This technology is a method for using small vibrational chemical tags combined with functional bioorthogonal infrared imaging to provide high-speed, high-sensitivity imaging of metabolic processes in live cells, tissues, and organisms which may be useful for disease diagnoses and assessments.
Current techniques used to visualize metabolic functions are limited by the lack of tools for accurately labeling and quantifying target molecules. Additionally, complementary techniques with high specificity often require destruction of the sample, cause perturbations of normal biological activities, or are associated with high cost and limited spatial and temporal resolution. There is a need for a high temporal and spatial resolution metabolic imaging technique that is not destructive to tissues and can be used on whole organisms in situ.
This technology describes the incorporation of carbon deuterium into live cells, tissues or organisms to visualize cellular macromolecules and metabolic processes in real-time. Bioorthogonal infrared (IR) imaging of vital biometabolites can be further enhanced by coupling quantum cascade laser IR spectroscopy methods to speed up the imaging process and increase field of view. This technology enables subcellular-resolution imaging without destruction of live cells or tissues at high speeds. The high specificity of this technique also allows for whole-organism metabolic imaging that may be useful for cancer diagnosis, stroke assessment, perfusion deficits, drug screening, and other processes influenced by cellular metabolism.
Aspects of this technology has been validated in mouse models, demonstrating high-resolution and chemically informative assessment of glucose metabolism in various murine tissues including tumors, brain, intestine and liver. Tunable quantum cascade laser applications have been tested in vitro on living cell and tissue samples.
Patent Issued (US 12,062,422)
IR CU19023, CU17300
Licensing Contact: Dovina Qu
