of-flight measurement of ionoacoustic waves.

Purpose: Ionoacoustics is one of the promising approaches to verify the beam range in proton therapy. However, the weakness of the wave signal remains a main hindrance to its application in clinics. Here we studied the potential use of a fixed-field alternating gradient accelerator (FFA), one of the accelerator candidates for future proton therapy.

Determination of modifications in rat liver due to phthalate uptake by SAM, RS, and ICP-OES.

The use of phthalates as plasticizers has been omnipresent, especially in cosmetics and food packaging, despite the proven effects on some organs of humans and animals. Therefore, alterations in living organisms due to phthalate exposure attract the attention of many scientists. Here, we demonstrate a mechanical and chemical investigation of the mentioned effects of di(2-ethylhexyl)phthalate (DEHP) and dibutyl phthalate (DBP) on rat liver by utilizing scanning acoustic microscopy (SAM), Raman spectroscopy (RS) and inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry (ICP-OES) for the first time in the literature, as far as we know.

On-line range verification for proton beam therapy using spherical ionoacoustic waves with resonant frequency.

In contrast to conventional X-ray therapy, proton beam therapy (PBT) can confine radiation doses to tumours because of the presence of the Bragg peak. However, the precision of the treatment is currently limited by the uncertainty in the beam range. Recently, a unique range verification methodology has been proposed based on simulation studies that exploit spherical ionoacoustic waves with resonant frequency (SPIREs).

Acoustic impedance measurement of tissue mimicking materials by using scanning acoustic microscopy.

Tissue-mimicking materials (TMMs) play a key role in the quality assurance of ultrasound diagnostic equipment and should have acoustic properties similar to human tissues. We propose a method to quantify the acoustic properties of TMM samples through the use of an 80 MHz Scanning Acoustic Microscopy (SAM), which provides micrometer resolution and fast data recording. We produced breast TMM samples in varying compositions that resulted in acoustic impedance values in the range of 1.

Resolving tissue chromophore concentration at MRI resolution using multi-wavelength photo-magnetic imaging.

Photo-magnetic imaging (PMI) is an emerging optical imaging modality that showed great performance on providing absorption maps with high resolution and quantitative accuracy. As a multi-modality technology, PMI warms up the imaged object using a near infrared laser while temperature variation is measured using magnetic resonance imaging. By probing tissue at multiple wavelengths, concentration of the main tissue chromophores such as oxy- and deoxy-hemoglobin, lipid, and water are obtained then used to derive functional parameters such as total hemoglobin concentration and relative oxygen saturation.

Acoustic diagnosis of elastic properties of human tooth by 320 MHz scanning acoustic microscopy after radiotherapy treatment for head and neck cancer.

Background: On the elastic profiles of human teeth after radiotherapy for head and neck cancers, generation of dental complications, which may bring several side effects preventing the quality of life, has not well clarified. Thus, we aimed to show the applicability of using 320 MHz Scanning Acoustic Microscopy (SAM) in the evaluation of the tooth damage acoustically at the micrometer level following radiation therapy, and also in the determination of the safe dose limits to impede severe dental damage.

Methods: This prospective study was performed by SAM employed at 320 MHz by an azimuthal resolution of 4.

Raman spectroscopy as a non-invasive diagnostic technique for endometriosis.

Endometriosis is a condition in which the endometrium, the layer of tissue that usually covers the inside of the uterus, grows outside the uterus. One of its severe effects is sub-fertility. The exact reason for endometriosis is still unknown and under investigation.

Comparison of noise reduction methods in photoacoustic microscopy.

Photoacoustic microscopy (PAM) is classified as a hybrid imaging technique based on the photoacoustic effect and has been frequently studied in recent years. Photoacoustic (PA) signals are inherently recorded in a noisy environment and are also exposed to noise by system components. Therefore, it is essential to reduce the noise in PA signals to reconstruct images with less error.

A novel range-verification method using ionoacoustic wave generated from spherical gold markers for particle-beam therapy: a simulation study.

This study proposes a novel alternative range-verification method for proton beam with acoustic waves generated from spherical metal markers. When proton beam is incident on metal markers, most of the resulting pressure waves are confined in the markers because of the large difference in acoustic impedance between the metal and tissue. However, acoustic waves with frequency equal to marker's resonant frequency escape this confinement; the marker briefly acts as an acoustic transmitter.