Phasor approach of Mueller matrix optical scanning microscopy for biological tissue imaging.

Mueller matrix microscopy is an advanced imaging technique providing a full characterization of the optical polarization fingerprint of a sample. The Lu-Chipman (LC) decomposition, a method based on the modeling of elementary polarimetric arrangements and matrix inversions, is the gold standard to extract each polarimetric component separately. However, this models the optical system as a small number of discrete optical elements and requires a priori knowledge of the order in which these elements occur.

Combined approach using circular intensity differential scattering microscopy under phasor map data analysis.

Circular intensity differential scattering (CIDS) is based on the analysis of circular polarized light scattering and has been proven to be an interesting label-free microscopy technique sensitive to the chiral organization at the submicroscopic level. However, this approach averages the localized contrasts related to the sample polarimetric properties in the illumination volume. Additionally, the detection sensitivity suffers from the confinement of the mixture of structures, and it becomes an arduous task to discriminate the source of the signal.

Circular Intensity Differential Scattering for Label-Free Chromatin Characterization: A Review for Optical Microscopy.

Circular Intensity Differential Scattering (CIDS) provides a differential measurement of the circular right and left polarized light and has been proven to be a gold standard label-free technique to study the molecular conformation of complex biopolymers, such as chromatin. In early works, it has been shown that the scattering component of the CIDS signal gives information from the long-range chiral organization on a scale down to 1/10th-1/20th of the excitation wavelength, leading to information related to the structure and orientation of biopolymers in situ at the nanoscale. In this paper, we review the typical methods and technologies employed for measuring this signal coming from complex macro-molecules ordering.

Zebrafish structural development in Mueller-matrix scanning microscopy.

Zebrafish are powerful animal models for understanding biological processes and the molecular mechanisms involved in different human diseases. Advanced optical techniques based on fluorescence microscopy have become the main imaging method to characterize the development of these organisms at the microscopic level. However, the need for fluorescence probes and the consequent high light doses required to excite fluorophores can affect the biological process under observation including modification of metabolic function or phototoxicity.