Measurement of tissue hemodynamics provides vital information for the assessment of tissue viability. This thesis reports three noninvasive near-infrared diffuse optical systems for spectroscopic measurements and tomographic imaging of tissue hemodynamics in vulnerable tissues with the goal of disease diagnosis and treatment monitoring. A hybrid near-infrared spectroscopy/diffuse correlation spectroscopy (NIRS/DCS) instrument with a contact fiber-optic probe was developed and utilized for simultaneous and continuous monitoring of blood flow (BF), blood oxygenation, and oxidative metabolism in exercising gastrocnemius. Results measured by the hybrid NIRS/DCS instrument in 37 subjects (mean age: 67 ± 6) indicated that vitamin D supplement plus aerobic training improved muscle metabolic function in older population. To reduce the interference and potential infection risk on vulnerable tissues caused by the contact measurement, a noncontact diffuse correlation spectroscopy/tomography (ncDCS/ncDCT) system was then developed. The ncDCS/ncDCT system employed optical lenses to project limited numbers of sources and detectors on the tissue surface. A motor-driven noncontact probe scanned over a region of interest to collect boundary data for three dimensional (3D) tomographic imaging of blood flow distribution. The ncDCS was tested for BF measurements in mastectomy skin flaps. Nineteen (19) patients underwent mastectomy and implant-based breast reconstruction were measured before and immediately after mastectomy. The BF index after mastectomy in each patient was normalized to its baseline value before surgery to get relative BF (rBF). Since rBF values in the patients with necrosis (n = 4) were significantly lower than those without necrosis (n = 15), rBF levels can be used to predict mastectomy skin flap necrosis. The ncDCT was tested for 3D imaging of BF distributions in chronic wounds of 5 patients. Spatial variations in BF contrasts over the wounded tissues were observed, indicating the capability of ncDCT in detecting tissue hemodynamic heterogeneities. To improve temporal/spatial resolution and avoid motion artifacts due to a long mechanical scanning of ncDCT, an electron-multiplying charge-coupled device based noncontact speckle contrast diffuse correlation tomography (scDCT) was developed. Validation of scDCT was done by imaging both high and low BF contrasts in tissue-like phantoms and human forearms. In a wound imaging study using scDCT, significant lower BF values were observed in the burned areas/volumes compared to surrounding normal tissues in two patients with burn. One limitation in this study was the potential influence of other unknown tissue optical properties such as tissue absorption coefficient (µa) on BF measurements. A new algorithm was then developed to extract both µa and BF using light intensities and speckle contrasts measured by scDCT at multiple source-detector distances. The new algorithm was validated using tissue-like liquid phantoms with varied values of µa and BF index. In-vivo validation and application of the innovative scDCT technique with the new algorithm is the subject of future work.

Um Prozesse in biologischen Systemen auf molekularer Ebene zu untersuchen, haben sich vor allem fluoreszenzspektroskopische Methoden bewährt. Die Möglichkeit, einzelne Moleküle zu beobachten, hat zu einem deutlichen Fortschritt im Verständnis von elementaren biochemischen Prozessen geführt. Zu einer der bekanntesten Methoden der Einzelmolekülspektroskopie zählt die Fluoreszenz-Korrelations-Spektroskopie (FCS), mit deren Hilfe intramolekulare und diffusionsgesteuerte Prozesse in einem Zeitbereich von µs bis ms untersucht werden können. Durch die Verwendung von sog. Fluoreszenzsonden können Informationen über deren molekulare Mikroumgebung erhalten werden. Insbesondere für die konfokale Mikroskopie und die Einzelmolekülspektroskopie werden Fluoreszenzfarbstoffe mit einer hohen Photostabilität und hohen Fluoreszenzquantenausbeute benötigt. Aufgrund ihrer hohen Fluoreszenzquantenausbeute und der Möglichkeit, maßgeschneiderte“ Farbstoffe in einem breiten Spektralbereich für die Absorption und Fluoreszenz zu entwickeln, sind Cyaninfarbstoffe von besonderem Interesse für bioanalytische Anwendungen. Als Fluoreszenzmarker finden diese Farbstoffe insbesondere in der klinischen Diagnostik und den Lebenswissenschaften Verwendung. Die in dieser Arbeit verwendeten Farbstoffe DY-635 und DY-647 sind zwei typische Vertreter dieser Farbstoffklasse. Durch Modifizierung können die Farbstoffe kovalent an biologisch relevante Moleküle gebunden werden. Aufgrund ihres Absorptionsmaximums oberhalb von 630nm werden sie insbesondere in der Bioanalytik eingesetzt. In der vorliegenden Arbeit wurden die spektroskopischen Eigenschaften der Cyaninfarbstoffe DY-635 und DY-647 in biomimetischen und biologischen Modellsystemen untersucht. Zur Charakterisierung wurden dabei neben der Absorptionsspektroskopie insbesondere fluoreszenzspektroskopische Methoden verwendet. Dazu zählen die zeitkorrelierte Einzelphotonenzählung zur Ermittlung des Fluoreszenzabklingverhaltens, Fluoreszenz-Korrelations-Spektroskopie (FCS) zur Beobachtung von Diffusions- und photophysikalischen Desaktivierungsprozessen und die zeitaufgelöste Fluoreszenzanisotropie zur Untersuchung der Rotationsdynamik und Beweglichkeit der Farbstoffe im jeweiligen Modellsystem. Das Biotin-Streptavidin-System wurde als Modellsystem für die Untersuchung von Protein-Ligand-Wechselwirkungen verwendet, da der Bindungsmechanismus weitgehend aufgeklärt ist. Nach Bindung der Farbstoffe an Streptavidin wurde eine erhebliche Veränderung in den Absorptions- und Fluoreszenzeigenschaften beobachtet. Es wird angenommen, dass diese spektralen Veränderungen durch Wechselwirkung von benachbarten, an ein Streptavidintetramer gebundenen Farbstoffmolekülen und Bildung von H-Dimeren verursacht wird. Für das System Biotin-Streptavidin ist bekannt, dass während der Bindung des Liganden (Biotin) an das Protein eine Konformationsänderung auftritt. Anhand von zeitaufgelösten Fluoreszenzanisotropieuntersuchungen konnte in dieser Arbeit gezeigt werden, dass diese strukturellen Veränderungen zu einer starken Einschränkung der Beweglichkeit des Farbstoffes DY-635B führen. Liegt eine Mischung von ungebundenem und Streptavidin-gebundenem Farbstoff vor, können die Anisotropieabklingkurven nicht nach einem exponentiellen Verlauf angepasst werden. Es konnte im Rahmen dieser Arbeit gezeigt werden, dass in diesem Fall die Auswertung mit Hilfe des Assoziativen Anisotropiemodells möglich ist, welches eine Unterscheidung der Beiträge aus den zwei verschiedenen Mikroumgebungen ermöglicht. Als zweites Modellsystem dieser Arbeit wurden Mizellen des nichtionischen Tensids Tween-20 eingesetzt. Mizellen bilden eines der einfachsten Systeme, um die Mikroumgebung einer biologischen Membran nachzuahmen. Sind die Farbstoffe in den Mizellen eingelagert, so kommt es zu keiner Veränderung der Mizellgröße. Die ermittelten Werte des Diffusionskoeffizienten der mizellar eingelagerten Farbstoffe spiegeln demzufolge die Translationsbewegung der Tween-20-Mizellen wider. Die Beweglichkeit der Farbstoffe innerhalb der Tween-20-Mizellen wurde durch zeitaufgelöste Fluoreszenzanisotropiemessungen untersucht. Neben der „Wackelbewegung“, entsprechend dem wobble-in-a-cone-Modell, wird zusätzlich noch die laterale Diffusion der Farbstoffe entlang der Mizelloberfläche beschrieben. / To investigate processes in biological systems on a molecular level, particularly fluorescence spectroscopic methods have proven. The possibility to observe single molecules led to significant progress in the understanding of basic biochemical processes. Fluorescence correlation spectroscopy (FCS) is one of the most popular methods of single molecule spectroscopy and is a powerful technique for the investigation of intramolecular and diffusion-controlled processes on a µs to ms time scale. The photophysical characteristics of fluorescent probes are often strongly influenced by their microenvironment. For confocal microscopy and single molecule detection applications fluorescent dyes with properties, such as high photostability and high fluorescence efficiency are highly needed. Due to the high fluorescence efficiency and the high potential to design tailor-made fluorescence probes covering a wide spectral range in absorption and fluorescence, cyanine dyes are highly attractive as fluorescence probes for bioanalytical applications, such as clinical diagnostics and life sciences. The dyes DY-635 and DY-647 are two typical representatives of this class of dyes and can be covalently attached to biologically relevant molecules. Because of their excitation wavelength above 630nm these dyes are especially suited for bioanalytical applications. In this work the spectroscopic properties of DY-635 and DY-647 in biomimetic and biological model systems were studied by absorption and fluorescence spectroscopy techniques: time-correlated single photon counting to determine fluorescence decay behavior, fluorescence correlation spectroscopy (FCS) to observe diffusion and photophysical deactivation processes, and fluorescence anisotropy to study the mobility and rotational behavior of the dyes in the respective model system. The well characterized system biotin-streptavidin was used as a model system for protein-ligand interactions. Binding to streptavidin resulted in significant changes in the steady-state photophysical characteristics of DY-635B and DY-647. These spectral changes are attributed to dye-dye interactions and the formation of H-dimers. Previous studies have demonstrated, that binding of biotin alters the conformation of streptavidin. Based on the evaluation of time-resolved anisotropy data in this study it was shown that these structural changes result in strong hindrance of the rotational freedom of DY-635B. For mixtures of unbound and streptavidin-bound dyes the fluorescence anisotropy decay curves are found to be nonexponential. In this case the concept of an associated anisotropy were applied which allowed discrimination between contributions from different microenvironments. As a second model system, micelles of the nonionic surfactant Tween-20 were used. Micelles are one of the simplest systems to mimic the microenvironment of a biological membrane. Incorporation of the dyes had no effect on the micelle size. The diffusion coefficient of the dyes, obtained by fluorescence correlation spectroscopy (FCS), reflects the translational behavior of Tween-20 micelles. The mobility of the dyes in the Tween-20 micelles was studied by time-resolved fluorescence anisotropy. In addition to a „wobbling“ motion ccording to the wobble-in-a-cone model, a lateral diffusion of the dyes along the micelle surface is described.

Dynamic light scattering (DLS) is a method to size submicron particles by measuring their thermal motion (diffusion) in suspensions and emulsions. However, the validity of the Stokes-Einstein equation that relates the diffusion coefficient and the particle size is limited to spherical particles and very low concentrations. Within this thesis, DLS is used for the characterization of suspensions of pyrogenic silica which consists of fractal-like aggregates composed of sintered spherical primary particles. These structural features clearly complicate the understanding of DLS experiments and have been a severe obstacle to employing DLS as routine standard tool for the characterization of pyrogenic silica. The main objective of this thesis is therefore to evaluate the application of DLS in product development and quality assurance of pyrogenic silica industry, what essentially means to identify those structural properties of fractal aggregates which are measurable with DLS and to quantify the method’s sensitivity to changes in these properties. The investigations presented here are split up into four parts, simulations that establish a relation between structural and hydrodynamic properties, experiments validating the simulation results, the characterization of concentrated suspensions and the application-oriented analysis of DLS data for specific industrially relevant measurement tasks. / Die Dynamische Lichtstreuung (DLS) ist eine Messmethode zur Größenbestimmung submikroner Partikel. Dabei wird primär die stochastische Bewegung der Teilchen (Diffusion) in Suspensionen und Emulsionen bewertet. Die Stokes-Einstein Gleichung, die das Verhältnis zwischen gemessenem Diffusionskoeffizienten und Partikelgröße wiedergibt, ist jedoch nur für kugelförmige Teilchen, die in sehr niedriger Konzentration vorliegen, gültig. In der vorliegenden Arbeit wird die dynamische Lichtstreuung zur Charakterisierung von Suspensionen pyrogener Kieselsäure eingesetzt. Diese besteht aus fraktalen Aggregaten, die wiederum aus versinterten aber meist kugelförmigen Primärpartikeln zusammengesetzt sind. Diese strukturellen Eigenschaften erschweren die Anwendbarkeit der DLS bzw. die Interpretation der Messergebnisse und verhinderten bisher den Einsatz der DLS als Routinemethode zur Charakterisierung pyrogener Kieselsäuren. Das Hauptziel dieser Arbeit ist daher eine Bewertung der Möglichkeiten der DLS für die Produktentwicklung und Qualitätssicherung in der Herstellung pyrogener Kieselsäuren. Das bedeutet im Besonderen, dass sowohl die messbaren granulometrischen Eigenschaften als auch die Sensitivität der Methode bei Eigenschaftsänderungen ermittelt werden müssen. Die hier durchgeführten Arbeiten sind in vier Teile gegliedert: Simulationen, die eine Beziehung zwischen strukturellen und hydrodynamischen Eigenschaften herstellen, Experimente zur Validierung der Simulationsergebnisse, die Charakterisierung konzentrierter Suspensionen und die anwendungsorientierte Auswertung von DLS-Daten für spezifische industrierelevante Messaufgaben.

Since aggressive cancers are frequently hypermetabolic with angiogenic vessels, quantification of blood flow (BF) can be vital for cancer diagnosis. Our laboratory has developed a noncontact diffuse correlation tomography (ncDCT) system for 3-D imaging of BF distribution in deep tissues (up to centimeters). The ncDCT system employs two sets of optical lenses to project source and detector fibers respectively onto the tissue surface, and applies finite element framework to model light transportation in complex tissue geometries. This thesis reports our first step to adapt the ncDCT system for 3-D imaging of BF contrasts in human breast tumors. A commercial 3-D camera was used to obtain breast surface geometry which was then converted to a solid volume mesh. An ncDCT probe scanned over a region of interest on the breast mesh surface and the measured boundary data were used for 3-D image reconstruction of BF distribution. This technique was tested with computer simulations and in 28 patients with breast tumors. Results from computer simulations suggest that relatively high accuracy can be achieved when the entire tumor was within the sensitive region of diffuse light. Image reconstruction with a priori knowledge of the tumor volume and location can significantly improve the accuracy in recovery of tumor BF contrasts. In vivo ncDCT imaging results from the majority of breast tumors showed higher BF contrasts in the tumor regions compared to the surrounding tissues. Reconstructed tumor depths and dimensions matched ultrasound imaging results when the tumors were within the sensitive region of light propagation. The results demonstrate that ncDCT system has the potential to image BF distributions in soft and vulnerable tissues without distorting tissue hemodynamics. In addition to this primary study, detector fibers with different modes (i.e., single-mode, few-mode, multimode) for photon collection were experimentally explored to improve the signal-to-noise ratio of diffuse correlation spectroscopy flow-oximeter measurements.

No description available.

The dissertation presents theoretical and experimental studies on the physical origin of the signal in photothermal microscopy of single particles. This noninvasive optical far field microscopy scheme allows the imaging and detection of single absorbing nanoparticles. Based on a heat-induced pertur- bation in the refractive index in the embedding medium of the nanoscopic absorber, a corresponding probe beam modification is measured and quantified. The method is well established and has been applied since its first demonstration in 2002 to the imaging and characterization of various absorbing particle species, such as quantum dots, single molecules and nanoparticles of different shapes. The extensive theoretical developments presented in this thesis provide the first quantitative assess- ment of the signal and at the same time enlarge its phenomenology and thereby its potential. On the basis of several approximation schemes to the Maxwell equations, which fundamentally gov- ern the interaction of light with inhomogeneities, several complementing models are devised which describe the photothermal signal both qualitatively and quantitatively. In succession an interdepen- dent and self-consistent set of theoretical descriptions is given and allows important experimental consequences to be drawn. In consequence, the photothermal signal is shown to correspond to the action of a nanoscopic (thermal) lens, represented by the spherically symmetric refractive index pro- file n(r) which accompanies the thermal expansion of the absorber’s environment. The achieved quantification allows the direct measurement of absorption cross-sections of nanoparticles. Further, a qualitatively new phenomenology of the signal is unraveled and experimentally demonstrated. The separate roles of the probing and the heating beams in photothermal microscopy is dismantled and the influence of their relative alignment shown to allow for a controlled adjustment of the effective detection volume. For the first time, both positive and negative signals are demonstrated to occur and to be the characteristic signature of the lens-like action on the probe beam. The detection of the probe beam’s modification is also shown to sensitively depend on the aperture used in the detection chan- nel, and a signal optimization is shown to be feasible. Also, a generalization of the detectable signal via the use of a quadrant photodiode is achieved. Specifically, measuring the far field beam deflec- tion the result of the beam passing the lens off-center manifests in a laterally split detection volume. Hereby, finally each classical photothermal spectroscopic techniques has been shown to possess its microscopic counterpart. Central to the understanding of this generalized and new phenomenology is a scalar wave-optical model which draws an analogy between the scattering of a massive particle wave-packet by a Coulomb potential and the deflection of a focused beam by a photonic potential connected with the thermal lens. The significance of the findings is demonstrated by its methodological implications on photother- mal correlation spectroscopy in which the diffusion dynamics of absorbing colloidal particles can be studied. The unique split focal detection volumes are shown to allow the sensitive measurement of a deterministic velocity field. Finally, the method is supplemented by a newly introduced sta- tistical analysis method which is capable of characterizing samples containing a heterogeneous size distribution.

Thesis (M.S.)--Miami University, Dept. of Physics, 2005. / Title from first page of PDF document. Document formatted into pages; contains [1], vii, 55 p. : ill. Includes bibliographical references (p. 53-55).

Orientador: Marinônio Lopes Cornélio / Banca: Antônio José da Costa Filho / Banca: André Luiz Galo / Resumo: Esse trabalho tem por objetivo estudar as transições conformacionais, induzidas termicamente, na Ribonuclease A. Esta abordagem foi realizada aplicando!se a técnica de calorimetria diferencial de varredura (DSC) e infravermelho médio com transformada de Fourier (FTIR), associando a técnica de análise de correlação bidimensional (2D! COS), variável!variável (VV) e sample sample (SS). A partir dos dados de DSC determinamos a variação de entalpia do sistema (∆Hcal) que foi de 587 kJ/mol. Também identificamos as temperaturas de pré (36, 39, 43, 49 e 59°C), pós transição (71°C) e temperatura de melting (65°C), além da determinação do ∆Hcal para cada uma das transições. A análise de correlação bidimensional sample!sample (SS) também foi capaz de identificar as mesmas temperaturas encontradas por DSC. Por sua vez, a análise de correlação bidimensional variável!variável (VV) descreveu a evolução conformacional das estruturas secundárias da proteína durante o desenovelamento térmico / Abstract: This work aims to study the thermally!induced conformational transitions in Ribonuclease A. This approach was performed by applying the technique of differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and medium infrared Fourier transform spectroscopy (FTIR), linking the technique of correlation analysis (2D!COS), variable!variable (VV) and sample !sample (SS). From DSC data determine the enthalpy change of the system (SHcal) which was 587 kJ / mol. We identified the pre temperatures (36, 39, 43, 49 and 59 ° C), post transition (71 ° C) and melting temperature (65 ° C), besides determination of SHcal for each transition. The two!dimensional correlation analysis sample! sample (SS) was also able to identify the same temperatures found by DSC. In turn, the two!dimensional correlation analysis of variable!variable (VV) described the conformation evolution of the protein secondary structures during thermal unfolding / Mestre

La spectroscopie de fluorescence de molécule individuelle a révolutionné le domaine des sciences biophysiques, en permettant la visualisation des interactions moléculaires dynamiques et des caractéristiques nanoscopiques avec une haute résolution spatio-temporelle. Le contrôle des réactions enzymatiques et l'étude de la dynamique de diffusion de molécules individuelles permet de comprendre l'influence et le contrôle de ces entités nanoscopiques sur plusieurs processus biophysiques. La nanophotonique basée sur la plasmonique offre des nouvelles opportunités de suivi d'évènements à molécule unique, puisque il est possible de confiner des champs électromagnétiques dans les hotspots à nano-échelle, à dimensions spatiales comparables à une molécule unique. Dans ce projet de thèse, nous explorons plusieurs plateformes de nanoantennas photoniques avec des hotspots, et nous avons démontré les applications dans l'amélioration de la spectroscopie de fluorescence de molécule individuelle. En utilisant la fluorescence burst analysis, l'analyse de fluctuations temporelle de fluorescence,TCSPC, nous quantifions les facteurs d'amélioration de fluorescence, les volumes de détection de nanoantennas; ainsi, nous discutons l'accélération de fluorescence photo dynamique. En alternative aux structures plasmoniques, des antennes diélectriques basées sur les dimères en silicone ont aussi démontré d'améliorer la détection de fluorescence à molécule unique, pour des concentrations micro molaires physiologiquement pertinentes. En outre, nous explorons des systèmes planaires antennas in box pour l'investigation de la dynamique de diffusion de la PE et de la SM dans les membranes des cellules vivantes. / Single-molecule fluorescence spectroscopy has revolutionized the field of biophysical sciences by enabling visualization of dynamic molecular interactions and nanoscopic features with high spatiotemporal resolution. Monitoring enzymatic reactions and studying diffusion dynamics of individual molecules help us understand how these nanoscopic entities influence and control various biochemical processes. Nanophotonic antennas can efficiently localize electromagnetic radiation into nanoscale spatial dimensions comparable to single bio-molecules. These confined illumination hotspots there by offer the opportunity to follow single-molecule events at physiological expression levels. In this thesis, we explore various photonic nanoantenna platforms and demonstrate their application in enhanced single-molecule fluorescence detection. Using fluorescence burst analysis, fluorescence correlation spectroscopy (FCS), time-correlated TCSPC measurements, and near field simulations, we quantify nanoantenna detection volumes, fluorescence enhancement factors and discuss the fluorescence photodynamic accelerations mediated by optical antennas. Further, using resonant planar antenna-in-box devices we investigate the diffusion dynamics of phosphoethanolamine and sphingomyelin on the plasma membrane of living cells and discuss the results in the context of lipid rafts. Together with cholesterol depletion experiments, we provide evidence of cholesterol-induced nanodomain partitioning within less than 10~nm diameters and characteristic times being ~100 microseconds.

Made available in DSpace on 2014-06-11T19:22:54Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 0 Previous issue date: 2011-05-27Bitstream added on 2014-06-13T20:29:19Z : No. of bitstreams: 1 martins_db_me_sjrp.pdf: 1774906 bytes, checksum: cae913e873e102a5cfd5c4dddccc9e4d (MD5) / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES) / Esse trabalho tem por objetivo estudar as transições conformacionais, induzidas termicamente, na Ribonuclease A. Esta abordagem foi realizada aplicando!se a técnica de calorimetria diferencial de varredura (DSC) e infravermelho médio com transformada de Fourier (FTIR), associando a técnica de análise de correlação bidimensional (2D! COS), variável!variável (VV) e sample sample (SS). A partir dos dados de DSC determinamos a variação de entalpia do sistema (∆Hcal) que foi de 587 kJ/mol. Também identificamos as temperaturas de pré (36, 39, 43, 49 e 59°C), pós transição (71°C) e temperatura de melting (65°C), além da determinação do ∆Hcal para cada uma das transições. A análise de correlação bidimensional sample!sample (SS) também foi capaz de identificar as mesmas temperaturas encontradas por DSC. Por sua vez, a análise de correlação bidimensional variável!variável (VV) descreveu a evolução conformacional das estruturas secundárias da proteína durante o desenovelamento térmico / This work aims to study the thermally!induced conformational transitions in Ribonuclease A. This approach was performed by applying the technique of differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and medium infrared Fourier transform spectroscopy (FTIR), linking the technique of correlation analysis (2D!COS), variable!variable (VV) and sample !sample (SS). From DSC data determine the enthalpy change of the system (SHcal) which was 587 kJ / mol. We identified the pre temperatures (36, 39, 43, 49 and 59 ° C), post transition (71 ° C) and melting temperature (65 ° C), besides determination of SHcal for each transition. The two!dimensional correlation analysis sample! sample (SS) was also able to identify the same temperatures found by DSC. In turn, the two!dimensional correlation analysis of variable!variable (VV) described the conformation evolution of the protein secondary structures during thermal unfolding