Event
BIOE Seminar: From Speckles to Spectra: Using new optical contrasts to reveal label-free biomarkers
Friday, March 15, 2024
9:00 a.m.
A. James Clark Hall, Room #2121
Jenna Mueller
mueller7@umd.edu
Darren Roblyer
Associate Professor, Biomedical Engineering
Boston University
From Speckles to Spectra: Using new optical contrasts to reveal label-free biomarkers
Abstract
In this presentation I will describe how emerging label-free optical technologies are unveiling new clinical biomarkers, paving the way for transformative changes in the standard-of-care across many diseases. I will first discuss how we are exploring the shortwave infrared (SWIR) window, from 900 to 2000 nm, to uncover distinctive contrasts to address a variety of diseases and conditions previously overlooked by biophotonics. The SWIR window has several key advantages compared to more commonly used near-infrared window (NIR: 700 – 900 nm), including deeper tissue imaging and higher sensitivity to water and lipids, but this wavelength band has gone relatively unexplored until very recently due to the lack of SWIR-active detectors with sufficient sensitivity for deep tissue imaging. This is now changing due to the recent availability of lower-cost and higher-quality SWIR cameras and sensors. I will describe the fundamental tissue optics in the SWIR as well as the tradeoffs that come with measurements in the SWIR region. I will also describe how we are utilizing quantitative SWIR imaging and spectroscopy in the clinic, including for the real-time monitoring of hemodialysis in kidney disease management and for the measurement of blood lipids for cardiovascular disease prediction. In both cases, the unique ability to quantify SWIR optical properties provides the ability to achieve new insights in these diseases. Finally, I will discuss a different technology call speckle contrast optical spectroscopy (SCOS), which utilizes long coherence length light to measure microvascular blood flow. I will describe how we’re advancing SCOS in terms of sensitivity and speed to provide real-time and continuous measurements of blood pressure accurately without a cuff, which could have major implications for the management of patients with hypertension.
Speaker Bio
Darren Roblyer is an Associate Professor of Biomedical Engineering at Boston University. He received his BS degree in Biomedical Engineering from Johns Hopkins University and received his PhD in Bioengineering at Rice University where he studied under Rebecca Richards-Kortum. He did his postdoctoral work at the Beckman Laser Institute at the University of California, Irvine studying under Professor Bruce Tromberg, the current Director of the NIBIB. His research focuses on translational diffuse optical imaging and spectroscopy. His group develops wearables, remote patient monitoring technologies, and custom frequency-domain near-infrared spectroscopy techniques for label-free measurements of deep tissue metabolism and molecular composition. He collaborates with physicians, physiologists, biologists, engineers, and physicists to tackle unmet clinical needs in biomedicine. He has clinical studies underway in cancer, cardiovascular disease, kidney disease, and autoimmune disease. He was the recipient of the Department of Defense Era of Hope Scholar Award and the NIH Trailblazer Award among many others. He is also the inaugural Editor-in-Chief of the SPIE journal Biophotonics Discovery.
