TY - JOUR
T1 - In vivo multiphoton microscopy for investigating biomechanical properties of human skin
AU - Liang, Xing
AU - Graf, Benedikt W.
AU - Boppart, Stephen A.
N1 - We thank Dr. Haohua Tu and Eric Chaney for their laboratory assistance and thank Dr. Steven G. Adie for insightful discussions. This work was supported in part by grants from the National Institutes of Health (R01 EB005221 and RC1 CA147096) and the National Science Foundation (CBET 08-52658). Additional information can be found at http://biophotonics. illinois.edu.
PY - 2011/6
Y1 - 2011/6
N2 - The biomechanical properties of living cells depend on their molecular building blocks, and are important for maintaining structure and function in cells, the extracellular matrix, and tissues. These biomechanical properties and forces also shape and modify the cellular and extracellular structures under stress. While many studies have investigated the biomechanics of single cells or small populations of cells in culture, or the properties of organs and tissues, few studies have investigated the biomechanics of complex cell populations in vivo. With the use of advanced multiphoton microscopy to visualize in vivo cell populations in human skin, the biomechanical properties are investigated in a depth-dependent manner in the stratum corneum and epidermis using quasi-static mechanical deformations. A 2D elastic registration algorithm was used to analyze the images before and after deformation to determine displacements in different skin layers. In this feasibility study, the images and results from one human subject demonstrate the potential of the technique for revealing differences in elastic properties between the stratum corneum and the rest of the epidermis. This interrogational imaging methodology has the potential to enable a wide range of investigations for understanding how the biomechanical properties of in vivo cell populations influence function in health and disease.
AB - The biomechanical properties of living cells depend on their molecular building blocks, and are important for maintaining structure and function in cells, the extracellular matrix, and tissues. These biomechanical properties and forces also shape and modify the cellular and extracellular structures under stress. While many studies have investigated the biomechanics of single cells or small populations of cells in culture, or the properties of organs and tissues, few studies have investigated the biomechanics of complex cell populations in vivo. With the use of advanced multiphoton microscopy to visualize in vivo cell populations in human skin, the biomechanical properties are investigated in a depth-dependent manner in the stratum corneum and epidermis using quasi-static mechanical deformations. A 2D elastic registration algorithm was used to analyze the images before and after deformation to determine displacements in different skin layers. In this feasibility study, the images and results from one human subject demonstrate the potential of the technique for revealing differences in elastic properties between the stratum corneum and the rest of the epidermis. This interrogational imaging methodology has the potential to enable a wide range of investigations for understanding how the biomechanical properties of in vivo cell populations influence function in health and disease.
KW - Cell and tissue biomechanics
KW - Human skin
KW - Imaging
KW - In vivo
KW - Multiphoton microscopy
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U2 - 10.1007/s12195-010-0147-6
DO - 10.1007/s12195-010-0147-6
M3 - Article
C2 - 22468160
AN - SCOPUS:79960562741
SN - 1865-5025
VL - 4
SP - 231
EP - 238
JO - Cellular and Molecular Bioengineering
JF - Cellular and Molecular Bioengineering
IS - 2
ER -