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Enhanced penetration depth in optical coherence tomography and photoacoustic microscopy in vivo enabled by absorbing dye molecules

Publication ,  Journal Article
Miller, DA; Xu, Y; Highland, R; Nguyen, VT; Brown, WJ; Hong, G; Yao, J; Wax, A
Published in: Optica
January 20, 2025

The scattering and absorption of light within biological tissue severely limits the penetration depth of optical imaging techniques. Recently, it has been found that water-soluble, strongly absorbing dye molecules, such as tartrazine, can achieve in vivo tissue transparency by increasing the refractive index of aqueous components in tissue, as predicted by the Lorentz oscillator model and Kramers–Kronig relations. In this study, we topically applied absorbing dye molecules to the abdominal skin of pigmented and nonpigmented mice to enhance the penetration depth of optical coherence tomography (OCT) and photoacoustic microscopy (PAM). In both types of mice, the penetration depth of OCT was significantly improved using tartrazine and 4-aminoantipyrine. As predicted by the Kramers–Kronig relations and absorption spectra of the dyes, mice treated with 4-aminoantipyrine showed significantly improved penetration depth compared to mice treated with tartrazine for the PAM system with 532 nm excitation. These findings further demonstrate the use of absorbing dye molecules for achieving tissue transparency to enhance the penetration depth of depth-resolved optical imaging modalities in skin, thus accelerating the translation of these technologies in clinical areas, such as dermatology.

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Published In

Optica

DOI

ISSN

2334-2536

Publication Date

January 20, 2025

Volume

12

Issue

1

Start / End Page

24 / 30

Related Subject Headings

  • 5102 Atomic, molecular and optical physics
  • 1005 Communications Technologies
  • 0906 Electrical and Electronic Engineering
  • 0205 Optical Physics
 

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Miller, D. A., Xu, Y., Highland, R., Nguyen, V. T., Brown, W. J., Hong, G., … Wax, A. (2025). Enhanced penetration depth in optical coherence tomography and photoacoustic microscopy in vivo enabled by absorbing dye molecules. Optica, 12(1), 24–30. https://doi.org/10.1364/OPTICA.546779
Miller, D. A., Y. Xu, R. Highland, V. T. Nguyen, W. J. Brown, G. Hong, J. Yao, and A. Wax. “Enhanced penetration depth in optical coherence tomography and photoacoustic microscopy in vivo enabled by absorbing dye molecules.” Optica 12, no. 1 (January 20, 2025): 24–30. https://doi.org/10.1364/OPTICA.546779.
Miller DA, Xu Y, Highland R, Nguyen VT, Brown WJ, Hong G, et al. Enhanced penetration depth in optical coherence tomography and photoacoustic microscopy in vivo enabled by absorbing dye molecules. Optica. 2025 Jan 20;12(1):24–30.
Miller, D. A., et al. “Enhanced penetration depth in optical coherence tomography and photoacoustic microscopy in vivo enabled by absorbing dye molecules.” Optica, vol. 12, no. 1, Jan. 2025, pp. 24–30. Scopus, doi:10.1364/OPTICA.546779.
Miller DA, Xu Y, Highland R, Nguyen VT, Brown WJ, Hong G, Yao J, Wax A. Enhanced penetration depth in optical coherence tomography and photoacoustic microscopy in vivo enabled by absorbing dye molecules. Optica. 2025 Jan 20;12(1):24–30.
Journal cover image

Published In

Optica

DOI

ISSN

2334-2536

Publication Date

January 20, 2025

Volume

12

Issue

1

Start / End Page

24 / 30

Related Subject Headings

  • 5102 Atomic, molecular and optical physics
  • 1005 Communications Technologies
  • 0906 Electrical and Electronic Engineering
  • 0205 Optical Physics