2023-12-26 21:10:00
New photographic technique reveals the internal dynamics of biological cells
A team ofUniversity of Tokyo has transcended the limits of high-speed photography, capturing images of unparalleled precision of a shock wave passing through a biological cell, thanks to an innovation called “spectrum circuitry”. This advance opens up fascinating perspectives for science, medicine and industry.
Nanosecond photography reaches a new dimension
The nanosecond photography, which allows images to be captured at the speed of a billionth of a second, has just reached a significant milestone. Researchers at the University of Tokyo have developed a system, called circuit spectre, which overcomes the image quality and exposure time challenges associated with traditional high-speed electronic cameras. This technology promises high-speed shots with increased sharpness and precision.
The circuit spectre bridges the gap between optical imaging and conventional electronic cameras, allowing ultra-fast phenomena to be captured with significant reduction in blur and greater accuracy. The potential applications of this technology are vast, affecting the scientific, medical and industrial fields.
Less than a second. Picosecond is the typical speed used in ultrafast optical imaging, while high-speed electronic cameras can take images at milliseconds and microseconds. The research team’s spectral circuit system bridges the gap between these technologies, allowing us to see what happens between these time periods. 2023 Nicola Burghall
A new observation at the heart of the cell
Takao Saiki, a doctoral student at the Department of Precision Engineering at the University of Tokyo, explained: “ For the first time in history, to our knowledge, we have directly observed the interaction between a biological cell and a shock wave, and demonstrated experimentally that the speed of the shock wave propagating inside the cell is faster than outside it. »
This method made it possible to perform high-speed photography over a wide temporal range, including picosecond, nanosecond and millisecond scales.
Capturing clear images of cells without affecting their structure or causing damage represents a major challenge. To achieve this safely, researchers have developed a precision optical circuit, which uses light rather than electricity, and which they called the spectrum circuit. Using the latter, they created non-damaging laser pulses, emitted at different intervals, and combined them with an existing optical imaging technique called STAMP, to obtain series of higher definition and less blurry images.
By applying this new imaging technology, the researchers were able to observe the propagation of the shock wave and plasma, as well as the progress of the laser treatment on multiple time scales (approximately 10-100 picoseconds, approximately 1-10 nanoseconds and approximately 1-100 milliseconds). 2023Saiki et al.
Promising industrial and medical applications
The same technology was used to examine the effects of laser ablation on glass, a process useful for precisely removing solid material from a surface, used in both industry and medicine. The researchers observed the impact of the laser, the resulting shock waves and their effect on the glass using the spectrum circuit, on time scales ranging from picoseconds to milliseconds.
Keiichi Nakagawa, associate professor in the departments of Bioengineering and Precision Engineering at the University of Tokyo, said: “ Our technology offers the opportunity to reveal useful but unknown high-speed phenomena, by allowing us to observe and analyze such ultra-rapid processes. »
The team plans to use this imaging technique to visualize the interaction of cells with acoustic waves, such as those used in ultrasound and shock wave therapy, to understand the primary physical processes that activate therapeutic effects. in the human body. They also want to improve laser processing techniques, identifying physical parameters that would enable faster, more precise, consistent and economical manufacturing.
Synthetic
The high speed photography has crossed a new threshold with the development of the spectrum circuit by the University of Tokyo. This advancement makes it possible to capture ultra-fast phenomena with unprecedented clarity and precision. The implications of this technology are far-reaching, offering new perspectives in scientific research, medical applications and industrial processes. The future of visualizing complex phenomena looks promising thanks to this innovation.
For a better understanding
What is nanosecond photography?
Nanosecond photography is a technique that allows images to be captured at the speed of a billionth of a second, revealing details of very fast phenomena that would otherwise be invisible to the naked eye.
What does the spectrum circuit consist of?
The spectrum circuit is a precision optical system that uses light to capture high-speed images with less blur and more precision, by combining different time scales.
What are the potential applications of this technology?
This technology has potential applications in many fields, including scientific research, medicine, industry, materials manufacturing, environment and energy.
What are the advantages of this method compared to existing techniques?
It allows high definition images to be taken over a wide temporal range, with less damage to biological structures and a better understanding of rapid physical processes.
What are the research team’s next goals?
The team plans to use this technique to study the interaction of cells with acoustic waves and improve laser processing techniques for more efficient manufacturing.
References
Main illustration caption: Images of an underwater shock wave moving through a HeLa cell. Using this new technology, researchers were able to see the difference between how the shock wave travels inside and outside a cell submerged in water. They noted that the results suggest that the structure of the cell moves depending on the position of the visualized wavefront (shown by the red/orange line in the image). 2023 Saiki et al.
Takao Saiki, Keitaro Shimada, Ayumu Ishijima, Hang Song, Xinyi Qi, Yuki Okamoto, Ayako Mizushima, Yoshio Mita, Takuya Hosobata, Masahiro Takeda, Shinya Morita, Kosuke Kushibiki, Shinobu Ozaki, Kentaro Motohara, Yutaka Yamagata, Akira Tsukamoto, Fumihiko Kannari , Ichiro Sakuma, Yuki Inada, Keiichi Nakagawa, “Single-shot optical imaging with spectrum circuit bridging timescales in high-speed photography,” Science Advances: December 20, 2023, doi:10.1126/sciadv.adj8608.
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