Toward peripheral nerve mechanical characterization using Brillouin imaging spectroscopy

Abstract

Peripheral nerves are viscoelastic tissues with unique elastic characteristics. Imaging of peripheral nerve elasticity is important in medicine, particularly in the context of nerve injury and repair. Elasticity imaging techniques provide information about the mechanical properties of peripheral nerves, which can be useful in identifying areas of nerve damage or compression, as well as assessing the success of nerve repair procedures.Aim: We aim to assess the feasibility of Brillouin microspectroscopy for peripheral nerve imaging of elasticity, with the ultimate goal of developing a new diagnostic tool for peripheral nerve injury in vivo.Approach: Viscoelastic properties of the peripheral nerve were evaluated with Brillouin imaging spectroscopy.Results: An external stress exerted on the fixed nerve resulted in a Brillouin shift. Quantification of the shift enabled correlation of the Brillouin parameters with nerve elastic properties.Conclusions: Brillouin microscopy provides sufficient sensitivity to assess viscoelastic properties of peripheral nerves.

Vibrational spectroscopy and multiphoton microscopy for label-free visualization of nervous system degeneration and regeneration

“…Additionally, it is worth noting that confocal Raman spectroscopy can be paired with Brillouin spectroscopy, allowing for the simultaneous investigation of both biochemistry and biomechanics at the subcellular level (Rix et al 2022 ). Brillouin imaging spectroscopy has already demonstrated its potential in characterizing the viscoelastic properties of nervous tissue, as evidenced by recent studies (Cheburkanov et al 2023 ; Rad et al 2022 ; Ryu et al 2021 ), while few pioneering applications have addressed the study of neurodegenerative diseases and spinal cord injuries in animal models (Palombo et al 2018 ; Schlüßler et al 2018 ).…”