Researchers have developed a new enhanced DNA imaging technique that can probe the structure of individual DNA strands at the nanoscale. Since DNA is at the root of many disease processes, the technique could help scientists gain important insights into what goes wrong when DNA becomes damaged or when other cellular processes affect gene expression. [..]

New research out of Australia promises to dramatically reduce the price of infrared technologies like night vision goggles.Scientists at the University of Sydney recently demonstrated a semiconductor capable of a nearly 99 percent light absorption rate. The semiconductor is just a few hundred atoms thick and could power a range of infrared devices. Read more

One of the major goals in neuroscience is to image the structure of the brain at cellular resolution. However, achieving deep brain tissue imaging has posed a significant challenge because of technical limitations in accessing wavelengths beyond 950nm. Recently, the availability of new technologies, such as suitable near-infrared (NIR) detectors and femtosecond laser sources offer… [..]

In addition to pain, many migraine suffers experience light sensitivity that can greatly interfere with daily life. A team of researchers from Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston, Mass., USA, says migraine photophobia may originate in the retinal neural pathway, and that a narrow band of green light could help soothe the suffering of [..]

Standoff chemical detection is the ability to detect chemicals in an object that is some distance from the measurement instrument. This capability, along with chemical identification and quantification, is highly sought after in security and defense applications.. Read more

Photoisomerization—a biological response to light—is a photon-driven change in a protein’s molecular structure. This reaction happens almost instantaneously, making it impossible to observe in real-time. Now, an international team of researchers from 11 different institutions reports a new method they say can capture this split-second… Read more

The ability to employ a single laser source in more than one microscopy modality has obvious theoretical advantages, but in practice is tricky to achieve effectively. Read more

Limited availability of tests to diagnose cancer in its early stages has contributed to an unfortunate prevalence of late-stage diagnoses and metastatic spread. For this reason, emerging technologies that promise early diagnosis constitute a key focus of research. Mid-infrared imaging (MIR), with its ability to enable in vivo medical diagnosis, is particularly interesting. Read more

Recognizing that premature babies have a hard time getting the oxygen they need because their lungs are not sufficiently developed and that using x-ray tests to examine the amount of air in these babies’ lungs can increase their risk of developing cancer, a team of researchers at Lund University (Sweden) has developed a method that [..]

University of Leeds (UK)-led chemists have developed a new method for making fluorescing quantum dots (QDs) coated with a key biological sugar molecule, and using them to study how viruses like Ebola and HIV attach to proteins on the surface of healthy cells… Read more

Combining optical coherence tomography (OCT) with near-infrared autofluorescence (NIRAF) could enable more accurate identification of coronary artery plaques that are most likely to rupture and cause a heart attack. OCT provides images of tissue microstructure but not of its chemical and molecular composition, said researchers from the Wellman Center for Photomedicine at Massachusetts General Hospital [..]

Defense and security applications typically require positive and non-destructive detection or identification of samples to enable the responder to make effective decisions and preserve potential evidence. Over the past 30 years, Raman spectroscopy has continued to prove the effectiveness of vibrational spectroscopy as an analytical technique in defense research and applications… Read more

The blood-brain barrier (BBB) prevents harmful substances and bacteria from leaving blood vessels and entering the brain—but it also prevents potentially helpful drugs, like cancer therapeutics, from reaching their targets. Now, researchers from the United States report promising pilot trial results using laser ablation…. Read more

Hyperspectral imaging benefits many fields of research, from medical imaging to environmental monitoring, but acquiring and transmitting the large amounts of raw data generated by the imaging technique can be cumbersome in practice, and data-compression algorithms can require lengthy reconstruction procedures at the other end of the pipeline. Read more

Until about a hundred years ago, clinical diagnosis relied mostly on medical history and physical examination. However, there are many diseases that exhibit similar symptoms, making it difficult to achieve direct diagnosis based on clinical presentation. Read more

The 1970s witnessed both the initial miniaturization of devices (i.e., toward the nanoscale) and the simultaneous birth of heterostructures. In nanoscale materials, radical changes in the characteristics of particles are observed as they move from classical to quantum behavior. Read more

A light-based method for measuring blood glucose may give diabetes patients the daily monitoring they need without the pain and infection risk of conventional metering. Researchers from Tohoku University’s Graduate School of Biomedical Engineering, led by professor Yuji Matsuura, have developed a noninvasive method of measuring blood glucose using far-infrared (FIR) light. Read more