We describe the development of a rapid, noncontact imaging method, modulated imaging (MI), for quantitative, wide-field characterization of optical absorption and scattering properties of turbid media. MI utilizes principles of frequency-domain sampling and model-based analysis of the spatial modulation transfer function (s-MTF). We present and compare analytic diffusion and probabilistic Monte Carlo models of diffuse reflectance in the spatial frequency domain. Next, we perform MI measurements on tissue-simulating phantoms exhibiting a wide range of l* values (0.5 mm to 3 mm) and (μs′/μa) ratios (8 to 500), reporting an overall accuracy of approximately 6% and 3% in absorption and reduced scattering parameters, respectively. Sampling of only two spatial frequencies, achieved with only three camera images, is found to be sufficient for accurate determination of the optical properties. We then perform MI measurements in an in vivo tissue system, demonstrating spatial mapping of the absorption and scattering optical contrast in a human forearm and dynamic measurements of a forearm during venous occlusion. Last, metrics of spatial resolution are assessed through both simulations and measurements of spatially heterogeneous phantoms.

Multiphoton microscopy relies on nonlinear light-matter interactions to provide contrast and optical sectioning capability for high-resolution imaging. Most multiphoton microscopy studies in biological systems have relied on two-photon excited fluorescence (TPEF) to produce images. With increasing applications of multiphoton microscopy to thick-tissue ''intravital'' imaging, second-harmonic generation (SHG) from structural proteins has emerged as a potentially important new contrast mechanism. However, SHG is typically detected in transmission mode, thus limiting TPEF͞SHG coregistration and its practical utility for in vivo thick-tissue applications. In this study, we use a broad range of excitation wavelengths (730 -880 nm) to demonstrate that TPEF͞SHG coregistration can easily be achieved in unstained tissues by using a simple backscattering geometry. The combined TPEF͞SHG technique was applied to imaging a threedimensional organotypic tissue model (RAFT). The structural and molecular origin of the image-forming signal from the various tissue constituents was determined by simultaneous spectroscopic measurements and confirming immunofluorescence staining. Our results show that at shorter excitation wavelengths (<800 nm), the signal emitted from the extracellular matrix (ECM) is a combination of SHG and TPEF from collagen, whereas at longer excitation wavelengths the ECM signal is exclusively due to SHG. Endogenous cellular signals are consistent with TPEF spectra of cofactors NAD(P)H and FAD at all excitation wavelengths. The reflected SHG intensity follows a quadratic dependence on the excitation power, decays exponentially with depth, and exhibits a spectral dependence in accordance with previous theoretical studies. The use of SHG and TPEF in combination provides complementary information that allows noninvasive, spatially localized in vivo characterization of cell-ECM interactions in unstained thick tissues. S ince its introduction by Denk et al.(1), two-photon excited fluorescence (TPEF) has been widely used for imaging structure and dynamic interactions in biological tissues (2-5). Although second-harmonic generation (SHG) in biological tissues was first demonstrated two decades ago (6-8), SHG has only recently been used for biological imaging applications (9-12). Because TPEF and SHG involve different contrast mechanisms, they can be used in tandem to provide complementary information regarding tissue structure and function. Specifically, SHG signals depend on the orientation, polarization, and local symmetry properties of chiral molecules, whereas TPEF results from the nonlinear excitation of molecular fluorescence.The primary tissue constituent responsible for SHG is collagen (9,13,14), which is also a well documented source of tissue autofluorescence (4,15). This fact has created uncertainty over whether the image-forming signal from two-photon excitation of collagen in biological tissues is TPEF or SHG and prompts further investigation into the precise origin of signal in the nonlinear microscopy of...

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Diffuse optical imaging (DOI) may be a beneficial diagnostic method for women with mammographically dense breast tissue. In order to evaluate the utility of DOI, we are developing broadband diffuse optical spectroscopy (DOS) to characterize the functional origins of optical signals in breast cancer patients. Broadband DOS combines multifrequency intensity-modulated and continuous-wave near-infrared light to quantify tissue absorption and scattering spectra from 650 to 1000 nm. Values of intrinsic physiological properties (oxy- and deoxy-hemoglobin, water, lipid, and scatter power) derived from absorption and scattering spectra provide detailed information on breast physiology. We present the results of clinical studies of 58 stage II/III malignant breast tumors using a noninvasive, handheld, broadband DOS probe. On average, eight positions were scanned over tumor and contralateral normal breast for each subject. Intrinsic physiological properties were statistically significantly different for malignant vs. normal tissues for all subjects, without patient age or tumor size/type stratification. Breast tissues containing malignant tumors displayed reduced lipid content ( approximately 20%) and increased water, deoxy-, and oxy-hemoglobin (>50% each) compared to normal breast tissues. Functional perturbations by the tumor were significantly larger than functional variations in normal tissues. A tissue optical index (TOI) derived from intrinsic physiological properties yielded an average two-fold contrast difference between malignant tumors and intrinsic tissue properties. Our results demonstrate that intrinsic optical signals can be influenced by functional perturbations characteristic of malignant transformation; cellular metabolism, extracellular matrix composition, and angiogenesis. Our findings further underscore the importance of broadband measurements and patient age stratification in breast cancer DOI.