Reduced-scattering Coefficients Research Articles

Diffuse reflectance spectroscopy for optical characterizations of orthotopic head and neck cancer models in vivo

We demonstrated an easy-to-build, portable diffuse reflectance spectroscopy device along with a Monte Carlo inverse model to quantify tissue absorption and scattering-based parameters of orthotopic head and neck cancer models in vivo. Both tissue-mimicking phantom studies and animal studies were conducted to verify the optical spectroscopy system and Monte Carlo inverse model for the accurate extraction of tissue optical properties. For the first time, we reported the tissue absorption and scattering coefficients of mouse normal tongue tissues and tongue tumor tissues. Our in vivo animal studies showed reduced total hemoglobin concentration, lower tissue vascular oxygen saturation, and increased tissue scattering in the orthotopic tongue tumors compared to the normal tongue tissues. Our data also showed that mice tongue tumors with different sizes may have significantly different tissue absorption and scattering-based parameters. Small tongue tumors (volume was ∼60 mm3) had increased absorption coefficients, decreased reduced-scattering coefficients, and increased total hemoglobin concentrations compared to tiny tongue tumors (volume was ∼18 mm3). These results demonstrated the potential of diffuse reflectance spectroscopy to noninvasively evaluate tumor biology using orthotopic tongue cancer models for future head and neck cancer research.

Breast tissue analysis using a clinically compatible combined time-resolved fluorescence and diffuse reflectance (TRF-DR) system.

This work aims to develop a clinically compatible system that can perform breast tissue analysis in a more time efficient process than conventional histopathological assessment. The potential for such a system to be used in vivo in the operating room or surgical suite to improve patient outcome is investigated. In this work, 80 matched pairs of invasive ductal carcinoma and adjacent normal breast tissue were measured in a combined time-resolved fluorescence and diffuse reflectance (DA) system. Following measurement, the fluorescence intensity of collagen and flavin adenine dinucleotide (FAD); the fluorescence lifetime of collagen, nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NADH), and FAD; the DA; absorption coefficient; and reduced scattering coefficient were extracted. Samples then underwent histological processing and H&E staining to classify composition as tumor, fibroglandular, and/or adipose tissue. Statistically significant differences in the collagen and FAD fluorescence intensity, collagen and FAD fluorescence lifetime, DA, and scattering coefficient were found between each tissue group. The NADH fluorescence lifetime and absorption coefficient were statistically different between the tumor and fibroglandular groups, and the tumor and adipose groups. While many breast tissue analysis studies label fibroglandular and adipose together as "normal" breast tissue, this work indicates that some differences between tumor and fibroglandular tissue are not the same as differences between tumor and adipose tissue. Observations of the reduced scatter coefficient may also indicate further classification to include fibro-adipose may be necessary. Future work would benefit from the additional tissue classification. With observable differences in optical parameters between the three tissue types, this system shows promise as a breast analysis tool in a clinical setting. With further work involving samples of mixed composition, this combined system could potentially be used intraoperatively for rapid margin assessment.

Direct Measurement of the Reduced Scattering Coefficient by a Calibrated Random Laser Sensor.

The research in optical sensors has been largely encouraged by the demand for low-cost and less or non-invasive new detection strategies. The invention of the random laser has opened a new frontier in optics, providing also the opportunity to explore new possibilities in the field of sensing, besides several different and peculiar phenomena. The main advantage in exploiting the physical principle of the random laser in optical sensors is due to the presence of the stimulated emission mechanism, which allows amplification and spectral modification of the signal. Here, we present a step forward in the exploitation of this optical phenomenon by a revisitation of a previous experimental setup, as well as the measurement method, in particular to mitigate the instability of the results due to shot-to-shot pump energy fluctuations. In particular, the main novelties of the setup are the use of optical fibers, a reference sensor, and a peristaltic pump. These improvements are devoted to: eliminating optical beam alignment issues; improving portability; mitigating the variation in pump energy and gain medium performances over time; realizing an easy and rapid change of the sensed medium. The results showed that such a setup can be considered a prototype for a portable device for directly measuring the scattering of liquid samples, without resorting to complicated numerical or analytic inversion procedures of the measured data, once the suitable calibration of the system is performed.

Diffuse photon remission from thick opaque media of the high absorption/scattering ratio beyond what is accountable by the Kubelka-Munk function.

The Kubelka-Munk (KM) theory of diffuse photon remission from opaque media is widely applied to quality-control processes. Recent works based on radiative transfer revealed that the KM function as the backbone parameter of the method may saturate at strong absorption to cause the KM approach to be unfit to predict the change of diffuse reflectance from the medium at strong absorption. We demonstrate by empirical means based on Monte Carlo results that diffuse photon remission from a strong-absorbing medium depends simply upon the absorption/scattering ratio when evaluated over a large area centered at the point of illumination differing in geometry from those convenient for the KM approach. Our empirical prediction gives ∼11% mean errors of the diffuse photon remission from thick opaque medium having an absorption coefficient ranging 0.001 to up to 1000 times stronger than the reduced-scattering coefficient. A slight modification to the KM function in terms of the absorption weighting and absorption-scattering coupling for use within the KM approach also noticeably improves the prediction of diffuse photon remission from thick opaque medium of strong absorption. Our empirical model and the KM approach using the modified KM function were compared against measurements from a thick opaque medium, of which the absorption coefficient was changed over four orders of magnitude.

Estimating the Reduced Scattering Coefficient of Turbid Media Using Spatially Offset Raman Spectroscopy.

We propose a new method for estimating the reduced scattering coefficient, μs', of turbid homogeneous samples using Spatially Offset Raman Spectroscopy (SORS). The concept is based around the variation of Raman signal with SORS spatial offset that is strongly μs'-dependent, as such, permitting the determination of μs'. The evaluation is carried out under the assumptions that absorption is negligible at the laser and Raman wavelengths and μs' is approximately the same for those two wavelengths. These conditions are often satisfied for samples analyzed in the NIR region of the spectrum where SORS is traditionally deployed. Through a calibration procedure on a PTFE model sample, it was possible to estimate the μs' coefficient of different turbid samples with an error (RMSEP) below 18%. The knowledge of μs' in the NIR range is highly valuable for facilitating accurate numerical simulations to optimize illumination and collection geometries in SORS, to derive in-depth information about the properties of SORS measurements or in other photon applications, dependent on photon propagation in turbid media with general impact across fields such as biomedical, pharmaceutical, security, forensic, and cultural sciences.

Reduced Scattering Coefficient During Incremental Exercise Is Constant Without Being Affected by Changes in Muscle Oxygenation or Hemodynamics.

Previous studies have reported that the reduced scattering coefficient (μs') in the vastus lateralis changes during ramp-incremental exercise due to blood volume changes or accumulation of metabolic by-products. We aimed to clarify the influences of deoxygenation and blood volume changes during exercise on μs' dynamics in subjects with various aerobic capacities. Twenty-three healthy young men participated in this study. All subjects performed a ramp-incremental cycling exercise until exhaustion and were divided into two groups: lower (Low: n=12; peak pulmonary oxygen uptake per kg of fat-free mass (VO2peak), 54.2±5.3mL/kg/min) and higher aerobic capacity group (High: n=11; VO2peak, 69.7±5.2mL/kg/min) by median of VO2peak. Deoxygenated hemoglobin and myoglobin concentrations (deoxy[Hb+Mb]) and total [Hb+Mb] (total[Hb+Mb]) in the vastus lateralis were monitored during the exercise by three-wavelength (760, 800, and 830nm) time-resolved NIRS. Similarly, μs' at each wavelength was continuously monitored. With increasing exercise intensity, deoxy[Hb+Mb] and total[Hb+Mb] significantly increased in both groups, and the average values of the peak amplitudes of deoxy[Hb+Mb] and total[Hb+Mb] during exercise showed a 106.4% increase and a 17.9% increase from the start of the exercise, respectively. Furthermore, the peak amplitude of total[Hb+Mb] was significantly greater in High. Conversely, there were no changes in μs' at any wavelength during exercise and no differences between two groups, suggesting that the great deoxygenation and blood volume changes during incremental exercise have little effect on μs' dynamics.

The Determination of Absorption and Reduced Scattering Coefficients of Optical Phantoms Using a Frequency-Domain Multi-Distance Method in a Non-contact Manner

A non-contact optical system has been designed to determine the absorption and reduced scattering coefficients of optical phantoms. The frequency-domain multi-distance method, which al ...

Skeletal light-scattering accelerates bleaching response in reef-building corals.

BackgroundAt the forefront of ecosystems adversely affected by climate change, coral reefs are sensitive to anomalously high temperatures which disassociate (bleaching) photosynthetic symbionts (Symbiodinium) from coral hosts and cause increasingly frequent and severe mass mortality events. Susceptibility to bleaching and mortality is variable among corals, and is determined by unknown proportions of environmental history and the synergy of Symbiodinium- and coral-specific properties. Symbiodinium live within host tissues overlaying the coral skeleton, which increases light availability through multiple light-scattering, forming one of the most efficient biological collectors of solar radiation. Light-transport in the upper ~200 μm layer of corals skeletons (measured as ‘microscopic’ reduced-scattering coefficient, mu ^{prime}_{{S,m}} ), has been identified as a determinant of excess light increase during bleaching and is therefore a potential determinant of the differential rate and severity of bleaching response among coral species.ResultsHere we experimentally demonstrate (in ten coral species) that, under thermal stress alone or combined thermal and light stress, low- mu ^{prime}_{{S,m}} corals bleach at higher rate and severity than high- mu ^{prime}_{{S,m}} corals and the Symbiodinium associated with low- mu ^{prime}_{{S,m}} corals experience twice the decrease in photochemical efficiency. We further modelled the light absorbed by Symbiodinium due to skeletal-scattering and show that the estimated skeleton-dependent light absorbed by Symbiodinium (per unit of photosynthetic pigment) and the temporal rate of increase in absorbed light during bleaching are several fold higher in low- mu ^{prime}_{{S,m}} corals.ConclusionsWhile symbionts associated with low- mu ^{prime}_{{S,m}} corals receive less total light from the skeleton, they experience a higher rate of light increase once bleaching is initiated and absorbing bodies are lost; further precipitating the bleaching response. Because microscopic skeletal light-scattering is a robust predictor of light-dependent bleaching among the corals assessed here, this work establishes mu ^{prime}_{{S,m}} as one of the key determinants of differential bleaching response.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12898-016-0061-4) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Effect of X-Ray Generation Conditions on Reduced Scattering Coefficients in Anode Voltage Measurements

The goal of this work is to discuss the possibility of measuring anode voltage and total X-ray filtration for signals of detectors located in scattered and reduced emission fields. A block diagram of the experimental setup is given. Experimental results reflecting the nature of variation of the reduced scattering coefficient as a function of anode voltage, total radiation filtration, anode current, focal length, and exposure duration are presented.

Detectability of Absorption and Reduced Scattering Coefficients in Frequency-Domain Measurements Using a Realistic Head Phantom

Detection limits of the changes in absorption and reduced scattering coefficients were investigated using a frequency-domain near-infrared system in a realistic head phantom. The results were quantified in terms of the maximum detectable depth for different activation volumes in the range of 0.8–20 microliters. The non-linear relation between the maximum detectable depth and the magnitude of changes in the absorption coefficient conform well with the Born approximation to the diffusion equation. The minimal detectable changes in the reduced scattering coefficient measured in terms of the phase signal were found to be approximately twice as large as that of the absorption coefficient using the AC signal for the same volume and at the same depth. The phase delay, which can be used to quantify the fast neuronal optical response in the human brain, showed a linear dependence on the reciprocal of the reduced scattering coefficient, as predicted by the Rytov approximation.

Optical properties of human skin

A survey of the literature is presented that provides an analysis of the optical properties of human skin, with particular regard to their applications in medicine. Included is a description of the primary interactions of light with skin and how these are commonly estimated using radiative transfer theory (RTT). This is followed by analysis of measured RTT coefficients available in the literature. Orders of magnitude differences are found within published absorption and reduced-scattering coefficients. Causes for these discrepancies are discussed in detail, including contrasts between data acquired in vitro and in vivo. An analysis of the phase functions applied in skin optics, along with the remaining optical coefficients (anisotropy factors and refractive indices) is also included. The survey concludes that further work in the field is necessary to establish a definitive range of realistic coefficients for clinically normal skin.

Limited possibility for quantifying mean particle size by logarithmic light-scattering spectroscopy.

Recent studies have shown that the slope of logarithmic scattering spectroscopy of a turbid medium is related to the sizes of the scattering particles within the turbid medium. Mie theory can be used to generate a logarithmic plot of the reduced-scattering coefficient versus wavelength. According to Nilsson et al. [Appl. Opt. 37, 1256 (1998)], the slope value of a linear fit of the logarithmic scattering spectroscopy between 600 and 1050 nm can be used for direct determination of particle size. We performed similar calculations using the Rayleigh-Gans approximation and obtained an analogous overall shape with additional sinusoidal features. Our calculations indicate a possible relationship between the slope and the particle size when the size is used to calculate the slope, namely, in the forward calculation. However, because of the sinusoidal pattern, the inverse calculation to obtain the particle size from the slope may be applied only for particles with a radius of <0.13 microm in combination with 650-1050-nm light. Caution should be exercised when inverse calculation is performed to determine the scattering particle sizes in the range of radii >0.13 microm, with the slope of logarithmic scattering spectroscopy within 650-1050 nm.

Determination of optical parameters of human breast tissue from spatially resolved fluorescence: a diffusion theory model.

We report the measurement of optical transport parameters of pathologically characterized malignant tissues, normal tissues, and different types of benign tumors of the human breast in the visible wavelength region. A spatially resolved steady-state diffuse fluorescence reflectance technique was used to estimate the values for the reduced-scattering coefficient (mu(s)') and the absorption coefficient (mu(a)) of human breast tissues at three wavelengths (530, 550, and 590 nm). Different breast tissues could be well differentiated from one another, and different benign tumors could also be distinguished by their measured transport parameters. A diffusion theory model was developed to describe fluorescence light energy distribution, especially its spatial variation in a turbid and multiply scattering medium such as human tissue. The validity of the model was checked with a Monte Carlo simulation and also with different tissue phantoms prepared with polystyrene microspheres as scatterers, riboflavin as fluorophores, and methylene blue as absorbers.

Integrating the digitized backscattered image to measure absorption and reduced-scattering coefficients in vivo

Measurement of absorption and reduced-scattering optical coefficients microa and micros' is possible when a steady-state backscattered image is used on a sample surface. A new method for processing the backscattered image, acquired with a CCD, has been developed. The image is integrated to decrease sensitivity to noise. The resulting curve is defined as the integral reflectance. The curve is then fitted with a relaxation model to evaluate microa and micros'. We have validated the method with calibrated scattering and absorption phantoms. The integral reflectance method is then applied to measurements of the microa and micros' coefficients of human skin in vivo.

Anisotropy in the absorption and scattering spectra of chicken breast tissue

Oblique incidence reflectometry is a simple and accurate method for measuring the absorption and the reduced-scattering coefficients of turbid media. We used this technique to deduce absorption and reduced-scattering spectra from wavelength-resolved measurements of the relative diffuse reflectance profile of white light as a function of source-detector distance. In this study, we measured the absorption and the reduced-scattering coefficients of chicken breast tissue in the visible range (400-800 nm) with the oblique incidence probe oriented at 0 degrees and 90 degrees relative to the muscle fibers. We found that the deduced optical properties varied with the probe orientation. Measurements on homogenized chicken breast tissue yielded an absorption spectrum comparable with the average of the absorption spectra for 0 degrees and 90 degrees probe orientations measured on the unhomogenized tissue. The reduced-scattering spectrum for homogeneous tissue was greater than that acquired for unhomogenized tissue taken at either probe orientation. This experiment demonstrated the application of oblique-incidence, fiber-optic reflectometry to measurements on biological tissues and the effect of tissue structural anisotropy on optical properties.

Mie and Rayleigh modeling of visible-light scattering in neonatal skin

Reduced-scattering coefficients of neonatal skin were deduced in the 450-750-nm range from integrating-sphere measurements of the total reflection and total transmission of 22 skin samples. The reduced-scattering coefficients increased linearly at each wavelength with gestational maturity. The distribution of diameters d and concentration ρ(A) of the skin-sample collagen fibers were measured in histological sections of nine neonatal skin samples of varying gestational ages. An algorithm that calculates Mie scattering by cylinders was used to model the scattering by the collagen fibers in the skin. The fraction of the reduced-scattering coefficient µ(s)' that was attributable to Mie scattering by collagen fibers, as deduced from wavelength-dependent analysis, increased with gestational age and approached that found for adult skin. An assignment of 1.017 for n(rel), the refractive index of the collagen fibers relative to that of the surrounding medium, allowed the values for Mie scattering by collagen fibers, as predicted by the model for each of the nine neonatal skin samples to match the values for Mie scattering by collagen fibers as expected from the measurements of µ(s)'. The Mie-scattering model predicted an increase in scattering with gestational age on the basis of changes in the collagen-fiber diameters, and this increase was proportional to that measured with the integrating-sphere method.