This PDF file contains the front matter associated with SPIE Proceedings Volume 9690, including the Title Page, Copyright information, Table of Contents, and Conference Committee listing.

Functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) is a non-invasive optical technique for detecting brain activity, which has been previously used during motor and motor executive tasks. There is an increasing interest in using fNIRS as a brain computer interface (BCI) for patients who lack the physical, but not the mental, ability to respond to commands. The goal of this study is to assess the feasibility of time-resolved fNIRS to detect brain activity during motor imagery. Stability tests were conducted to ensure the temporal stability of the signal, and motor imagery data were acquired on healthy subjects. The NIRS probes were placed on the scalp over the premotor cortex (PMC) and supplementary motor area (SMA), as these areas are responsible for motion planning. To confirm the fNIRS results, subjects underwent functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) while performing the same task. Seven subjects have participated to date, and significant activation in the SMA and/or the PMC during motor imagery was detected by both fMRI and fNIRS in 4 of the 7 subjects. No activation was detected by either technique in the remaining three participants, which was not unexpected due to the nature of the task. The agreement between the two imaging modalities highlights the potential of fNIRS as a BCI, which could be adapted for bedside studies of patients with disorders of consciousness.

Driver’s condition plays a critical role in driving safety. The fact that about 20 percent of automobile accidents occurred due to driver fatigue leads to a demand for developing a method to monitor driver’s status. In this study, we acquired brain signals such as oxy- and deoxyhemoglobin and neuronal electrical activity by a hybrid fNIRS/EEG system. Experiments were conducted with 11 subjects under two conditions: Normal condition, when subjects had enough sleep, and sleep deprivation condition, when subject did not sleep previous night. During experiment, subject performed a driving task with a car simulation system for 30 minutes. After experiment, oxy-hemoglobin and deoxy-hemoglobin changes were derived from fNIRS data, while beta and alpha band relative power were calculated from EEG data. Decrement of oxy-hemoglobin, beta band power, and increment of alpha band power were found in sleep deprivation condition compare to normal condition. These features were then applied to classify two conditions by Fisher’s linear discriminant analysis (FLDA). The ratio of alpha-beta relative power showed classification accuracy with a range between 62% and 99% depending on a subject. However, utilization of both EEG and fNIRS features increased accuracy in the range between 68% and 100%. The highest increase of accuracy is from 63% using EEG to 99% using both EEG and fNIRS features. In conclusion, the enhancement of classification accuracy is shown by adding a feature from fNIRS to the feature from EEG using FLDA which provides the need of developing a hybrid fNIRS/EEG system.

Verbal fluency tests (VFT) are widely used neuropsychological tests of frontal lobe and have been frequently used in various functional brain mapping studies. There are two versions of VFT based on the type of cue: the letter fluency task (LFT) and the category fluency task (CFT). However, the fundamental aspect of the brain connectivity across spatial regions of the fronto-temporal regions during the VFTs has not been elucidated to date. In this study we hypothesized that different cortical functional connectivity over bilateral fronto-temporal regions can be observed by means of multi-channel fNIRS in the LFT and the CFT respectively. Our results from fNIRS (ETG-4000) showed different patterns of brain functional connectivity consistent with these different cognitive requirements. We demonstrate more brain functional connectivity over frontal and temporal regions during LFT than CFT, and this was in line with previous brain activity studies using fNIRS demonstrating increased frontal and temporal region activation during LFT and CFT and more pronounced frontal activation by the LFT.

Cerebral amyloid angiopathy (CAA) is a neurovascular disease that is strongly associated with an increase in the number and size of spontaneous microhemorrhages. Conventional methods, such as magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), can detect microhemorrhages while positron emission tomography (PET) with Pittsburgh Compound B can detect amyloid deposits. MRI and PET can separately demonstrate the presence of microhemorrhages and CAA in affected brains in vivo; however, there is still a lack of strong evidence for the direct involvement of CAA in the presence of microhemorrhage formation. In this study, we use optical histology, a method which combines histochemical staining, chemical optical clearing, and optical imaging, in a Tg2576 mouse model of Alzheimer’s disease to enable simultaneous, co-registered three-dimensional visualization of cerebral microvasculature, microhemorrhages, and amyloid deposits. Our data strongly suggest that microhemorrhages are localized within the brain regions affected by amyloid deposits. All but two observed microhemorrhages (n=18) were closely localized with vessels affected by CAA whereas no microhemorrhages or amyloid deposits were observed in wild type mouse brain sections. Our data also suggest that the predominant type of CAA-related microhemorrhage is associated with leaky or ruptured hemorrhagic microvasculature within the hippocampus and cerebral cortex rather than occluded ischemic microvasculature. The proposed optical histology method will allow future studies about the relationship between CAA and microhemorrhages during disease development and in response to treatment strategies.

Optical sectioning of biological tissues has become the method of choice for three-dimensional histological analyses. This is particularly important in the brain were neurons can extend processes over large distances and often whole brain tracing of neuronal processes is desirable. To allow deeper optical penetration, which in fixed tissue is limited by scattering and refractive index mismatching, tissue-clearing procedures such as CLARITY have been developed. CLARITY processed brains have a nearly uniform refractive index and three-dimensional reconstructions at cellular resolution have been published. However, when imaging in deep layers at submicron resolution some limitations caused by residual refractive index mismatching become apparent, as the resulting wavefront aberrations distort the microscopic image. The wavefront can be corrected with adaptive optics. Here, we investigate the wavefront aberrations at different depths in CLARITY processed mouse brains and demonstrate the potential of adaptive optics to enable higher resolution and a better signal-to-noise ratio. Our adaptive optics system achieves high-speed measurement and correction of the wavefront with an open-loop control using a wave front sensor and a deformable mirror. Using adaptive optics enhanced microscopy, we demonstrate improved image quality wavefront, point spread function, and signal to noise in the cortex of YFP-H mice.

The cranial window preparation provides optical access to the rodent brain for high-resolution in vivo optical imaging. Two types of cranial windows are commonly employed, namely the open-skull window and thinned-skull window. Chronic in vivo laser speckle contrast imaging (LSCI) through the cranial window permits characterization of neurovascular morphology and blood flow changes over days or weeks. However, the effects of window type and their long-term stability for in vivo LSCI have not been studied. Here we systematically characterize the effect of each cranial window type on in vivo neurovascular monitoring with LSCI over two weeks. Imaging outcomes for each window were assessed in terms of contrast-to-noise ratio (CNR), microvessel density (MVD) and total vessel length (TVL). We found that the thinned-skull window required a shorter recovery period (~ 4 days), provided a larger field of view and was a good choice for short-term (i.e. < 10 days) in vivo imaging, but not for the long term because of the confounding effects of skull regrowth after ten days. The open-skull window required a longer recovery period, as made evident by the decrease in window quality within the 10-day period. In spite of this, the open-skull window would be preferable for chronic (i.e. < 10 days) in vivo imaging applications. Overall, this study informs about the pros and cons of each cranial window type for LSCI-based neurovascular imaging.

We report on the first two-photon in vivo brain tissue imaging study in man. High resolution in vivo histology by multiphoton tomography (MPT) including two-photon FLIM was performed in the operation theatre during neurosurgery to evaluate the feasibility to detect label-free tumor borders with subcellular resolution. This feasibility study demonstrates, that MPT has the potential to identify tumor borders on a cellular level in nearly real-time.

It is often difficult to identify cancer tissue during brain cancer (glioma) surgery. Gliomas invade into areas of normal brain, and this cancer invasion is frequently not detected using standard preoperative magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). This results in enduring invasive cancer following surgery and leads to recurrence. A hand-held Raman spectroscopy is able to rapidly detect cancer invasion in patients with grade 2-4 gliomas. However, ambient light sources can produce spectral artifacts which inhibit the ability to distinguish between cancer and normal tissue using the spectral information available. To address this issue, we have demonstrated that artificial neural networks (ANN) can accurately classify invasive cancer versus normal brain tissue, even when including measurements with significant spectral artifacts from external light sources. The non-parametric and adaptive model used by ANN makes it suitable for detecting complex non-linear spectral characteristics associated with different tissues and the confounding presence of light artifacts. The use of ANN for brain cancer detection with Raman spectroscopy, in the presence of light artifacts, improves the robustness and clinical translation potential for intraoperative use. Integration with the neurosurgical workflow is facilitated by accounting for the effect of light artifacts which may occur, due to operating room lights, neuronavigation systems, windows, or other light sources. The ability to rapidly detect invasive brain cancer under these conditions may reduce residual cancer remaining after surgery, and thereby improve patient survival.

Immunotherapy of brain tumors involves the stimulation of an antitumor immune response. This type of therapy can be targeted specifically to tumor cells thus sparing surrounding normal brain. Due to the presence of the blood-brain barrier, the brain is relatively isolated from the systemic circulation and, as such, the initiation of significant immune responses is more limited than other types of cancers. The purpose of this study was to show that the efficacy of tumor primed antigen presenting macrophage vaccines could be increased by: (1) PDT of the priming tumor cells, and (2) injection of allogeneic glioma cells directly into brain tumors. Experiments were conducted in an in vivo brain tumor model using Fisher rats and BT₄C (allogeneic) and F98 (syngeneic) glioma cells. Preliminary results showed that vaccination alone had significantly less inhibitory effect on F98 tumor growth compared to the combination of vaccination and allogeneic cell (BT₄C) injection.

Following normal neuronal activity, there is an increase in cerebral blood flow and cerebral blood volume to provide oxygenated hemoglobin to active neurons. For abnormal activity such as epileptiform discharges, this hemodynamic response may be inadequate to meet the high metabolic demands. To verify this hypothesis, we developed a novel hyperspectral imaging system able to monitor real-time cortical hemodynamic changes during brain surgery. The imaging system is directly integrated into a surgical microscope, using the white-light source for illumination. A snapshot hyperspectral camera is used for detection (4x4 mosaic filter array detecting 16 wavelengths simultaneously). We present calibration experiments where phantoms made of intralipid and food dyes were imaged. Relative concentrations of three dyes were recovered at a video rate of 30 frames per second. We also present hyperspectral recordings during brain surgery of epileptic patients with concurrent electrocorticography recordings. Relative concentration maps of oxygenated and deoxygenated hemoglobin were extracted from the data, allowing real-time studies of hemodynamic changes with a good spatial resolution. Finally, we present preliminary results on phantoms obtained with an integrated spatial frequency domain imaging system to recover tissue optical properties. This additional module, used together with the hyperspectral imaging system, will allow quantification of hemoglobin concentrations maps. Our hyperspectral imaging system offers a new tool to analyze hemodynamic changes, especially in the case of epileptiform discharges. It also offers an opportunity to study brain connectivity by analyzing correlations between hemodynamic responses of different tissue regions.

Cancer tissue often remains after brain tumor resection due to the inability to detect the full extent of cancer during surgery, particularly near tumor boundaries. Commercial systems are available for intra-operative real-time aminolevulenic acid (ALA)-induced protoporphyrin IX (PpIX) fluorescence imaging. These are standard white-light neurosurgical microscopes adapted with optical components for fluorescence excitation and detection. However, these instruments lack sensitivity and specificity, which limits the ability to detect low levels of PpIX and distinguish it from tissue auto-fluorescence. Current systems also cannot provide repeatable and un-biased quantitative fluorophore concentration values because of the unknown and highly variable light attenuation by tissue. We present a highly sensitive spectroscopic fluorescence imaging system that is seamlessly integrated onto a neurosurgical microscope. Hardware and software were developed to achieve through-microscope spatially-modulated illumination for 3D profilometry and to use this information to extract tissue optical properties to correct for the effects of tissue light attenuation. This gives pixel-by-pixel quantified fluorescence values and improves detection of low PpIX concentrations. This is achieved using a high-sensitivity Electron Multiplying Charge Coupled Device (EMCCD) with a Liquid Crystal Tunable Filter (LCTF) whereby spectral bands are acquired sequentially; and a snapshot camera system with simultaneous acquisition of all bands is used for profilometry and optical property recovery. Sensitivity and specificity to PpIX is demonstrated using brain tissue phantoms and intraoperative human data acquired in an on-going clinical study using PpIX fluorescence to guide glioma resection.

Deep brain stimulation’s effectiveness relies on the ability of the stimulating electrode to be properly placed within a specific target area of the brain. Optical guidance techniques that can increase the accuracy of the procedure, without causing any additional harm, are therefore of great interest. We have designed a cheap optical fiber-based device that is small enough to be placed within commercially available DBS stimulating electrodes’ hollow cores and that is capable of sensing biological information from the surrounding tissue, using low power white light. With this probe we have shown the ability to distinguish white and grey matter as well as blood vessels, in vitro, in human brain samples and in vivo, in rats. We have also repeated the in vitro procedure with the probe inserted in a DBS stimulating electrode and found the results were in good agreement. We are currently validating a second fiber optic device, with micro-optical components, that will result in label free, molecular level sensing capabilities, using CARS spectroscopy. The final objective will be to use this data in real time, during deep brain stimulation neurosurgery, to increase the safety and accuracy of the procedure.

Glioma is one of the most aggressive cancers, for which efficacy of conventional chemotherapy is often limited due to the blood-tumor barrier (BTB). Thus, the development of a method for enhancing the BTB permeability is strongly desired. In this study, we applied a photomechanical wave (PMW), which was generated by the irradiation of a light-absorbing material with a nanosecond laser pulse, to transiently open the BTB in a rat intracranial glioma model using C6 cells. A tumor was grown in the both hemispheres, and a solution of Evans blue (EB), as a test drug, was injected into the tail vein. Thereafter, we applied a PMW generated at a laser fluence of 0.2 J/cm2 (averaged peak pressure, ~27 MPa), 0.4 J/cm2 (~54 MPa) or 0.6 J/cm2 (~78MPa), to one hemisphere through the cranial window, while the other hemisphere served as a control. Four hours later, the rat was perfused, and we compared intensity distributions of EB fluorescence between the both hemispheres. Intensities of EB fluorescence both in the peritumoral and tumor core regions were increased with increasing the laser fluence, but hemorrhage was observed at the highest fluence. Thus, 0.4 J/cm2 would be optimum for efficient and safe BTB opening. On the basis of fluorescence microscopy with the use of enhanced green fluorescent protein-expressing C6 cells, we confirmed that a drug was delivered into targeted glioma cells in the peritumoral region. These results show the validity of the present transvascular drug delivery method to glioma.

Current surgical microscopes are limited in sensitivity for NIR fluorescence. Recent developments in tumor markers attached with NIR dyes require newer, more sensitive imaging systems with high resolution to guide surgical resection. We report on a small, single camera solution enabling advanced image processing opportunities previously unavailable for ultra-high sensitivity imaging of these agents. The system captures both visible reflectance and NIR fluorescence at 300 fps while displaying full HD resolution video at 60 fps. The camera head has been designed to easily mount onto the Zeiss Pentero microscope head for seamless integration into surgical procedures.

Requirements of in vivo rodent brain imaging are hard to satisfy using traditional technologies such as magnetic resonance imaging and two-photon microscopy. Optical coherence tomography (OCT) is an emerging tool that can easily reach at high speeds and provide high resolution volumetric images with a relatively large field of view for rodent brain imaging. Here, we provide the overview of recent developments of functional OCT based imaging techniques for neuroscience applications on rodents. Moreover, a summary of OCT-based microangiography (OMAG) studies for stroke and traumatic brain injury cases on rodents are provided.

While most people recover completely from mild traumatic brain injuries (mTBIs) and concussions, a subset develop lasting neurological disorders. Understanding the complex pathophysiology of these injuries is critical to developing improved prognostic and therapeutic approaches. Multiple studies have shown that the structure and perfusion of brain vessels are altered after mTBI. It is possible that these vascular injuries contribute to or trigger neurodegeneration. Intravital microscopy and mouse models of TBI offer a powerful platform to study the vascular component of mTBI. Because optical coherence tomography based angiography is based on perfusion contrast and is not significantly degraded by vessel leakage or blood brain barrier disruption, it is uniquely suited to studies of brain perfusion in the setting of trauma. However, existing TBI imaging models require surgical exposure of the brain at the time of injury which conflates TBI-related vascular changes with those caused by surgery. In this work, we describe a modified cranial window preparation based on a flexible, transparent polyurethane membrane. Impact injuries were delivered directly through this membrane, and imaging was performed immediately after injury without the need for additional surgical procedures. Using this model, we demonstrate that mTBI induces a transient cessation of flow in the capillaries and smaller vessels near the injury point. Reperfusion is observed in all animals within 3 hours of injury. This work describes new insight into the transient vascular changes induced by mTBI, and demonstrates more broadly the utility of the OCT/polyurethane window model platform in preclinical studies of mTBI.

Evaluation of neurodegenerative disease often requires examination of brain morphology. Volumetric analysis of brain regions and structures can be used to track developmental changes, progression of disease, and the presence of transgenic phenotypes. Current standards for microscopic investigation of brain morphology are limited to detection of superficial structures at a maximum depth of 300μm. While histological techniques can provide detailed cross-sections of brain structures, they require complicated tissue preparation and the ultimate destruction of the sample. A non-invasive, label-free imaging modality known as Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT) can produce 3-dimensional reconstructions through high-speed, cross-sectional scans of biological tissue. Although OCT allows for the preservation of intact samples, the highly scattering and absorbing properties of biological tissue limit imaging depth to 1-2mm. Optical clearing agents have been utilized to increase imaging depth by index matching and lipid digestion, however, these contemporary techniques are expensive and harsh on tissues, often irreversibly denaturing proteins. Here we present an ideal optical clearing agent that offers ease-of-use and reversibility. Similar to how SeeDB has been effective for microscopy, our fructose-based, reversible optical clearing technique provides improved OCT imaging and functional immunohistochemical mapping of disease. Fructose is a natural, non-toxic sugar with excellent water solubility, capable of increasing tissue transparency and reducing light scattering. We will demonstrate the improved depth-resolving performance of OCT for enhanced whole-brain imaging of normal and diseased murine brains following a fructose clearing treatment. This technique potentially enables rapid, 3-dimensional evaluation of biological tissues at axial and lateral resolutions comparable to histopathology.

In histopathological practice, birefringence is used for the identification of amyloidosis in numerous tissues. Amyloid birefringence is caused by the parallel arrangement of fibrous protein aggregates. Since neurodegenerative processes in Alzheimer’s disease (AD) are also linked to the formation of amyloid-beta (Aβ) plaques, optical methods sensitive to birefringence may act as non-invasive tools for Aβ identification. At last year’s Photonics West, we demonstrated polarization-sensitive optical coherence tomography (PS-OCT) imaging of ex vivo cerebral tissue of advanced stage AD patients. PS-OCT provides volumetric, structural imaging based on both backscatter contrast and tissue polarization properties. In this presentation, we report on polarization-sensitive neuroimaging along with numerical simulations of three-dimensional Aβ plaques. High speed PS-OCT imaging was performed using a spectral domain approach based on polarization maintaining fiber optics. The sample beam was interfaced to a confocal scanning microscope arrangement. Formalin-fixed tissue samples as well as thin histological sections were imaged. For comparison to the PS-OCT results, ray propagation through plaques was modeled using Jones analysis and various illumination geometries and plaque sizes. Characteristic polarization patterns were found. The results of this study may not only help to understand PS-OCT imaging of neuritic Aβ plaques but may also have implications for polarization-sensitive imaging of other fibrillary structures.

We present a comparative evaluation of five different neuroprotective drugs in the early phase following focal traumatic brain injury (TBI) in mouse intact head. The effectiveness of these drugs in terms of changes in brain tissue morphology and hemodynamic properties was experimentally evaluated through analysis of the optical absorption coefficient and spectral reduced scattering parameters in the range of 650-1000 nm. Anesthetized male mice (n=50 and n=10 control) were subjected to weight drop model mimics real life focal head trauma. Monitoring the effect of injury and neuroprotective drugs was obtained by using a diffuse reflectance spectroscopy system utilizing independent source-detector separation and location. Result indicates that administration of minocycline improve hemodynamic and reduced the level of tissue injury at an early phase post-injury while hypertonic saline treatment decrease brain water content. These findings highlight the heterogeneity between neuroprotective drugs and the ongoing controversy among researchers regarding which drug therapy is preferred for treatment of TBI. On the other hand, our results show the capability of optical spectroscopy technique to noninvasively study brain function following injury and drug therapy.

The concentrations of oxygenated and deoxygenated hemoglobin and regional oxygen saturation in rat brains were visualized based on the RGB images acquired while changing fraction of inspired oxygen.

We describe the general principles and initial results of coherent hemodynamics spectroscopy (CHS), which is a new technique for the quantitative assessment of cerebral hemodynamics on the basis of dynamic near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) measurements. The two components of CHS are (1) dynamic measurements of coherent cerebral hemodynamics in the form of oscillations at multiple frequencies (frequency domain) or temporal transients (time domain), and (2) their quantitative analysis with a dynamic mathematical model that relates the concentration and oxygen saturation of hemoglobin in tissue to cerebral blood volume (CBV), cerebral blood flow (CBF), and cerebral metabolic rate of oxygen (CMRO2). In particular, CHS can provide absolute measurements and dynamic monitoring of CBF, and quantitative measures of cerebral autoregulation. We report initial results of CBF measurements in hemodialysis patients, where we found a lower CBF (54 ± 16 ml/(100 g-min)) compared to a group of healthy controls (95 ± 11 ml/(100 g-min)). We also report CHS measurements of cerebral autoregulation, where a quantitative index of autoregulation (its cutoff frequency) was found to be significantly greater in healthy subjects during hyperventilation (0.034 ± 0.005 Hz) than during normal breathing (0.017 ± 0.002 Hz). We also present our approach to depth resolved CHS, based on multi-distance, frequency-domain NIRS data and a two-layer diffusion model, to enhance sensitivity to cerebral tissue. CHS offers a potentially powerful approach to the quantitative assessment and continuous monitoring of local brain perfusion at the microcirculation level, with prospective brain mapping capabilities of research and clinical significance.

Near‐Infrared Spectroscopy (NIRS) is an emerging medical countermeasure for rapid, field detection of hematomas caused by traumatic brain injury (TBI). Bench and animal tests to determine NIRS sensitivity and specificity are needed. However, current animal models involving non-invasively induced, localized neural damage are limited. We investigated an in vivo murine hematoma model in which cerebral hemorrhage was induced noninvasively by high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) with calibrated positioning and parameters. To characterize the morphology of induced hematomas, we used skull-intact histological evaluation. A multi-wavelength fiber-optic NIRS system with three source-detector separation distances was used to detect hematoma A 1.1 MHz transducer produced consistent small-to-medium hematoma localized to a single hemisphere, along with bruising of the scalp, with a low mortality rate. A 220 kHz transducer produced larger, more diffuse hematomas, with higher variability in size and a correspondingly higher mortality rate. No skin bruising or blood accumulation between the skin and skull was observed following injury application with the 220 kHz transducer. Histological analysis showed higher sensitivity for larger hematomas (>4x4 mm²). NIRS optical density change after HIFU was able to detect all hematomas, with sensitivity dependent on wavelength and separation distance. While improvements in methods for validating cerebral blood distribution are needed, the HIFU hematoma model provided useful insights that will inform development of biologically relevant, performance test methods for cerebral NIRS systems.

fNIRS is a neuroimaging technique which uses near-infrared light source in the 700-1000 nm range and enables to detect hemodynamic changes (i.e., oxygenated hemoglobin, deoxygenated hemoglobin, blood volume) as a response to various brain processes. In this study, we developed a new, portable, prefrontal fNIRS system which has 12 light sources, 15 detectors and 108 channels with a sampling rate of 2 Hz. The wavelengths of light source are 780nm and 850nm. ATxmega128A1, 8bit of Micro controller unit (MCU) with 200~4095 resolution along with MatLab data acquisition algorithm was utilized. We performed a simple left and right finger movement imagery tasks which produced statistically significant changes of oxyhemoglobin concentrations in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (dlPFC) areas. We observed that the accuracy of the imagery tasks can be improved by carrying out neurofeedback training, during which a real-time feedback signal is provided to a participating subject. The effects of the neurofeedback training was later visually verified using the 3D NIRfast imaging. Our portable fNIRS system may be useful in non-constraint environment for various clinical diagnoses.

Alterations to cerebral blood flow (CBF) have been implicated in diverse neurological conditions, including mild traumatic brain injury, microgravity induced intracranial pressure (ICP) increases, mild cognitive impairment, and Alzheimer’s disease. Near infrared spectroscopy (NIRS)-measured regional cerebral tissue oxygen saturation (rSO2) provides an estimate of oxygenation of the interrogated cerebral volume that is useful in identifying trends and changes in oxygen supply to cerebral tissue and has been used to monitor cerebrovascular function during surgery and ventilation. In this study, CO₂-inhalation-based hypercapnic breathing challenges were used as a tool to simulate CBF dysregulation, and NIRS was used to monitor the CBF autoregulatory response. A breathing circuit for the selective administration of CO2-compressed air mixtures was designed and used to assess CBF regulatory responses to hypercapnia in 26 healthy young adults using non-invasive methods and real-time sensors. After a 5 or 10 minute baseline period, 1 to 3 hypercapnic challenges of 5 or 10 minutes duration were delivered to each subject while rSO₂, partial pressure of end tidal CO₂ (PETCO₂), and vital signs were continuously monitored. Change in rSO₂ measurements from pre- to intrachallenge (ΔrSO₂) detected periods of hypercapnic challenges. Subjects were grouped into three exercise factor levels (hr/wk), 1: 0, 2:>0 and <10, and 3:>10. Exercise factor level 3 subjects showed significantly greater ΔrSO₂ responses to CO₂ challenges than level 2 and 1 subjects. No significant difference in ΔPETCO2 existed between these factor levels. Establishing baseline values of rSO₂ in clinical practice may be useful in early detection of CBF changes.

Cerebral oximeters measure continuous cerebral oxygen saturation using near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) technology noninvasively. It has been involved into operating room setting to monitor oxygenation within patient’s brain when surgeons are concerned that a patient’s levels might drop. Recently, cerebral oxygen saturation has also been related with chronic cerebral vascular insufficiency (CCVI). Patients with CCVI would be benefited if there would be a wearable system to measure their cerebral oxygen saturation in need. However, there has yet to be a wearable wireless cerebral oximeter to measure the saturation in 24 hours. So we proposed to develop the wearable wireless cerebral oximeter. The mechanism of the system follows the NIRS technology. Emitted light at wavelengths of 740nm and 860nm are sent from the light source penetrating the skull and cerebrum, and the light detector(s) receives the light not absorbed during the light pathway through the skull and cerebrum. The amount of oxygen absorbed within the brain is the difference between the amount of light sent out and received by the probe, which can be used to calculate the percentage of oxygen saturation. In the system, it has one source and four detectors. The source, located in the middle of forehead, can emit two near infrared light, 740nm and 860nm. Two detectors are arranged in one side in 2 centimeters and 3 centimeters from the source. Their measurements are used to calculate the saturation in the cerebral cortex. The system has included the rechargeable lithium battery and Bluetooth smart wireless micro-computer unit.

Time-resolved multi-distance measurements are studied to retrieve absorption and reduced scattering coefficients of adult heads, which have enough depth sensitivity to determine the optical parameters in superficial tissues and brain separately. Measurements were performed by putting the injection and collection fibers on the left semi-sphere of the forehead, with the injection fiber placed toward the temporal region, and by moving the collection fiber between 10 and 60 mm from the central sulcus. It became clear that optical parameters of the forehead at all collection fibers were reasonably determined by selecting the appropriate visibility length of the geometrical head models, which is related to head surface curvature at each position.

Growing interest within the neurophysiology community in assessing healthy and pathological brain activity in animals that are awake and freely-behaving has triggered the need for optical systems that are suitable for such longitudinal studies. In this work we report label-free multi-modal imaging of cortical hemodynamics in the somatosensory cortex of awake, freely-behaving rats, using a novel head-mounted miniature optical microscope. The microscope employs vertical cavity surface emitting lasers (VCSELs) at three distinct wavelengths (680 nm, 795 nm, and 850 nm) to provide measurements of four hemodynamic markers: blood flow speeds, HbO, HbR, and total Hb concentration, across a > 2 mm field of view. Blood flow speeds are extracted using Laser Speckle Contrast Imaging (LSCI), while oxygenation measurements are performed using Intrinsic Optical Signal Imaging (IOSI). Longitudinal measurements on the same animal are made possible over the course of > 6 weeks using a chronic window that is surgically implanted into the skull. We use the device to examine changes in blood flow and blood oxygenation in superficial cortical blood vessels and tissue in response to drug-induced absence-like seizures, correlating motor behavior with changes in blood flow and blood oxygenation in the brain.

Dysfunction of the vascular endothelium has been implicated in the development of epilepsy. To better understand the relation between vascular function and seizure and provide a foundation for interpreting results from functional imaging in chronic disease models, we investigate the relationship between intracellular calcium dynamics and local cerebral blood flow and blood oxygen saturation during acute seizure-like events and pharmacological seizure rescue. To probe the relation between the aforementioned physiological markers in an acute model of epilepsy in rats, we integrated three different optical modalities together with electrophysiological recordings: Laser speckle contrast imaging (LSCI) was used to study changes in flow speeds, Intrinsic optical signal imaging (IOSI) was used to monitor changes in oxygenated, de-oxygenated, and total hemoglobin concentration, and Calcium-sensitive dye imaging was used to monitor intracellular calcium dynamics. We designed a dedicated cortical flow chamber to remove superficial blood and dye resulting from the injection procedure, which reduced spurious artifacts. The near infrared light used for IOSI and LSCI was delivered via a light pipe integrated with the flow chamber to minimize the effect of fluid surface movement on illumination stability. Calcium-sensitive dye was injected via a glass electrode used for recording the local field potential. Our system allowed us to observe and correlate increases in intracellular calcium, blood flow and blood volume during seizure-like events and provide a quantitative analysis of neurovascular coupling changes associated with seizure rescue via injection of an anti-convulsive agent.

Mapping neuronal activity patterns across the whole brain with cellular resolution is a challenging task for state-of-the-art imaging methods. Indeed, despite a number of technological efforts, quantitative cellular-resolution activation maps of the whole brain have not yet been obtained. Many techniques are limited by coarse resolution or by a narrow field of view. High-throughput imaging methods, such as light sheet microscopy, can be used to image large specimens with high resolution and in reasonable times. However, the bottleneck is then moved from image acquisition to image analysis, since many TeraBytes of data have to be processed to extract meaningful information. Here, we present a full experimental pipeline to quantify neuronal activity in the entire mouse brain with cellular resolution, based on a combination of genetics, optics and computer science. We used a transgenic mouse strain (Arc-dVenus mouse) in which neurons which have been active in the last hours before brain fixation are fluorescently labelled. Samples were cleared with CLARITY and imaged with a custom-made confocal light sheet microscope. To perform an automatic localization of fluorescent cells on the large images produced, we used a novel computational approach called semantic deconvolution. The combined approach presented here allows quantifying the amount of Arc-expressing neurons throughout the whole mouse brain. When applied to cohorts of mice subject to different stimuli and/or environmental conditions, this method helps finding correlations in activity between different neuronal populations, opening the possibility to infer a sort of brain-wide 'functional connectivity' with cellular resolution.

Acquiring brain-wide composite information of neuroanatomical and molecular phenotyping is crucial to understand brain functions. However, current whole-brain imaging methods based on mechnical sectioning haven’t achieved brain-wide acquisition of both neuroanatomical and molecular phenotyping due to the lack of appropriate whole-brain immunostaining of embedded samples. Here, we present a novel strategy of acquiring brain-wide structural and molecular maps in the same brain, combining whole-brain imaging and subsequent immunostaining of automated-collected slices. We developed a whole-brain imaging system capable of automatically imaging and then collecting imaged tissue slices in order. The system contains three parts: structured illumination microscopy for high-throughput optical sectioning, vibratome for high-precision sectioning and slice-collection device for automated collecting of tissue slices. Through our system, we could acquire a whole-brain dataset of agarose-embedded mouse brain at lateral resolution of 0.33 µm with z-interval sampling of 100 µm in 9 h, and automatically collect the imaged slices in sequence. Subsequently, we performed immunohistochemistry of the collected slices in the routine way. We acquired mouse whole-brain imaging datasets of multiple specific types of neurons, proteins and gene expression profiles. We believe our method could accelerate systematic analysis of brain anatomical structure with specific proteins or genes expression information and understanding how the brain processes information and generates behavior.

Imaging the neuronal activity throughout the brain with high temporal and spatial resolution is an important step in understanding how the brain works. Two-photon laser scanning microscopy with fluorescent calcium indicators has enabled this type of experiments in vivo. Most of these microscopes acquire images serially, with a single laser beam, limiting the overall imaging speed. To overcome this limit, multiple beamlets can be used to image in parallel multiple regions. Here, we demonstrate a novel scheme of a two-photon laser-scanning microscope that can simultaneously record neuronal activity at multiple planes of the sample with a single photomultiplier tube. A spatial light modulator is used to generate the designated multiple beamlets, and a constrained non-negative matrix factorization algorithm is used to demix the signals from multiple scanned planes. We simultaneously record neuronal activity of multiple layers of a mouse cortex at 10 fps in vivo. This novel imaging scheme provides a powerful tool for mapping the brain activity.

Despite significant advancement in the methodology used to conjugate, incorporate and visualize fluorescent molecules at the cellular and tissue levels, biomedical imaging predominantly relies on the limitations of established fluorescent molecules such as fluorescein, cyanine and AlexaFluor dyes or genetic incorporation of fluorescent proteins by viral or other means. These fluorescent dyes and conjugates are highly susceptible to photobleaching and compete with cellular autofluorescence, making biomedical imaging unreliable, difficult and time consuming in many cases. In addition, some proteins have low copy numbers and/or poor antibody recognition, further making detection and imaging difficult. We are developing better methods for imaging central nervous system neuroinflammatory markers using targeted mRNA transcripts labelled with fluorescent nanodiamonds or lanthanide chelates. These tags have increased signal and photostability and can also discriminate against tissue/cell autofluorescence. Brains and spinal cords from BALB/c mice with a chronic constriction model of neuropathic pain (neuroinflammation group) or that have undergone sham surgeries (control group) were collected. A subset of brains and spinal cords were perfused and fixed with paraformaldehyde (n=3 sham and n=3 pain groups) prior to sectioning and in situ hybridization using nanodiamond or lanthanide chelate conjugated complementary RNA probes. Another subset of brains and spinal cords from the same cohort of animals were perfused and processed for CLARITY hydrogel based clearing prior to in situ hybridization with the same probes. We will present our findings on the photostability, sensitivity and discrimination from background tissue autofluorescence of our novel RNA probes, compared to traditional fluorophore tags.

A number of approaches have been developed for in-vivo imaging of neural function at the time scale of action potentials and at the spatial resolution of individual neurons. Remarkable results have been obtained with optogenetics, although the need for genetic modification is an important limitation of these approaches. Similarly, voltage and ion-sensitive dyes allow for optical imaging of action potentials but toxicity remains a problem. Additionally, optical techniques are often only able to be used up to a limited depth. Our preliminary work has shown that nanoparticles of common phosphorescent materials, believed to be generally non-toxic, specifically lutetium oxide and strontium aluminate, can be utilized for cellular imaging, for tomographic imaging, and that the particles can be designed to adhere to neurons. Additionally, lutetium oxide has been shown to be highly X-ray luminescent, potentially allowing for imaging deep within the brain, if the particles can be targeted properly. In ex vivo experiments, we have shown that the phosphorescence of strontium aluminate particles is significantly affected by electric fields similar in strength to those found in the vicinity of the cellular membrane of a neuron. This phenomenon is consistent with early published reports in the electroluminescence literature, namely the Gudden-Pohl effect. We will show results of the ex vivo imaging and dynamic electrical stimulation experiments. We will also show some preliminary ex vivo cell culture results, and will describe plans for future research, focusing on potential in both cell cultures and in vivo for animal models.

Functional connectivity maps of neuronal networks are critical tools to understand how neurons form circuits, how information is encoded and processed by neurons, how memory is shaped, and how these basic processes are altered under pathological conditions.  Current light microscopy allows to observe calcium or electrical activity of thousands of neurons simultaneously, yet assessing comprehensive connectivity maps directly from such data remains a non-trivial analytical task. There exist simple statistical methods, such as cross-correlation and Granger causality, but they only detect linear interactions between neurons.  Other more involved inference methods inspired by information theory, such as mutual information and transfer entropy, identify more accurately connections between neurons but also require more computational resources.   We carried out a comparative study of common connectivity inference methods.  The relative accuracy and computational cost of each method was determined via simulated fluorescence traces generated with realistic computational models of interacting neurons in networks of different topologies (clustered or non-clustered) and sizes (10-1000 neurons). To bridge the computational and experimental works, we observed the intracellular calcium activity of live hippocampal neuronal cultures infected with the fluorescent calcium marker GCaMP6f. The spontaneous activity of the networks, consisting of 50-100 neurons per field of view, was recorded from 20 to 50 Hz on a microscope controlled by a homemade software. We implemented all connectivity inference methods in the software, which rapidly loads calcium fluorescence movies, segments the images, extracts the fluorescence traces, and assesses the functional connections (with strengths and directions) between each pair of neurons.  We used this software to assess, in real time, the functional connectivity from real calcium imaging data in basal conditions, under plasticity protocols, and epileptic conditions.

Despite advances in functional neural imaging, penetrating microelectrodes provide the most direct interface for the extraction of neural signals from the nervous system and are a critical component of many high degree-of-freedom braincomputer interface devices. Electrode insertion is a traumatic event that elicits a complex neuroinflammatory response. In this investigation we applied optical coherence microscopy (OCM), particularly optical coherence angiography (OCA), to characterize the immediate tissue response during microelectrode insertion. Microelectrodes of varying dimension and footprint (one-, two-, and four-shank) were inserted into mouse motor cortex beneath a window after craniotomy surgery. The microelectrodes were inserted in 3-4 steps at 15-20°, with approximately 250 μm linear insertion distance for each step. Before insertion and between each step, OCM datasets were collected, including for quantitative capillary velocimetry. A cohort of control animals without microelectrode insertion was also imaged over a similar time period (2-3 hours). Mechanical tissue deformation was observed in all the experimental animals. The quantitative angiography results varied across animals, and were not correlated with device dimensions. In some cases, localized flow drop-out was observed in a small region surrounding the electrode, while in other instances a global disruption in flow occurred, perhaps as a result of large vessel compression caused by mechanical pressure. OCM is a tool that can be used in various neurophotonics applications, including quantification of the neuroinflammatory response to penetrating electrode insertion.

Neuroanatomical pathways form the basis for functional activity of brain circuits. In the past, we developed a polarization-sensitive optical coherence tomography with serial scanning to achieve large-scale brain imaging. The system was able to visualize 3D fiber tracts of ~20 um in diameter. To investigate the neuroanatomical pathways at finer scales, we have now built a polarization-maintaining fiber based ultra-high resolution polarization-sensitive optical coherence microscope (PS-OCM) at 1300 nm. The PS-OCM has an axial resolution of 3.5 um in tissue. The detection setup consists of two spectrometers, acquiring spectral interference on orthogonal polarization channels. With a single measurement, the setup generates four contrasts: reflectivity, cross-polarization, retardance and optic axis orientation. To investigate the capability of PS-OCM at different resolutions, we used three microscope objectives that yield lateral resolutions of 6.0 um, 3.4 um and 1.3 um. Blocks of formalin fixed mouse brain and human brain were scanned. The cross-polarization and retardance images clearly depict the neuronal fiber structures, which are comparable with that generated by the maximum projection of volumetric reflectivity data. The optic axis orientation quantifies the in-plane fiber orientation. With the lateral resolution of 1.3 um, the retardance contrast is weak in white matter due to the shallow depth of focus. Overall, the ultra-high resolution PS-OCM provides a new tool to reveal neuroanatomical maps in the brain at cellular resolution.

The peripheral nervous system (PNS) carries bidirectional information between the central nervous system and distal organs. PNS stimulation has been widely used in medical devices for therapeutic indications, such as bladder control and seizure cessation. Investigational uses of PNS stimulation include providing sensory feedback for improved control of prosthetic limbs. While nerve safety has been well documented for stimulation parameters used in marketed devices, novel PNS stimulation devices may require alternative stimulation paradigms to achieve maximum therapeutic benefit. Improved testing paradigms to assess the safety of stimulation will expedite the development process for novel PNS stimulation devices. The objective of this research is to assess peripheral nerve vascular changes in real-time with optical coherence angiography (OCA). A 1300-nm OCA system was used to image vasculature changes in the rat sciatic nerve in the region around a surface contacting single electrode. Nerves and vasculature were imaged without stimulation for 180 minutes to quantify resting blood vessel diameter. Walking track analysis was used to assess motor function before and 6 days following experiments. There was no significant change in vessel diameter between baseline and other time points in all animals. Motor function tests indicated the experiments did not impair functionality. We also evaluated the capabilities to image the nerve during electrical stimulation in a pilot study. Combining OCA with established nerve assessment methods can be used to study the effects of electrical stimulation safety on neural and vascular tissue in the periphery.

The optic axis of birefringent tissues indicates the direction of structural anisotropy. Polarization-sensitive Optical Coherence Tomography (PS-OCT) can provide reflectivity contrast as well as retardance and optic axis orientation contrasts that originate from tissue birefringence. We introduce imaging 3D tissue anisotropy by using a single-camera and polarization-maintaining fiber (PMF) based PS-OCT, which utilizes normal and angled illuminations. Because environmental factors such as the movement of PMF and temperature fluctuations induce arbitrary phase changes, the optic axis orientation measurement has a time-varying offset. In order to measure the absolute axis orientation, we add a calibration path which dynamically provides the arbitrary offset to be subtracted from the relative axis orientation values. The axis orientation on the normal plane is the 2D projection of the fiber direction in 3D space. We propose to characterize the axis orientation in different planes (xy, xy’ and x’y planes) by using normal and angled illuminations. This allows calculation of the polar angle that completes the orientation information in 3D. Polarization-based optical systems relying on one illumination angle measure the “apparent birefringence” that light encounters rather than the “true birefringence”. Birefringence as a measure of anisotropy is quantified with the orientation information in 3D. The method and validation with a biological tissue are presented. The study can facilitate imaging and mapping the structural connections in anisotropic tissues including the brain.

Due to optical coherence tomography (OCT) high spatial and temporal resolution, this technique could be used to observe the quick changes in the refractive index that accompany action potential. In this study we explore the use of time domain Optical Coherence Tomography (TD-OCT) for real time action potential detection in ex vivo Xenopus Laevis sciatic nerve. TD-OCT is the easiest and less expensive OCT technique and, if successful in detecting real time action potential, it could be used for low cost monitoring devices. A theoretical investigation into the order of magnitude of the signals detected by a TD-OCT setup is provided by this work. A linear dependence between the refractive index and the intensity changes is observed and the minimum SNR for which the setup could work is found to be SNR = 2 x 10⁴.

Due to a lack of imaging tools for high-resolution imaging of cortical tissue oxygenation, the detailed maps of the oxygen partial pressure (PO2) around arterioles, venules, and capillaries remain largely unknown. Therefore, we have limited knowledge about the mechanisms that secure sufficient oxygen delivery in microvascular domains during brain activation, and provide some metabolic reserve capacity in diseases that affect either microvascular networks or the regulation of cerebral blood flow (CBF). To address this challenge, we applied a Two-Photon PO2 Microscopy to map PO2 at different depths in mice cortices. Measurements were performed through the cranial window in the anesthetized healthy mice as well as in the mouse models of microvascular dysfunctions. In addition, microvascular morphology was recorded by the two-photon microscopy at the end of each experiment and subsequently segmented. Co-registration of the PO2 measurements and exact microvascular morphology enabled quantification of the tissue PO2 dependence on distance from the arterioles, capillaries, and venules at various depths. Our measurements reveal significant spatial heterogeneity of the cortical tissue PO2 distribution that is dominated by the high oxygenation in periarteriolar spaces. In cases of impaired oxygen delivery due to microvascular dysfunction, significant reduction in tissue oxygenation away from the arterioles was observed. These tissue domains may be the initial sites of cortical injury that can further exacerbate the progression of the disease.

Magnetic Resonance Imaging has revolutionised our understanding of brain function through its ability to image human cerebral structures non-invasively over the entire brain. By exploiting the different magnetic properties of oxygenated and deoxygenated blood, functional MRI can indirectly map areas undergoing neural activation. Alongside the development of fMRI, powerful statistical tools have been developed in an effort to shed light on the neural pathways involved in processing of sensory and cognitive information. In spite of the major improvements made in fMRI technology, the obtained spatial resolution of hundreds of microns prevents MRI in resolving and monitoring processes occurring at the cellular level. In this regard, Optical Coherence Microscopy is an ideal instrumentation as it can image at high spatio-temporal resolution. Moreover, by measuring the mean and the width of the Doppler spectra of light scattered by moving particles, OCM allows extracting the axial and lateral velocity components of red blood cells. The ability to assess quantitatively total blood velocity, as opposed to classical axial velocity Doppler OCM, is of paramount importance in brain imaging as a large proportion of cortical vascular is oriented perpendicularly to the optical axis. We combine here quantitative blood flow imaging with extended-focus Optical Coherence Microscopy and Statistical Parametric Mapping tools to generate maps of stimuli-evoked cortical hemodynamics at the capillary level.

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a form of brain injury caused by sudden impact on brain by an external mechanical force. Following the damage caused at the moment of injury, TBI influences pathophysiology in the brain that takes place within the minutes or hours involving alterations in the brain tissue morphology, cerebral blood flow (CBF), and pressure within skull, which become important contributors to morbidity after TBI. While many studies for the TBI pathophysiology have been investigated with brain cortex, the effect of trauma on intracranial tissues has been poorly studied. Here, we report use of high-resolution optical microangiography (OMAG) to monitor the changes in cranial meninges beneath the skull of mouse after TBI. TBI is induced on a brain of anesthetized mouse by thinning the skull using a soft drill where a series of drilling exert mechanical stress on the brain through the skull, resulting in mild brain injury. Intracranial OMAG imaging of the injured mouse brain during post-TBI phase shows interesting pathophysiological findings in the meningeal layers such as widening of subdural space as well as vasodilation of subarachnoid vessels. These processes are acute and reversible within hours. The results indicate potential of OMAG to explore mechanism involved following TBI on small animals in vivo.

Spinal cord injury is a devastating medical condition. Recent developments in pre-clinical and clinical research have started to yield neural implants inducing functional recovery after spinal cord transection injury. However, the functional performance of the transplants was assessed using histology and behavioral experiments which are unable to study cell dynamics and the therapeutic response. Here, we use neurophotonic tools and optogenetic probes to investigate cellular level morphology and activity characteristics of neural implants over time at the cellular level. These methods were used in-vitro and in-vivo, in a mouse spinal cord injury implant model. Following previous attempts to induce recovery after spinal cord injury, we engineered a pre-vascularized implant to obtain better functional performance. To image network activity of a construct implanted in a mouse spinal cord, we transfected the implant to express GCaMP6 calcium activity indicators and implanted these constructs under a spinal cord chamber enabling 2-photon chronic in vivo neural activity imaging. Activity and morphology analysis image processing software was developed to automatically quantify the behavior of the neural and vascular networks. Our experimental results and analyses demonstrate that vascularized and non-vascularized constructs exhibit very different morphologic and activity patterns at the cellular level. This work enables further optimization of neural implants and also provides valuable tools for continuous cellular level monitoring and evaluation of transplants designed for various neurodegenerative disease models.

Short infrared (IR) laser pulses on the order of hundreds of microseconds to single milliseconds with typical wavelengths of 1800-2100 nm, have shown the capability to reversibly stimulate action potentials (AP) in neuronal cells. While the IR stimulation technique has proven successful for several applications, the exact mechanism(s) underlying the AP generation has remained elusive. To better understand how IR pulses cause AP stimulation, we determined the threshold for the formation of nanopores in the plasma membrane. Using a surrogate calcium ion, thallium, which is roughly the same shape and charge, but lacks the biological functionality of calcium, we recorded the flow of thallium ions into an exposed cell in the presence of a battery of channel antagonists. The entry of thallium into the cell indicated that the ions entered via nanopores. The data presented here demonstrate a basic understanding of the fundamental effects of IR stimulation and speculates that nanopores, formed in response to the IR exposure, play an upstream role in the generation of AP.

Infrared laser light radiation can be used to depolarize neurons and to stimulate neural activity. The absorption of infrared radiation and heating of biological tissue is thought to be the underlying mechanism of this phenomenon whereby local temperature increases in the plasma membrane of cells either directly influence membrane properties or act via temperature sensitive ion channels. Action potentials are typically measured electrically in neurons with microelectrodes, but they can also be observed using fluorescence microscopy techniques that use synthetic or genetically encoded calcium indicators. In this work, we studied the impact of infrared laser light on neuronal calcium signals to address the mechanism of these thermal effects. Cultured primary mouse hippocampal neurons expressing the genetically encoded calcium indicator GCaMP6s were used in combination with the temperature sensitive fluorophore Rhodamine B to measure calcium signals and temperature changes at the cellular level. Here we present our all-optical strategy for studying the influence of infrared laser light on neuronal activity.

Sensory information is conveyed to the central nervous system via small diameter unmyelinated fibers. In general, smaller diameter axons have slower conduction velocities. Selective control of such fibers could create new clinical treatments for chronic pain, nausea in response to chemo-therapeutic agents, or hypertension. Electrical stimulation can control axonal activity, but induced axonal current is proportional to cross-sectional area, so that large diameter fibers are affected first. Physiologically, however, synaptic inputs generally affect small diameter fibers before large diameter fibers (the size principle). A more physiological modality that first affected small diameter fibers could have fewer side effects (e.g., not recruiting motor axons). A novel mathematical analysis of the cable equation demonstrates that the minimum length along the axon for inducing block scales with the square root of axon diameter. This implies that the minimum length along an axon for inhibition will scale as the square root of axon diameter, so that lower radiant exposures of infrared light will selectively affect small diameter, slower conducting fibers before those of large diameter. This prediction was tested in identified neurons from the marine mollusk Aplysia californica. Radiant exposure to block a neuron with a slower conduction velocity (B43) was consistently lower than that needed to block a faster conduction velocity neuron (B3). Furthermore, in the vagus nerve of the musk shrew, lower radiant exposure blocked slow conducting fibers before blocking faster conducting fibers. Infrared light can selectively control smaller diameter fibers, suggesting many novel clinical treatments.

Infrared lasers (λ=1.87 μm) are capable of inducing a thermally mediated nerve block in Aplysia and rat nerves. While this block is spatially precise and reversible in sensory and motor neurons, the mechanism of block is not clearly understood. Model predictions show that, at elevated temperatures, the rates of opening and closing of the voltage gated ion channels are disrupted and normal functioning of the gates is hindered. A model combining NEURON with Python is presented here that can simulate the behavior of unmyelinated nerve axons in the presence of spatially and temporally varying temperature distributions. Axon behavior and underlying mechanism leading to conduction block is investigated. The ability to understand the photothermal interaction of laser light and temperature dependence of membrane ion channels in-silico will help speed explorations of parameter space and guide future experiments testing the feasibility of selectively blocking pain conduction fibers (Photonic Analgesia of Nerves (PAIN)) in humans.

Recently, infrared light has been shown to both stimulate and inhibit excitatory cells. However, studies of infrared light for excitatory cell inhibition have been constrained by the use of invasive and cumbersome electrodes for cell excitation and action potential recording. Here, we present an all optical experimental design for neuronal excitation, inhibition, and action potential detection. Primary rat neurons were transfected with plasmids containing the light sensitive ion channel CheRiff. CheRiff has a peak excitation around 450 nm, allowing excitation of transfected neurons with pulsed blue light. Additionally, primary neurons were transfected with QuasAr2, a fast and sensitive fluorescent voltage indicator. QuasAr2 is excited with yellow or red light and therefore does not spectrally overlap CheRiff, enabling imaging and action potential activation, simultaneously. Using an optic fiber, neurons were exposed to blue light sequentially to generate controlled action potentials. A second optic fiber delivered a single pulse of 1869nm light to the neuron causing inhibition of the evoked action potentials (by the blue light). When used in concert, these optical techniques enable electrode free neuron excitation, inhibition, and action potential recording, allowing research into neuronal behaviors with high spatial fidelity.

The number of people in risk of developing a neurodegenerative disease increases as the life expectancy grows due to medical advances. Multiple techniques have been developed to improve patient’s condition, from pharmacological to invasive electrodes approaches, but no definite cure has yet been discovered. In this work Optical Neural Stimulation (ONS) has been studied. ONS stimulates noninvasively the outer regions of the brain, mainly the neocortex. The relationship between the stimulation parameters and the therapeutic response is not totally clear. In order to find optimal ONS parameters to treat a particular neurodegenerative disease, mathematical modeling is necessary. Neural networks models have been employed to study the neural spiking activity change induced by ONS. Healthy and pathological neocortical networks have been considered to study the required stimulation to restore the normal activity. The network consisted of a group of interconnected neurons, which were assigned 2D spatial coordinates. The optical stimulation spatial profile was assumed to be Gaussian. The stimulation effects were modeled as synaptic current increases in the affected neurons, proportional to the stimulation fluence. Pathological networks were defined as the healthy ones with some neurons being inactivated, which presented no synaptic conductance. Neurons’ electrical activity was also studied in the frequency domain, focusing specially on the changes of the spectral bands corresponding to brain waves. The complete model could be used to determine the optimal ONS parameters in order to achieve the specific neural spiking patterns or the required local neural activity increase to treat particular neurodegenerative pathologies.

In this paper, an optical topography (OT) guided diffuse optical tomography (DOT) scheme is developed for functional imaging of the occipital cortex. The method extends the previously proposed semi-three-dimensional DOT methodology to reconstruction of two-dimensional extracerebral and cerebral images using a visual cortex oriented five-layered slab geometry, and incorporate the OT localization regularization in the cerebral reconstruction to achieve enhanced quantitative accuracy and spatial resolution. We validate the methodology using simulated data and demonstrate its merits in comparison to the standalone OT and DOT.

Fatigue driving is one of the leading roles to induce traffic accident and injury, which urgently desires a novel technique to monitor the fatigue level at driving. Functional near infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) is capable of noninvasive monitoring brain-activities-related hemodynamic responses. Here, we developed a fINRS imager and setup a classic psychological experiment to trigger visual divided attention which varied responding to driving fatigue, and attempted to record the drive-fatigue-level correlated hemodynamic response in the prefrontal cortex. 7 volunteers were recruited to take 7 hours driving and the experimental test was repeated every 1 hour and 8 times in total. The hemodynamic response were extracted and graphed with pseudo image. The analysis on the relationship between the fNIRS-measured hemodynamic response and fatigue level finally displayed that the oxyhemoglobin concentration in one channel of left prefrontal lobe increased with driving duration in significant correlation. And the spatial pattern of hemodynamic response in the prefrontal lobe varied with driving duration as well. The findings indicated the potential of fNIRSmeasured hemodynamic index in some sensitive spot of prefrontal lobe as a driving fatigue indicator and the promising use of fNIRS in traffic safety field.

Previous studies have showed that the steady-state responses were able to be used as an effective index for modulating the neural oscillations in the high frequency ranges (> 1 Hz). However, the neural oscillations in low frequency ranges (<1 Hz) remain unknown. In this study, a series of fNIRS experimental tests were conducted to validate if the low frequency bands (0.1 Hz - 0.8 Hz) steady-state hemoglobin responses (SSHbRs) could be evoked and modulate the neural oscillation during a serial reaction time (SRT) task.

Functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) is a low-cost, portable and noninvasive functional neuroimaging technique by measuring the change in the concentrations of oxyhemoglobin (HbO) and deoxyhemoglobin (HbR). The aim of present study is to reveal the different brain activity pattern of adult subjects during the completion of flanker and Simon tasks underlying the congruent and incongruent test conditions so as to identify the basic neural mechanism of inhibitory control in executive function. In the study, we utilized fNIRS to explore the hemodynamic changes in the prefrontal cortex and our imaging results suggested that there were notable differences for the hemodynamic responses between the flank and Simon task. A striking difference is that for the flank task, the increase in the HbO concentration during incongruent trials was larger than that during congruent trials for the channels across middle frontal cortex while for the Simon task, the hemodynamic response was stronger for the congruent condition compared to that from the incongruent one. Interestingly, the hemodynamic response exhibited similar task-related activation in the superior frontal cortex for both the congruent and incongruent conditions. Further, independent component analysis showed that different brain activation patterns were identified to accomplish different inhibitory control tasks underlying the congruent and incongruent conditions.

The abstract is not available

Neural probes are designed to selectively record from or stimulate nerve cells. In optogenetics it is desirable to build miniaturized and long-term stable optical neural probes, in which the light sources can be directly and chronically implanted into the animals to allow free movement and behavior. Because of the size and the beam shape of the available light sources, it is difficult to target single cells as well as spatially localized networks. We therefore investigated design considerations for packages, which encapsulate the light source hermetically and have integrated hemispherical lens structures that enable to focus the light onto the desired region, by optical simulations. Integration of a biconvex lens into the package lid (diameter = 300 μm, material: silicon carbide) increased the averaged absolute irradiance η_A by 298 % compared to a system without a lens and had a spot size of around 120 μm. Solely integrating a plano-convex lens (same diameter and material) results in an η_A of up to 227 %.

Study of communication in cellular systems requires precise activation of targeted cell(s) in the network. In contrast to chemical, electrical, thermal, mechanical stimulation, optical stimulation is non-invasive and is better suited for stimulation of targeted cells. As compared to visible lasers, the near infrared (NIR) microsecond/nanosecond pulsed laser beams are being used as preferred stimulation tool as they provide higher penetration depth in tissues. Femotosecond (FS) laser beams in NIR are also being used for direct and indirect (i.e. via two-photon optogenetics) stimulation of cells. Here, we present a comparative evaluation of efficacy of NIR FS laser beam for direct (no optogenetic sensitization) and 2ph optogenetic stimulation of cells. Further, for the first time, we demonstrate the use of blue (~450 nm, obtained by second harmonic generation) FS laser beam for stimulation of cells with and without Channelrhodopisn-2 (ChR2) expression. Comparative analysis of photocurrent generated by blue FS laser beam and continuous wave blue light for optogenetics stimulation of ChR2 transfected HEK cells will be presented. The use of ultrafast laser micro-beam for focal, non-contact, and repeated stimulation of single cells in a cellular circuitry allowed us to study the communication between different cell types.

There was a renewed interest, during the recent years, in the imaging and tracking of targeted cells or organelles for a variety of biomedical and lab-on a chip applications that include particles movement. However, nonspecific illumination during tracking can have adverse effects such as heating, reduced image contrast and photo bleaching. In fact, current available tracking and imaging systems are unable to selectively illuminate the particle being tracked. To fill this void, we have developed a fiber optics based probe system incorporating a spatial light modulator (SLM) and an imaging fiber bundle for selective illumination on the targeted particle. A GRIN lens is attached at the distal endface of the image fiber bundle for optimised illumination and collection. A tracking algorithm is developed in order to enable controlled illumination through SLM to target the illumination point or location in accordance with the particle movement and size variation. Further with this probe, particles can be illuminated with light pulses of controllable duty cycle and frequency. The proposed methodology and developed probe have good significance and expected to find potential applications areas such as optogenetics, cell signalling studies, and lab-on a chip systems.

Current methods for light delivery in in vivo optogenetic applications are typically accomplished via a single multimode fiber that diffuses light over a large area of the brain, and relies on the spatial distribution of transfected light-sensitive neurons for targeted control. In our investigations, an imaging fiber bundle (Schott) containing 4,500 individual fibers, each with a diameter of 7.5 µm, and an overall outer bundle diameter of 530 µm, served as a conduit for light delivery and optical recording/imaging. The use of this fiber bundle, in contrast to a single multimode fiber, allows for individually-addressable fibers, spatial selectivity at the stimulus site, more precise control of light delivery, and full field-of-view imaging and/or optical recordings of individual neurons in local neural circuits. An objective coupled the two continuous wave diode laser sources (561nm/488nm) (Coherent) for stimulation and imaging into the fiber bundle while a set of galvanometer-scanning mirrors was used to couple the light stimulus to distinct fibers within the proximal end of the imaging fiber bundle. In our study, C1V1(E122T/E162T)-TS-p2A-mCherry (Karl Deisseroth, Stanford) and GCaMP6s transgenic mice (Jackson Labs) were utilized for this all-optical approach. The results of our investigation demonstrate that imaging fiber bundles provide a new level of spatial selectivity and control of light delivery to specific neurons, as well as function as a conduit for optical imaging and recording at the in vivo site of stimulation, in contrast to the use of single multimode fibers that diffusely illuminate neural tissue and lack in vivo imaging capabilities.

Myelination is governed by axon-glia interaction which is modulated by neural activity. Currently, the effects of subcellular activation of neurons which induce neural activity upon myelination are not well understood. To identify if subcellular neuronal stimulation can enhance myelination, we developed a novel system for focal stimulation of neural activity with optogenetic in a compartmentalized microfluidic platform. In our systems, stimulation for neurons in restricted subcellular parts, such as cell bodies and axons promoted oligodendrocyte differentiation and the myelination of axons the just as much as whole cell activation of neurons did. The number of premature O4 positive oligodendrocytes was reduced and the numbers of mature and myelin basic protein-positive oligodendrocytes was increased both by subcellular optogenetic stimulation.

Nano-enhanced optical field of gold nanoparticles allowed the use of a continuous wave (cw) laser beam for efficient delivery of exogenous impermeable materials into targeted cells. Using this Nano-enhanced Optical Delivery (NOD) method, we show that large molecules could be delivered with low power cw laser with exposure time ~ 1sec. At such low power (and exposure), the non-targeted cells (not bound to gold nanoparticles) were not adversely affected by the laser beam. Further, by varying the size of the gold nanoparticles, cells could be exclusively sensitized to selective wavelengths of laser beam. In contrast other nanoparticles, gold nanoparticles were found to have lower cytotoxicity, making it better suited for clinical NOD. Further, as compared with pulsed lasers, cw (diode) lasers are compact, easy-to-use and therefore, NOD using cw laser beam has significant translational potential for delivery of impermeable bio-molecules to tissues in different organs. We will present optimization of NOD parameters for delivering different molecules to different cells. Success of this NOD method may lead to a new clinical approach for treating AMD and RP patients with geographic atrophy in retina.

Microelectrode array (MEA) technology enables advanced drug screening and “disease-in-a-dish” modeling by measuring the electrical activity of cultured networks of neural or cardiac cells. Recent developments in human stem cell technologies, advancements in genetic models, and regulatory initiatives for drug screening have increased the demand for MEA-based assays. In response, Axion Biosystems previously developed a multiwell MEA platform, providing up to 96 MEA culture wells arrayed into a standard microplate format. Multiwell MEA-based assays would be further enhanced by optogenetic stimulation, which enables selective excitation and inhibition of targeted cell types. This capability for selective control over cell culture states would allow finer pacing and probing of cell networks for more reliable and complete characterization of complex network dynamics. Here we describe a system for independent optogenetic stimulation of each well of a 48-well MEA plate. The system enables finely graded control of light delivery during simultaneous recording of network activity in each well. Using human induced pluripotent stem cell (hiPSC) derived cardiomyocytes and rodent primary neuronal cultures, we demonstrate high channel-count light-based excitation and suppression in several proof-of-concept experimental models. Our findings demonstrate advantages of combining multiwell optical stimulation and MEA recording for applications including cardiac safety screening, neural toxicity assessment, and advanced characterization of complex neuronal diseases.

Detecting cellular activity in sub-millisecond timescale and micrometer resolution without using invasive means has been a long standing goal in the study of cellular networks. Here, we have employed phase sensitive low coherence interferometry for detecting optogenetically stimulated activity of cells. Nanoscale changes in optical path length (due to change in refractive index and changes in cell thickness) occur when cells are activated, which we aim to detect by phase sensitive low coherence interferometry. A low coherence interferometry and patch-clamp electrophysiology systems were integrated with an inverted fluorescence microscope. Blue laser beam was coupled to the electrophysiology-interferometric detection system for optogenetic stimulation. The phase-sensitive measurements were carried out on Channelrhodopsin-2 sensitized cells (identified by YFP fluorescence) as well as control cells in reflection mode for different intensities and exposures of optogenetic stimulation beam. This method offers good temporal and spatial resolution without using exogenous labeling. Results of studies on all optical stimulation and detection of cellular activity will be presented. Interpretation of the optical activity signals will be discussed in context with changes in cell physiology during stimulation. We will also discuss the potential sources of various artifacts in optical/electrical detection of cellular activity during optical stimulation.

Fatal cardiac arrhythmias are a major medical and social issue in Western countries. Current implantable pacemaker/defibrillators have limited effectiveness and are plagued by frequent malfunctions and complications. Here, we aim at setting up a new method to map and control the electrical activity of whole isolated mouse hearts. We employ a transgenic mouse model expressing Channel Rhodopsin-2 (ChR2) in the heart coupled with voltage optical mapping to monitor and control action potential propagation. The whole heart is loaded with the fluorinated red-shifted voltage sensitive dye (di-4-ANBDQPQ) and imaged with the central portion (128 x 128 pixel) of sCMOS camera operating at frame rate of 1.6 kHz. The wide-field imaging system is implemented with a random access ChR2 activation developed using two orthogonally-mounted acousto-optical deflectors (AODs). AODs rapidly scan different sites of the sample with a commutation time of 4 μs, allowing us to design ad hoc ChR2-stimulation pattern. First, we demonstrate the capability of our system in manipulating the conduction system of the whole mouse heart by changing the electrical propagation features. Then, we explore the efficacy of the random access ChR2 stimulation in inducing arrhythmias as well as to restore the cardiac sinus rhythm during an arrhythmic event. This work shows the potentiality of this new method for studying the mechanisms of arrhythmias and reentry in healthy and diseased hearts, as well as the basis of intra-ventricular dyssynchrony.

A non-invasive, contact-less cardiac pacing technology can be a powerful tool in basic cardiac research and in clinics. Currently, electrical pacing is the gold standard for cardiac pacing. Although highly effective in controlling the cardiac function, the invasive nature, non-specificity to cardiac tissues and possible tissue damage limits its capabilities. Optical pacing of heart is a promising alternative, which is non-invasive and more specific, has high spatial and temporal precision, and avoids shortcomings in electrical stimulation. Optical coherence tomography has been proved to be an effective technique in non-invasive imaging in vivo with ultrahigh resolution and imaging speed. In the last several years, non-invasive specific optical pacing in animal hearts has been reported in quail, zebrafish, and rabbit models. However， Drosophila Melanogaster, which is a significant model with orthologs of 75% of human disease genes, has rarely been studied concerning their optical pacing in heart. Here, we combined optogenetic control of Drosophila heartbeat with optical coherence microscopy (OCM) technique for the first time. The light-gated cation channel, channelrhodopsin-2 (ChR2) was specifically expressed by transgene as a pacemaker in drosophila heart. By stimulating the pacemaker with 472 nm pulsed laser light at different frequencies, we achieved non-invasive and more specific optical control of the Drosophila heart rhythm, which demonstrates the wide potential of optical pacing for studying cardiac dynamics and development. Imaging capability of our customized OCM system was also involved to observe the pacing effect visually. No tissue damage was found after long exposure to laser pulses, which proved the safety of optogenetic control of Drosophila heart.

2D surface maps of light distribution and temperature increase were recorded in wild type anesthetized rats brains during 90s light stimulation at 478nm (blue) and 638nm (red) with continuous or pulsed optical stimulations with corresponding power ranging from 100 up to 1200 mW/mm² at the output of an optical fiber. Post mortem maps were recorded in the same animals to assess the cooling effect of blood flow. Post mortem histological analysis were carried out to assess whether high power light stimulations had phototoxic effects or could trigger non physiological functional activation. Temperature increase remains below physiological changes (0,5 -1°) for stimulations up to 400mW/mm² at 40Hz. . Histology did not show significant irreversible modifications or damage to the tissues. The spatial profile of light distribution and heat were correlated and demonstrate as expected a rapid attenuation with diatnce to the fiber.

Optogenetics has in recent years become a central tool in neuroscience research. Creating a realistic model of optogenetic neuronal excitation is of crucial importance for controlling the activation levels of various neuronal populations in different depths, predicting experimental results and designing the optical systems. However, current approaches to modeling light propagation through rodents' brain tissue suffer from major shortcomings and comprehensive modeling of local illumination levels together with other important factors governing excitation (i.e., cellular morphology, channel dynamics and expression), are still lacking. To address this challenge we introduce a new simulation tool for optogenetic neuronal excitation under complex and realistic illumination conditions that implements a detailed physical model for light scattering (in MATLAB) together with neuron morphology and channelrhodopsin-2 model (in NEURON). These two disparate simulation environments were interconnected using a newly developed generic interface termed 'NeuroLab'. Applying this method, we show that in a layer-V cortical neuron, the relative contribution of the apical dendrites to neuronal excitation is considerably greater than that of the soma or basal dendrites, when illuminated from the surface.

Gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) have found numerous applications in nanomedicine in view of their robustness, ease of functionalization and low toxicity. Upon irradiation of AuNPs by a pulsed ultrafast laser, various highly localized phenomena can be obtained including a temperature rise, pressure wave, charge injection and production of nanobubbles close to the cellular membrane [1]. These phenomena can be used to manipulate, optoperforate, transfect and stimulate targeted cells [2-5]. Irradiating at 800 nm in the optically biological transparent window, we demonstrated local optoporation and transfection of cells as well as local stimulation of neurons. Two recent examples will be given: (i) Laser-induced selective optoporation of cells: The technique can be used on various types of cells and a proof of principle will be given on human cancer cells in a co-culture using functionalized AuNPs [6]. (ii) Laser-induced stimulation of neurons and monitoring of the localized Ca2+ signaling: This all optical method uses a standard confocal microscope to trigger a transient increase in free Ca2+ in neurons covered by functionalized AuNPs as well as to measure these local variations optically with the Ca2+ sensor GCaMP6s [7]. The proposed techniques provide a new complement to light-dependent methods in neuroscience. REFERENCES (by our group): (1) Boulais, J. Photochem. Photobiol. C Photochem. Rev. 17, 26 (2013); (2) Baumgart, Biomaterials 33, 2345 (2012); (3) Boulais, NanoLett. 12, 4763 (2012); (4) Boutopoulos, J. Biophotonics (2015); (5) Boutopoulos, Nanoscale 7, 11758 (2015); (6) Bergeron, Biomaterials, submitted (2015); (7) Lavoie-Cardinal, Nature Commun. submitted (2015).

Appropriate micro-optical tools are required to exploit the key advantages of optogenetics in neuroscience, i.e. optical stimulation and inhibition of neural tissue at high spatial as well as temporal resolutions, providing cell specificity and the opportunity to simultaneously record electrophysiological signals. Besides the need for minimally invasive probes mandatory for a reduced tissue damage, highly flexible or wireless interfaces are demanded for experiments with freely behaving animals. Both these technical system requirements are achieved by integrating miniaturized waveguides for light transmission combined with bare laser diode (LD) chips integrated directly into neural probes. This paper describes a system concept using integrated, side emitting LD chips directly coupled to miniaturized waveguides implemented on silicon (Si) substrates. It details the fabrication, assembly, and optical as well as electrical characterization of waveguides (WG) made from the hybrid polymer Ormorcere. The WGs were photolithographically patterned to have a cross-section of 20x15 μm². Bare LD chips are flip-chip bonded to electroplated gold (Au) pads with ±5 μm accuracy relative to the WG facets. Transmitted radiant fluxes for blue (430 nm, (Al,In)GaN) and red (650 nm, AlGaInP) LDs are measured to be 150 μW (ID = 35 mA, 5% duty cycle) and 4.35 μW (ID = 225 mA, 0.5% duty cycle), respectively. This corresponds to an efficiency of the coupled and transmitted light of 44% for the red LDs. Long term measurements for 24 h using these systems with red LDs showed a decrease of the radiant flux of about 4% caused by LD aging at stable WG transmission properties. WGs immersed into Ringer’s solution showed no significant change of their optical transmission properties after four weeks of exposure to the ionic solution.

Optical manipulation has enabled study of bio-chemical and bio-mechanical properties of the cells. Laser nanosurgery by ultrafast laser beam with appropriate laser parameters provides spatially-targeted manipulation of neurons in a minimal invasiveness manner with high efficiency. We utilized femto-second laser nano-surgery for both axotomy and sub-axotomy of rat cortical neurons. Degeneration and regeneration after axotomy was studied with and without external growth-factor(s) and biochemical(s). Further, axonal injury was studied as a function of pulse energy, exposure and site of injury. The ability to study the response of neurons to localized injury opens up opportunities for screening potential molecules for repair and regeneration after nerve injury. Sub-axotomy enabled transient opening of axonal membrane for optical delivery of impermeable molecules to the axoplasm. Fast resealing of the axonal membrane after sub-axotomy without significant long-term damage to axon (monitored by its growth) was observed. We will present these experimental results along with theoretical simulation of injury due to laser nano-surgery and delivery via the transient pore. Targeted delivery of proteins such as antibodies, genes encoding reporter proteins, ion-channels and voltage indicators will allow visualization, activation and detection of the neuronal structure and function.

Optogenetics is currently one of the most popular technique in neuroscience. It enables cell-selective and temporally-precise control of neuronal activity. Good spatial control of the stimulated area and minimized tissue damage requires a specific knowledge about light scattering properties. Light propagation in cell cultures and brain tissue is relatively well documented and allows for a precise and reliable delivery of light to the neurons. In spinal cord, light must pass through highly organized white matter before reaching cell bodies present in grey matter, this heterogenous structure makes it difficult to predict the propagation pattern. In this work we investigate the light distribution properties through mouse and monkey spinal cord. The light propagation depends on a fibers orientation, leading to less deep penetration profile in the direction perpendicular to the fibers and lower attenuation in the direction parallel to the fibers. Additionally, the use of different illumination wavelengths results in variations of the attenuation coefficient. Next, we use Monte-Carlo simulation to study light transport. The model gives a full 3-D simulation of light distribution in spinal cord and takes into account different scattering properties related to the fibers orientation. These studies are important to estimate the minimum optical irradiance required at the fiber tip to effectively excite the optogenetic proteins in a desired region of spinal cord.

Recent developments in optogenetics have demonstrated the ability to target specific types of neurons with sub-millisecond temporal precision via direct optical stimulation of genetically modified neurons in the brain. In most applications, the beam of a laser is coupled to an optical fiber, which guides and delivers the optical power to the region of interest. Light emitting diodes (LEDs) are an alternative light source for optogenetics and they provide many advantages over a laser based system including cost, size, illumination stability, and fast modulation. Their compact size and low power consumption make LEDs suitable light sources for a wireless optogenetic stimulation system. However, the coupling efficiency of an LED’s output light into an optical fiber is lower than a laser due to its noncollimated output light. In typical chronic optogenetic experiment, the output of the light source is transmitted to the brain through a patch cable and a fiber stub implant, and this configuration requires two fiber-to-fiber couplings. Attenuation within the patch cable is potential source of optical power loss. In this study, we report and characterize a recently developed light delivery method for freely-behaving animal experiments. We have developed a head-mounted light source that maximizes the coupling efficiency of an LED light source by eliminating the need for a fiber optic cable. This miniaturized LED is designed to couple directly to the fiber stub implant. Depending on the desired optical power output, the head-mounted LED can be controlled by either a tethered (high power) or battery-powered wireless (moderate power) controller. In the tethered system, the LED is controlled through 40 gauge micro coaxial cable which is thinner, more flexible, and more durable than a fiber optic cable. The battery-powered wireless system uses either infrared or radio frequency transmission to achieve real-time control. Optical, electrical, mechanical, and thermal characteristics of the head-mounted LED were evaluated.

It is well known that biochemical changes in cancer cell occur in response to environmental cues and during migration. However, information about changes in the physical properties (e.g., volume, elasticity) of cancer cells during migration and/or in response to physical modulations (confinement and perturbations). We report the use of a near-infrared (NIR) laser microbeam system integrated with a NIR digital holographic microscopy (DHM) to study physical response of cancer cells. The cancer cells were cultured in microfluidic devices and subjected to different physical confinement (controlled by channel geometry), osmolarity changes of extracellular medium and/or laser-induced perturbations. The changes in optical thickness (or phase map) of the cells were monitored with high spatial and temporal resolution during and after the physico-chemical perturbations. A weakly-focused continuous-wave laser microbeam was used to impart radiation pressure on cell membrane and the changes in thickness were monitored using DHM to estimate elasticity. Further, an ultrafast tightly-focused laser microbeam was used to allow extracellular fluid flow into the cell or from the cytoplasm under different osmolarity conditions. Dynamic changes in physical properties of various cells and observed differences in responding to different physical/chemical environment/perturbations will be presented.

Optical manipulation of in vivo neural circuits with cellular resolution could be important for understanding cortical function. Despite recent progress, simultaneous optogenetic activation with cellular precision has either been limited to 2D planes, or a very small numbers of neurons over a limited volume. Here we demonstrate a novel paradigm for simultaneous 3D activation using a low repetition rate pulse-amplified fiber laser system and a spatial light modulator (SLM) to project 3D holographic excitation patterns on the cortex of mice in vivo for targeted volumetric 3D photoactivation. This method is compatible with two-photon imaging, and enables the simultaneous activation of multiple cells in 3D, using red-shifted opsins, such as C1V1 or ReaChR, while simultaneously imaging GFP-based sensors such as GCaMP6. This all-optical imaging and 3D manipulation approach achieves simultaneous reading and writing of cortical activity, and should be a powerful tool for the study of neuronal circuits.

Abstract not available.