Molecular and Cellular Bioengineering Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) Program
Non-Invasive Imaging of Tissue Morphology and Molecular Function In Vivo
Non-invasive imaging of cellular and molecular information in vivo is essential for clinical applications such as diagnosis of early diseases and guidance of surgical and therapeutic interventions. Optical imaging has emerged as an important modality for medicine and biomedical research. Technologies ranging from the spectroscopy, microscopy, and tomography provide unique insights into the intrinsic tissue absorption and scattering contrasts for functional and anatomical tissue characterization, as well as the fluorescence contrast including biochemical markers and molecular-specific fluorescent markers. Our lab is developing multimodal optical tomography system for non-invasive, depth-resolved imaging of tissue anatomy and molecular information. With the aid of fluorescence contrast agents, we are able to visualize and monitoring molecular events during the disease progression, such as receptors, transporters, or enzymes up-regulation. The student is expected to work with cell cultures, small animals, and optical imaging systems. The technology is transferable to clinical medicine for early diagnosis of diseases.
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