Seminar in Chemistry:-Towards label-free tumour diagnostics using Raman microspectroscopy: Identification of nucleic acid markers.

 Seminar Title  : Towards label-free tumour diagnostics using Raman microspectroscopy: Identification of nucleic acid markers.
Speaker           : V. Ramanathan, a postdoctoral fellow at the University of Stuttgart, in the Department of Physics working in tumour diagnostics using Raman microspectroscopy.
Venue              :  L3
Date & Time   :  24th September, 2012: 3.00 pm - 4:00 pm

Abstract:

In histopathology and tumor diagnostics, hematoxylin & eosin (H&E) staining is conventionally used to visualize cells in tissues. Hematoxylin specifically binds to nucleoprotiens resulting in blue coloration of the cell nuclei in bright-field microscopy. Although being a gold standard, H&E staining is an invasive technique and one cannot harness quantitative information of, for instance, nucleic acid densities. To circumvent these limitations, a label-free and quantitative imaging technique exploiting the intrinsic biomolecular vibrations of cellular species is desirable. In this talk, I would present the quantitative mapping of nucleic acid densities within the nuclei of human skin tissues by using confocal Raman microspectroscopy. Identification of the backbone phosphodiester and nucleobases’ ring breathing vibrations as unique nucleic acid markers will also be discussed based on the control studies carried on different skin cells. The proposed method offers the potential for a label-free, rapid and quantitative mapping of nuclei in tissues by means of coherent Raman scattering microscopy and its application in tumour diagnostics.