Beckman Laser Institute

Last updated
Beckman Laser Institute
Founder(s) Michael W. Berns,
Arnold O. Beckman
Established1982 (foundation), 1986 (facility)
Acting DirectorBernard Choi
Address1002 Health Sciences Rd., Irvine, CA 92617
Location
University of California, Irvine
,
Irvine
,
California
,
United States of America
Website http://www.bli.uci.edu/

The Beckman Laser Institute (sometimes called the Beckman Laser Institute and Medical Clinic) is an interdisciplinary research center for the development of optical technologies and their use in biology and medicine. Located on the campus of the University of California, Irvine in Irvine, California, an independent nonprofit corporation was created in 1982, under the leadership of Michael W. Berns, and the actual facility opened on June 4, 1986. [1] It is one of a number of institutions focused on translational research, connecting research and medical applications. [2] Researchers at the institute have developed laser techniques for the manipulation of structures within a living cell, and applied them medically in treatment of skin conditions, stroke, and cancer, among others.

Contents

History

Around 1980, Michael W. Berns, a professor of biology at the University of California, Irvine, founded an institute focusing on the then-new technology of lasers. After receiving a National Institutes of Health biotechnology grant, [3] : 328–331  he established a laboratory for laser microscopy, the Laser Microbeam Program (LAMP). [4] He then proposed the creation of an interdisciplinary center which would combine research into lasers and their applications in medical treatment. [3] [4]

Berns obtained the support of local philanthropists Arnold O. Beckman (1900-2004) and his wife Mabel (1900-1989). The Beckmans were interested in the potential of the new instruments, and agreed to partner with the university in funding the development of an independent center which would eventually become the property of the university. Beckman presented a $2.5 million matching check to Dan Aldrich, the Chancellor of UCI. [4] Other early supporters of the Beckman Laser Institute included David Packard of Hewlett-Packard, who donated $2 million, [3] : 328–331  SmithKline Beckman Corp. which donated $1 million, [1] and the Irvine Community Foundation. [5] Arnold Beckman and Michael W. Berns were listed as co-founders in the institution's bylaws. [3] : 330  [6]

The institute was established as an independent nonprofit corporation in 1982, under the leadership of Michael W. Berns. [3] : 328–331  The actual facility opened on June 4, 1986. [1]

The current acting director is Bernard Choi

Research

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Nuvola apps kaboodle.svg From Benchtop to Beside: Take a tour of the Beckman Laser Institute, Beckman Laser
Nuvola apps kaboodle.svg Inside the Beckman Laser Institute, CEN

Early research into the use of lasers included the development of techniques for the manipulation of structures within a living cell. What Bern terms "Laser scissors" use short pulses of high irradiance to create targeted effects. Optoporation has been used to create tiny openings into the interior of a cell, enabling the genetic manipulation of cells by the insertion and deletion of genes, and the extraction and examination of microplasma from within the cell. Laser ablation can be used to destroy or inactivate cells. Lasers can also be used to optically trap cellular structures. "Laser tweezers" use continuous, low-irradiance beams that pass through substances without causing damage. The refraction of a pair of symmetric laser light rays within a beam can be modified and cause the target to respond to the change in momentum of the light rays. [7]

More advanced research has included optical techniques such as Multiphoton microscopy, Second-harmonic imaging microscopy, Photoacoustic tomography, nonlinear Raman spectroscopy, and diffuse optical spectroscopy. [8]

Multiphoton microscopy (MPM) and second-harmonic generation (SHG) can be used to obtain high-resolution, noninvasive images of thick biological tissues. Researchers are working on the development of small, portable multiphoton systems using femtosecond fiber lasers as a light source, for use in clinical applications and in vivo imaging. [9] [10]

Photoacoustic tomography enables researchers to create three-dimensional images of deep tissue. A laser must be carefully tuned to excite specific bonds so that they "rattle", creating noise that can be detected and mapped by passive acoustic systems. [8]

Raman spectroscopy uses Raman scattering of monochromatic light, causing changes in the energy level of a few molecules which then can be detected. Raman spectroscopy and other infrared techniques have been used to detect cancer lesions. [8]

Diffuse optical spectroscopy allows researchers to look deep within the body without disturbing tissue. This technique has been used to measure Haemodynamic response within the brain. A beam of near-infrared light is sent through optic fibers resting on the skin, and the scattering of light is measured, allowing researchers to assess the oxygenated and deoxygenated hemoglobin within the brain's blood vessels. [8]

Spatial frequency domain imaging (SFDI) is a reflectance technique that models absorption coefficients and reduced scattering coefficients in thick tissue. [11] SFDI can detect subsurface damage to bruised tissues such as the skin or brain by examining hemoglobin levels. [8] It can also be used to assess burn damage. [12]

Applications

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Nuvola apps arts.svg “Rethinking Ink”, Distillations Podcast Episode 220, Science History Institute

Applications in Biophotonics include the treatment of birthmarks [13] such as Port-wine stain [8] [14] and the removal of tattoos, [15] [16] the detection of bleeding in stroke patients, [17] non-invasive detection of skin cancer [18] [19] and oral lesions, [20] and monitoring of the effects of chemotherapy in breast cancer patients. [8] [21]

Judge David O. Carter has worked with Michael W. Berns, J. Stuart Nelson and others at the Beckman Laser Institute to develop an innovative program that helps parolees to reintegrate into society by having gang tattoos removed. The removal of visible tattoos on the face, neck and hands increases people's potential to be hired, gaining an income and a sense of purpose. [15]

Faculty

Faculty at the Beckman Laser Institute have included: [22]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Microscopy</span> Viewing of objects which are too small to be seen with the naked eye

Microscopy is the technical field of using microscopes to view objects and areas of objects that cannot be seen with the naked eye. There are three well-known branches of microscopy: optical, electron, and scanning probe microscopy, along with the emerging field of X-ray microscopy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Raman spectroscopy</span> Spectroscopic technique

Raman spectroscopy is a spectroscopic technique typically used to determine vibrational modes of molecules, although rotational and other low-frequency modes of systems may also be observed. Raman spectroscopy is commonly used in chemistry to provide a structural fingerprint by which molecules can be identified.

The term biophotonics denotes a combination of biology and photonics, with photonics being the science and technology of generation, manipulation, and detection of photons, quantum units of light. Photonics is related to electronics and photons. Photons play a central role in information technologies, such as fiber optics, the way electrons do in electronics.

Medical optical imaging is the use of light as an investigational imaging technique for medical applications, pioneered by American Physical Chemist Britton Chance. Examples include optical microscopy, spectroscopy, endoscopy, scanning laser ophthalmoscopy, laser Doppler imaging, and optical coherence tomography. Because light is an electromagnetic wave, similar phenomena occur in X-rays, microwaves, and radio waves.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Two-photon excitation microscopy</span> Fluorescence imaging technique

Two-photon excitation microscopy is a fluorescence imaging technique that is particularly well-suited to image scattering living tissue of up to about one millimeter in thickness. Unlike traditional fluorescence microscopy, where the excitation wavelength is shorter than the emission wavelength, two-photon excitation requires simultaneous excitation by two photons with longer wavelength than the emitted light. The laser is focused onto a specific location in the tissue and scanned across the sample to sequentially produce the image. Due to the non-linearity of two-photon excitation, mainly fluorophores in the micrometer-sized focus of the laser beam are excited, which results in the spatial resolution of the image. This contrasts with confocal microscopy, where the spatial resolution is produced by the interaction of excitation focus and the confined detection with a pinhole.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bruce J. Tromberg</span> American chemist

Bruce J. Tromberg is an American photochemist and a leading researcher in the field of biophotonics. He is the director of the National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering (NIBIB) within the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Before joining NIH, he was Professor of Biomedical Engineering at The Henry Samueli School of Engineering and of Surgery at the School of Medicine, University of California, Irvine. He was the principal investigator of the Laser Microbeam and Medical Program (LAMMP), and the Director of the Beckman Laser Institute and Medical Clinic at Irvine. He was a co-leader of the Onco-imaging and Biotechnology Program of the NCI Chao Family Comprehensive Cancer Center at Irvine.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Second-harmonic imaging microscopy</span>

Second-harmonic imaging microscopy (SHIM) is based on a nonlinear optical effect known as second-harmonic generation (SHG). SHIM has been established as a viable microscope imaging contrast mechanism for visualization of cell and tissue structure and function. A second-harmonic microscope obtains contrasts from variations in a specimen's ability to generate second-harmonic light from the incident light while a conventional optical microscope obtains its contrast by detecting variations in optical density, path length, or refractive index of the specimen. SHG requires intense laser light passing through a material with a noncentrosymmetric molecular structure, either inherent or induced externally, for example by an electric field.

Optical transfection is a biomedical technique that entails introducing nucleic acids into cells using light. All cells are surrounded by a plasma membrane, which prevents many substances from entering or exiting the cell. Lasers can be used to burn a tiny hole in this membrane, allowing substances to enter. This is tremendously useful to biologists who are studying disease, as a common experimental requirement is to put things into cells.

Robert Alfano is an Italian-American experimental physicist. He is a Distinguished Professor of Science and Engineering at the City College and the Graduate School of the City University of New York, where he is also the founding director of the Institute for Ultrafast Spectroscopy and Lasers (1982). He is a pioneer in the fields of Biomedical Imaging and Spectroscopy, Ultrafast lasers and optics, tunable lasers, semiconductor materials and devices, optical materials, biophysics, nonlinear optics and photonics; he has also worked extensively in nanotechnology and coherent backscattering. His discovery of the white-light supercontinuum laser is at the root of optical coherence tomography, which is breaking barriers in ophthalmology, cardiology, and oral cancer detection among other applications. He initiated the field known now as optical biopsy.

The technique of vibrational analysis with scanning probe microscopy allows probing vibrational properties of materials at the submicrometer scale, and even of individual molecules. This is accomplished by integrating scanning probe microscopy (SPM) and vibrational spectroscopy. This combination allows for much higher spatial resolution than can be achieved with conventional Raman/FTIR instrumentation. The technique is also nondestructive, requires non-extensive sample preparation, and provides more contrast such as intensity contrast, polarization contrast and wavelength contrast, as well as providing specific chemical information and topography images simultaneously.

Photon etc. is a Canadian manufacturer of infrared cameras, widely tunable optical filters, hyperspectral imaging and spectroscopic scientific instruments for academic and industrial applications. Its main technology is based on volume Bragg gratings, which are used as filters either for swept lasers or for global imaging.

Petra Elfrida Erna Beate Wilder-Smith is a professor and director of dentistry at the Beckman Laser Institute at the University of California, Irvine, and a fellow of the Chao Family Comprehensive Cancer Center at the University of California, Irvine. She is a visiting professor at Aachen University (Germany); and a visiting lecturer at Loma Linda University. Wilder-Smith specializes in the use of light and optics in tracking and treating oral cancer. She has developed innovative noninvasive laser technology used to examine and treat mouth lesions.

Heather Cecile Allen is a research chemist and Professor of Chemistry, who leads the Allen Group at The Ohio State University. Allen's research focuses on interfacial phenomena, particularly those involving water and air. Her work has broad application ranging from medicine to climate change. She also develops nonlinear optical spectroscopy and microscopy instruments for the examination of interfacial surfaces.

Wide-field multiphoton microscopy refers to an optical non-linear imaging technique tailored for ultrafast imaging in which a large area of the object is illuminated and imaged without the need for scanning. High intensities are required to induce non-linear optical processes such as two-photon fluorescence or second harmonic generation. In scanning multiphoton microscopes the high intensities are achieved by tightly focusing the light, and the image is obtained by beam scanning. In wide-field multiphoton microscopy the high intensities are best achieved using an optically amplified pulsed laser source to attain a large field of view (~100 μm). The image in this case is obtained as a single frame with a CCD without the need of scanning, making the technique particularly useful to visualize dynamic processes simultaneously across the object of interest. With wide-field multiphoton microscopy the frame rate can be increased up to a 1000-fold compared to multiphoton scanning microscopy. Wide-field multiphoton microscopes are not yet commercially available, but working prototypes exist in several optics laboratories.

Michael W. Berns was an American biologist who was a professor of surgery and cell biology at the University of California, Irvine (UCI), and an adjunct professor of bioengineering at the University of California, San Diego. Berns was a founder of the first Laser Microbeam Program (LAMP), the Beckman Laser Institute, the UCI Center for Biomedical Engineering, and the UCI Photonics Incubator.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Coherent Raman scattering microscopy</span> Multi-photon microscopy technique

Coherent Raman scattering (CRS) microscopy is a multi-photon microscopy technique based on Raman-active vibrational modes of molecules. The two major techniques in CRS microscopy are stimulated Raman scattering (SRS) and coherent anti-Stokes Raman scattering (CARS). SRS and CARS were theoretically predicted and experimentally realized in the 1960s. In 1982 the first CARS microscope was demonstrated. In 1999, CARS microscopy using a collinear geometry and high numerical aperture objective were developed in Xiaoliang Sunney Xie's lab at Harvard University. This advancement made the technique more compatible with modern laser scanning microscopes. Since then, CRS's popularity in biomedical research started to grow. CRS is mainly used to image lipid, protein, and other bio-molecules in live or fixed cells or tissues without labeling or staining. CRS can also be used to image samples labeled with Raman tags, which can avoid interference from other molecules and normally allows for stronger CRS signals than would normally be obtained for common biomolecules. CRS also finds application in other fields, such as material science and environmental science.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Anita Mahadevan-Jansen</span> Biomedical engineer

Anita Mahadevan-Jansen is a Professor of Biomedical Engineering and holds the Orrin H. Ingram Chair in Biomedical Engineering at Vanderbilt University. Her research considers the development of optical techniques for clinical diagnosis and surgical guidance, particularly using Raman and fluorescence spectroscopy. She serves on the Board of Directors of SPIE, and is a Fellow of SPIE, The Optical Society, Society for Applied Spectroscopy, and the American Society for Lasers in Medicine and Surgery. She was elected to serve as the 2020 Vice President of SPIE. With her election, Mahadevan-Jansen joined the SPIE presidential chain and served as President-Elect in 2021 and the Society's President in 2022.

Diffuse optical mammography, or simply optical mammography, is an emerging imaging technique that enables the investigation of the breast composition through spectral analysis. It combines in a single non-invasive tool the capability to implement breast cancer risk assessment, lesion characterization, therapy monitoring and prediction of therapy outcome. It is an application of diffuse optics, which studies light propagation in strongly diffusive media, such as biological tissues, working in the red and near-infrared spectral range, between 600 and 1100 nm.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Debabrata Goswami</span> Indian chemist

Debabrata Goswami FInstP FRSC, is an Indian chemist and the Prof. S. Sampath Chair Professor of Chemistry, at the Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur. He is also a professor of The Department of Chemistry and The Center for Lasers & Photonics at the same Institute. Goswami is an associate editor of the open-access journal Science Advances. He is also an Academic Editor for PLOS One and PeerJ Chemistry. He has contributed to the theory of Quantum Computing as well as nonlinear optical spectroscopy. His work is documented in more than 200 research publications. He is an elected Fellow of the Royal Society of Chemistry, Fellow of the Institute of Physics, the SPIE, and The Optical Society. He is also a Senior Member of the IEEE, has been awarded a Swarnajayanti Fellowship for Chemical Sciences, and has held a Wellcome Trust Senior Research Fellowship. He is the third Indian to be awarded the International Commission for Optics Galileo Galilei Medal for excellence in optics.

Nozomi Nishimura is an American biomedical engineer who is an associate professor at Cornell University. She was awarded the L'Oréal for Women in Science Fellowship in 2009 and was inducted into the 2024 Class of the AIMBE College of Fellows for her research in intravital microscopy contributing to the understanding of microscale physiology.

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Beckman Laser Institute Will Open to Public Today". Los Angeles Times. June 4, 1986. Retrieved 20 October 2015.
  2. ↑ Nelson, Amy (20 January 2014). "New Photonics West Translational Research program advances technologies for healthcare". SPIE. Connecting Minds, Enhancing Light. SPIE. Retrieved 19 October 2015.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 Arnold Thackray & Minor Myers, Jr. (2000). Arnold O. Beckman : one hundred years of excellence. foreword by James D. Watson. Philadelphia, Pa.: Chemical Heritage Foundation. ISBN   978-0-941901-23-9.
  4. 1 2 3 Berns, Michael W. "Founder's Column". Beckman Laser Institute. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 19 October 2015.
  5. ↑ Kucher, Karen (October 25, 1986). "Irvine : Beckman Laser Institute Receives $175,000 Grant". Orange County Digest. Retrieved 20 October 2015.
  6. ↑ "Michael W. Berns receives Lifetime Achievement Award". Beckman Laser Institute. January 2006. Archived from the original on 11 September 2015. Retrieved 20 October 2015.
  7. ↑ Berns, Michael W. (March 17, 1998). "Laser Scissors and Tweezers" (PDF). Scientific American. 278 (4): 62–67. Bibcode:1998SciAm.278d..62B. doi:10.1038/scientificamerican0498-62. PMID   9532771 . Retrieved 20 October 2015.
  8. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Rowe, Aaron A. (January 2, 2012). "Lights and Lasers Invade the Clinic" (PDF). Chemical & Engineering News. 90 (1): 25–27. doi:10.1021/cen-09001-scitech. Archived from the original (PDF) on 25 January 2016. Retrieved 19 October 2015.
  9. ↑ Tang, Shuo; Liu, Jian; Krasieva, Tatiana B.; Chen, Zhongping; Tromberg, Bruce J. (2009). "Developing compact multiphoton systems using femtosecond fiber lasers". Journal of Biomedical Optics. 14 (3): 030508. Bibcode:2009JBO....14c0508T. doi:10.1117/1.3153842. PMC   2864591 . PMID   19566289.
  10. ↑ Liu, Gangjun; Kieu, Khanh; Wise, Frank W.; Chen, Zhongping (January 2011). "Multiphoton microscopy system with a compact fiber-based femtosecond-pulse laser and handheld probe". Journal of Biophotonics. 4 (1–2): 34–39. doi:10.1002/jbio.201000049. PMC   3337208 . PMID   20635426.
  11. ↑ Lin, Alexander J.; Ponticorvo, Adrien; Konecky, Soren D.; Cui, Haotian; Rice, Tyler B.; Choi, Bernard; Durkin, Anthony J.; Tromberg, Bruce J. (4 September 2013). "Visible spatial frequency domain imaging with a digital light microprojector". Journal of Biomedical Optics. 18 (9): 096007. Bibcode:2013JBO....18i6007L. doi:10.1117/1.JBO.18.9.096007. PMC   3762936 . PMID   24005154.
  12. ↑ Johnson, Pete (1989). "Answers about plastic surgery". Orange Coast Magazine. June 1989: 221–223. Retrieved 21 October 2015.
  13. 1 2 "Beckman Laser/UCI's New Treatment/Diagnostic Center". Birthmarks.com. Archived from the original on 12 September 2015. Retrieved 20 October 2015.
  14. ↑ Hofmann, Jan (June 11, 1991). "Laser's Just a Tool--Not a Magic Wand, Expert Says". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 20 October 2015.
  15. 1 2 Klett, Joseph (2018). "Second Chances". Distillations. 4 (1). Science History Institute: 12–23. Retrieved June 27, 2018.
  16. ↑ Kass, Jeff (November 6, 1996). "Leaving Signs of Trouble Behind". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 20 October 2015.
  17. ↑ Abookasis, David; Lay, Christopher C.; Mathews, Marlon S.; Linskey, Mark E.; Frostig, Ron D.; Tromberg, Bruce J. (2009). "Imaging cortical absorption, scattering, and hemodynamic response during ischemic stroke using spatially modulated near-infrared illumination". Journal of Biomedical Optics. 14 (2): 024033. Bibcode:2009JBO....14b4033A. doi:10.1117/1.3116709. PMC   2868516 . PMID   19405762.
  18. ↑ Nelson, J. Stuart (2004). "Special section guest editorial: Optics of Human Skin". Journal of Biomedical Optics. 9 (2): 247. doi: 10.1117/1.1688389 .
  19. ↑ Balu, M.; Kelly, K. M.; Zachary, C. B.; Harris, R. M.; Krasieva, T. B.; Konig, K.; Durkin, A. J.; Tromberg, B. J. (31 March 2014). "Distinguishing between Benign and Malignant Melanocytic Nevi by In Vivo Multiphoton Microscopy". Cancer Research. 74 (10): 2688–2697. doi:10.1158/0008-5472.CAN-13-2582. PMC   4024350 . PMID   24686168.
  20. 1 2 Vasich, Tom (August 31, 2015). "Better than biopsies". UCI News. Retrieved 20 October 2015.
  21. ↑ Cruz, Sherri (November 29, 2013). "Beckman's portable laser breast scanner detects cancer and guides treatment". The Orange County Register. Retrieved 20 October 2015.
  22. ↑ "Faculty". Beckman Laser Institute. Archived from the original on 30 October 2015. Retrieved 21 October 2015.

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