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A special issue of International Journal of Molecular Sciences (ISSN 1422-0067). This special issue belongs to the section "Biochemistry".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (15 December 2014) | Viewed by 52690

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Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Herbert Schneckenburger

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Guest Editor

Institute of Applied Research, Aalen University, Beethovenstr. 1, 73430 Aalen, Germany
Interests: biomedical optics; laser; microscopy
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Prof. Dr. Raimund Hibst

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Institut für Lasertechnologien in der Medizin und Meßtechnik an der, Universität Ulm, Helmholtzstraße 12, 89081 Ulm, Germany
Interests: optics; photonics; medicine; dental; metrology; quality control

Prof. Dr. Rudolf Steiner

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Guest Editor

Institut für Lasertechnologien in der Medizin und Messtechnik an der Universität Ulm, Helmholtzstr. 12, DE-89081, Ulm, Germany
Interests: laser-tissue interaction; PDT; laser therapy; optical medical diagnostics

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

This Special Issue is related to the International Conference on Laser Applications in Life Sciences (LALS 2014; see http://lals2014.ilm-ulm.de), which follows a series of biannual conferences and which will take place in the period from June 29^th to July 2^nd 2014 in Ulm/Neu-Ulm (Germany). In agreement with the main topics of the conference, this issue is focused on the fields of Biomedical Imaging, Laser Spectroscopy, Laser-Tissue Interactions, Light Microscopy, Nano-Biophotonics, Novel Optical Devices, and Clinical Laser Applications. All speakers presenting a paper at LALS 2014 are invited to submit a manuscript for publication. Regular submissions are also welcomed in this Special Issue.

Prof. Dr. Herbert Schneckenburger
Prof. Dr. Raimund Hibst
Prof. Dr. Rudolf Steiner
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. International Journal of Molecular Sciences is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. There is an Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal. For details about the APC please see here. Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

biomedical imaging
laser spectroscopy
laser-tissue interactions
light microscopy
nano-biophotonics
novel optical devices
clinical laser applications

Published Papers (6 papers)

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Research

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4571 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Instrumentation on Multi-Scaled Scattering of Bio-Macromolecular Solutions

by Benjamin Chu, Dufei Fang and Yimin Mao

Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2015, 16(5), 10016-10037; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms160510016 - 04 May 2015

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 6824

Abstract

The design, construction and initial tests on a combined laser light scattering and synchrotron X-ray scattering instrument can cover studies of length scales from atomic sizes in Angstroms to microns and dynamics from microseconds to seconds are presented. In addition to static light scattering (SLS), dynamic light scattering (DLS), small angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) and wide angle X-ray diffraction (WAXD), the light scattering instrument is being developed to carry out studies in mildly turbid solutions, in the presence of multiple scattering. Three-dimensional photon cross correlation function (3D-PCCF) measurements have been introduced to couple with synchrotron X-ray scattering to study the structure, size and dynamics of macromolecules in solution. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Laser Application in Life Sciences)

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7396 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Application of Single Molecule Fluorescence Microscopy to Characterize the Penetration of a Large Amphiphilic Molecule in the Stratum Corneum of Human Skin

by Pierre Volz, Alexander Boreham, Alexander Wolf, Tai-Yang Kim, Jens Balke, Janna Frombach, Sabrina Hadam, Zahra Afraz, Fiorenza Rancan, Ulrike Blume-Peytavi, Annika Vogt and Ulrike Alexiev

Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2015, 16(4), 6960-6977; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms16046960 - 27 Mar 2015

Cited by 21 | Viewed by 9943

Abstract

We report here on the application of laser-based single molecule total internal reflection fluorescence microscopy (TIRFM) to study the penetration of molecules through the skin. Penetration of topically applied drug molecules is often observed to be limited by the size of the respective drug. However, the molecular mechanisms which govern the penetration of molecules through the outermost layer of the skin are still largely unknown. As a model compound we have chosen a larger amphiphilic molecule (fluorescent dye ATTO-Oxa12) with a molecular weight >700 Da that was applied to excised human skin. ATTO-Oxa12 penetrated through the stratum corneum (SC) into the viable epidermis as revealed by TIRFM of cryosections. Single particle tracking of ATTO-Oxa12 within SC sheets obtained by tape stripping allowed us to gain information on the localization as well as the lateral diffusion dynamics of these molecules. ATTO-Oxa12 appeared to be highly confined in the SC lipid region between (intercellular space) or close to the envelope of the corneocytes. Three main distinct confinement sizes of 52 ± 6, 118 ± 4, and 205 ± 5 nm were determined. We conclude that for this amphiphilic model compound several pathways through the skin exist. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Laser Application in Life Sciences)

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1384 KiB

Open AccessArticle

ATR-FTIR Spectroscopy for the Assessment of Biochemical Changes in Skin Due to Cutaneous Squamous Cell Carcinoma

by Cássio A. Lima, Viviane P. Goulart, Luciana Côrrea, Thiago M. Pereira and Denise M. Zezell

Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2015, 16(4), 6621-6630; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms16046621 - 24 Mar 2015

Cited by 48 | Viewed by 7274

Abstract

Nonmelanoma skin cancers represent 95% of cutaneous neoplasms. Among them, squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) is the more aggressive form and shows a pattern of possible metastatic profile. In this work, we used Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) spectroscopy to assess the biochemical changes in normal skin caused by squamous cell carcinoma induced by multi-stage chemical carcinogenesis in mice. Changes in the absorption intensities and shifts were observed in the vibrational modes associated to proteins, indicating changes in secondary conformation in the neoplastic tissue. Hierarchical cluster analysis was performed to evaluate the potential of the technique to differentiate the spectra of neoplastic and normal skin tissue, so that the accuracy obtained for this classification was 86.4%. In this sense, attenuated total reflection (ATR)-FTIR spectroscopy provides a useful tool to complement histopathological analysis in the clinical routine for the diagnosis of cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Laser Application in Life Sciences)

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1999 KiB

Open AccessShort Note

Candida parapsilosis Biofilm Identification by Raman Spectroscopy

by Ota Samek, Katarina Mlynariková, Silvie Bernatová, Jan Ježek, Vladislav Krzyžánek, Martin Šiler, Pavel Zemánek, Filip Růžička, Veronika Holá and Martina Mahelová

Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2014, 15(12), 23924-23935; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms151223924 - 22 Dec 2014

Cited by 41 | Viewed by 10582

Abstract

Colonies of Candida parapsilosis on culture plates were probed directly in situ using Raman spectroscopy for rapid identification of specific strains separated by a given time intervals (up to months apart). To classify the Raman spectra, data analysis was performed using the approach of principal component analysis (PCA). The analysis of the data sets generated during the scans of individual colonies reveals that despite the inhomogeneity of the biological samples unambiguous associations to individual strains (two biofilm-positive and two biofilm-negative) could be made. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Laser Application in Life Sciences)

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6825 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Ultrasensitive Imaging of Ca²⁺ Dynamics in Pancreatic Acinar Cells of Yellow Cameleon-Nano Transgenic Mice

by Yusuke Oshima, Takeshi Imamura, Atsuko Shintani, Hiroko Kajiura-Kobayashi, Terumasa Hibi, Takeharu Nagai, Shigenori Nonaka and Tomomi Nemoto

Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2014, 15(11), 19971-19986; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms151119971 - 03 Nov 2014

Cited by 7 | Viewed by 6357

Abstract

Yellow Cameleons are genetically encoded Ca²⁺ indicators in which cyan and yellow fluorescent proteins and calmodulin work together as a fluorescence (Förster) resonance energy transfer Ca²⁺-sensor probe. To achieve ultrasensitive Ca²⁺ imaging for low resting Ca²⁺ or small Ca²⁺ transients in various organs, we generated a transgenic mouse line expressing the highest-sensitive genetically encoded Ca²⁺ indicator (Yellow Cameleon-Nano 15) in the whole body. We then focused on the mechanism of exocytotic events mediated by intracellular Ca²⁺ signaling in acinar cells of the mice with an agonist and observed them by two-photon excitation microscopy. In the results, two-photon excitation imaging of Yellow Cameleon-Nano 15 successfully visualized intracellular Ca²⁺ concentration under stimulation with the agonist at nanomolar levels. This is the first demonstration for application of genetically encoded Ca²⁺ indicators to pancreatic acinar cells. We also simultaneously observed exocytotic events and an intracellular Ca²⁺ concentration under in vivo condition. Yellow Cameleon-Nano 15 mice are healthy and no significant deteriorative effect was observed on physiological response regarding the pancreatic acinar cells. The dynamic range of 165% was calculated from R_max and R_min values under in vivo condition. The mice will be useful for ultrasensitive Ca²⁺ imaging in vivo. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Laser Application in Life Sciences)

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Review

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2732 KiB

Open AccessReview

Contrast Agents for Photoacoustic and Thermoacoustic Imaging: A Review

by Dan Wu, Lin Huang, Max S. Jiang and Huabei Jiang

Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2014, 15(12), 23616-23639; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms151223616 - 18 Dec 2014

Cited by 163 | Viewed by 10795

Abstract

Photoacoustic imaging (PAI) and thermoacoustic imaging (TAI) are two emerging biomedical imaging techniques that both utilize ultrasonic signals as an information carrier. Unique advantages of PAI and TAI are their abilities to provide high resolution functional information such as hemoglobin and blood oxygenation and tissue dielectric properties relevant to physiology and pathology. These two methods, however, may have a limited detection depth and lack of endogenous contrast. An exogenous contrast agent is often needed to effectively resolve these problems. Such agents are able to greatly enhance the imaging contrast and potentially break through the imaging depth limit. Furthermore, a receptor-targeted contrast agent could trace the molecular and cellular biological processes in tissues. Thus, photoacoustic and thermoacoustic molecular imaging can be outstanding tools for early diagnosis, precise lesion localization, and molecular typing of various diseases. The agents also could be used for therapy in conjugation with drugs or in photothermal therapy, where it functions as an enhancer for the integration of diagnosis and therapy. In this article, we present a detailed review about various exogenous contrast agents for photoacoustic and thermoacoustic molecular imaging. In addition, challenges and future directions of photoacoustic and thermoacoustic molecular imaging in the field of translational medicine are also discussed. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Laser Application in Life Sciences)

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