Vidyasagar Sriramoju

In vivo molecular evaluation of guinea pig skin incisions healing after surgical suture and laser tissue welding using Raman spectroscopy.

The healing process in guinea pig skin following surgical incisions was evaluated at the molecular level, in vivo, by the use of Raman spectroscopy. After the incisions were closed either by suturing or by laser tissue welding (LTW), differences in the respective Raman spectra were identified. The study determined that the ratio of the Raman peaks of the amide III (1247 cm(-1)) band to a peak at 1326 cm(-1) (the superposition of elastin and keratin bands) can be used to evaluate the progression of wound healing. Conformational changes in the amide I band (1633-1682 cm(-1)) and spectrum changes in the range of 1450-1520 cm(-1) were observed in LTW and sutured skin. The stages of the healing process of the guinea pig skin following LTW and suturing were evaluated by Raman spectroscopy, using histopathology as the gold standard. LTW skin demonstrated better healing than sutured skin, exhibiting minimal hyperkeratosis, minimal collagen deposition, near-normal surface contour, and minimal loss of dermal appendages. A wavelet decomposition-reconstruction baseline correction algorithm was employed to remove the fluorescence wing from the Raman spectra.

Hybrid phosphorescence and fluorescence native spectroscopy for breast cancer detection

Fluorescence and phosphorescence measurements are performed on normal and malignant ex vivo human breast tissues using UV LED and xenon lamp excitation. Tryptophan (trp) phosphorescence intensity is higher in both normal glandular and adipose tissue when compared to malignant tissue. An algorithm based on the ratio of trp fluorescence intensity at 345 nm to phosphorescence intensity at 500 nm is successfully used to separate normal from malignant tissue types. Normal specimens consistently exhibited a low I(345)I(500) ratio (<10), while for malignant specimens, the I(345)I(500) ratio is consistently high (>15). The ratio analysis correlates well with histopathology. Intensity ratio maps with a spatial resolution of 0.5 mm are generated in which local regions of malignancy could be identified.

Management of heat in laser tissue welding using NIR cover window material

Laser tissue welding (LTW) is a novel method of surgical wound closure by the use of laser radiation to induce fusion of the biological tissues. Molecular dynamics associated with LTW is a result of thermal and non‐thermal mechanisms.

In vivo studies of ultrafast near-infrared laser tissue bonding and wound healing.

Abstract. Femtosecond (fs) pulse lasers in the near-infrared (NIR) range exhibit very distinct properties upon their interaction with biomolecules compared to the corresponding continuous wave (CW) lasers. Ultrafast NIR laser tissue bonding (LTB) was used to fuse edges of two opposing animal tissue segments in vivo using fs laser photoexcitation of the native vibrations of chomophores. The fusion of the incised tissues was achieved in vivo at the molecular level as the result of the energy–matter interactions of NIR laser radiation with water and the structural proteins like collagen in the target tissues. Nonthermal vibrational excitation from the fs laser absorption by water and collagen induced the formation of cross-links between tissue proteins on either sides of the weld line resulting in tissue bonding. No extrinsic agents were used to facilitate tissue bonding in the fs LTB. These studies were pursued for the understanding and evaluation of the role of ultrafast NIR fs laser radiation in the LTB and consequent wound healing. The fs LTB can be used for difficult to suture structures such as blood vessels, nerves, gallbladder, liver, intestines, and other viscera. Ultrafast NIR LTB yields promising outcomes and benefits in terms of wound closure and wound healing under optimal conditions.

Resonance Raman of BCC and normal skin

The Resonance Raman (RR) spectra of basal cell carcinoma (BCC) and normal human skin tissues were analyzed using 532nm laser excitation. RR spectral differences in vibrational fingerprints revealed skin normal and cancerous states tissues. The standard diagnosis criterion for BCC tissues are created by native RR biomarkers and its changes at peak intensity. The diagnostic algorithms for the classification of BCC and normal were generated based on SVM classifier and PCA statistical method. These statistical methods were used to analyze the RR spectral data collected from skin tissues, yielding a diagnostic sensitivity of 98.7% and specificity of 79% compared with pathological reports.

Laser tissue welding analyzed using fluorescence, Stokes shift spectroscopy, and Huang‐Rhys parameter

Near infrared (NIR) continuous wave laser radiation at the 1,450 nm wavelength was used to weld porcine aorta and skin samples via the absorption of combitional vibrational modes of native water in the tissues. The fluorescence spectra were measured from the key native molecules of welded and non-welded tissues at specific excitation and emission wavelengths from collagen, elastin, and tryptophan. The changes in the fluorescence intensities and differences in Stokes shift (Δν(ss) ) of key native fluorophores were measured to differentiate the Huang-Rhys parameter values (S) of the chromophores. The strength of coupling depends on the local electron-vibration intra-tissue molecular environment and the amount of polar solvent water surrounding the net charges on collagen, elastin, and tryptophan. The S values for both non-welded and welded tissues were almost the same and less than 3, suggesting minimal changes in the local molecular environment as a result of welding.

Monitoring changes of proteins and lipids in laser welded aorta tissue using Raman spectroscopy and basis biochemical component analyses

The changes of Raman spectra from ex-vivo porcine aorta tissues were studied before and after laser tissue welding (LTW). Raman spectra were measured and compared for normal and welded tissues in both tunica adventitial and intimal sides. The vibrational modes at the peak of 1301 cm-1 and the weak shoulder peak of 1264 cm-1 of amide III for the normal tissue changed to a peak at 1322cm-1 and a relative intense peak at 1264cm-1, respectively, for the welded tissue. The Raman spectra were analyzed using a linear regression fitting method and compared with characteristic Raman spectra from proteins and lipids compounds. The relative biochemical molecular composition changes of proteins (Collagen types I, III, V and Elastin) and lipids for the laser welded tissue were modeled by basis biochemical component analyses (BBCA) and compared with the normal tissue.

Raman spectroscopic study of acute oxidative stress induced changes in mice skeletal muscles

The oxidative stress due to free radicals is implicated in the pathogenesis of tissue damage in diseases such as muscular dystrophy, Alzheimer dementia, diabetes mellitus, and mitochrondrial myopathies. In this study, the acute oxidative stress induced changes in nicotinamide adenine dinucleotides in mouse skeletal muscles are studied in vitro using Raman spectroscopy. Mammalian skeletal muscles are rich in nicotinamide adenine dinucleotides in both reduced (NADH) and oxidized (NAD) states, as they are sites of aerobic and anaerobic respiration. The relative levels of NAD and NADH are altered in certain physiological and pathological conditions of skeletal muscles. In this study, near infrared Raman spectroscopy is used to identify the molecular fingerprints of NAD and NADH in five-week-old mice biceps femoris muscles. A Raman vibrational mode of NADH is identified in fresh skeletal muscle samples suspended in buffered normal saline. In the same samples, when treated with 1% H2O2 for 5 minutes and 15 minutes, the Raman spectrum shows molecular fingerprints specific to NAD and the disappearance of NADH vibrational bands. The NAD bands after 15 minutes were more intense than after 5 minutes. Since NADH fluoresces and NAD does not, fluorescence spectroscopy is used to confirm the results of the Raman measurements. Fluorescence spectra exhibit an emission peak at 460 nm, corresponding to NADH emission wavelength in fresh muscle samples; while the H2O2 treated muscle samples do not exhibit NADH fluorescence. Raman spectroscopy may be used to develop a minimally invasive, in vivo optical biopsy method to measure the relative NAD and NADH levels in muscle tissues. This may help to detect diseases of muscle, including mitochondrial myopathies and muscular dystrophies.

NIR-laser tissue welding in an in vivo guinea pig animal model

Near infrared laser tissue welding (LTW) is achieved by subjecting the closely approximated surgically incised tissues to a laser beam at a wavelength that is absorbed by water in the tissue. Full thickness welds are accomplished with optimum laser power and penetration depths appropriate for the thickness of welded tissues. No extrinsic cross-linking or bonding materials are used. The absorbed laser energy increases the entropy of collagen in the tissue. In LTW, tissue water temperatures transiently rises to approximately 60° C, causing partial denaturing of collagen and other structural proteins due to breaking of hydrogen bonds, electrostatic interactions and some interchain covalent bonds for a short duration of time. This is followed by cross linking of proteins on either side of weld line, with reformation of the above mentioned bonds as the tissue cools, resulting in the formation of water tight full thickness welds. In this study, a cw fiber laser emitting at 1455 nm, corresponding to absorption by a water vibrational overtone, is used for in vivo LTW of surgical incisions made in the skin of guinea pigs under general anesthesia. The tensile strength and healing rates of the welded incisions are compared to suturing of similar incisions. Laser parameters, including power, scanning rates, exposure area, and exposure duration, are optimized to reduce thermal damage while maintaining tensile strength.

Hybrid native phosphorescence and fluorescence spectroscopy for cancer detection

Native fluorescence of tissues in the UV and visible spectral regions has been investigated for over two decades. Native fluorescence has been demonstrated to be an accurate tools for distinguish normal tissue from malignant and pre-malignant. Prior investigations have demonstrated that there are several ratio-based algorithms, which can distinguish malignant tissue from normal with high sensitivity and specificity.1 The wavelength combinations used in these ratios isolate the contributions from pairs of tissue fluorophors, one of which is frequently tryptophan (trp), the predominant tissue fluorophore with excitation in the UV (250-300 nm). In this work, algorithms using a combination of native fluorescence and trp phosphorescence were developed which show promise for providing enhanced detection accuracy. Using optical fibers to collect the emission from the specimen allowed interrogation of small regions of tissue, providing precise spatial information. Using a specially designed setup, specimens were excited in the UV and spectra were collected in the range of 300 to 700 nm. Three main emission bands were selected for analysis: 340 nm (trp fluorescence); 420 - 460 nm band (fluorescence from the extra cellular matrix); and 500 - 520 nm (trp phosphorescence). Normal specimens consistently exhibited a low ratio (<10) of 345 to 500 nm emission intensity while this same ratio was consistently high (>15) for cancer specimens. Creating intensities ratio maps from the tissue allows one to localize the malignant regions with high spatial precision. The study was performed on ex vivo human breast tissues. The ratio analysis correlated well with histopathology.