Jianyu Ren, Chun-Chieh Yu, Aida Mestre-Farrera, Elizabeth A. Pfau, Jing Yang, Wei Xiong
{"title":"Nanoscale-Sensitive VSFG Microscopy for Identifying Breast Tumor in FFPE Samples","authors":"Jianyu Ren, Chun-Chieh Yu, Aida Mestre-Farrera, Elizabeth A. Pfau, Jing Yang, Wei Xiong","doi":"10.1021/cbmi.5c00240","DOIUrl":"10.1021/cbmi.5c00240","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Nanoscale collagen remodeling isa critical physicalsignatureof tumor development and metastasis. Recently, we have shown thatvibrational sum-frequency generation (VSFG) microscopy can detecttumor tissues prepared from Optimal Cutting Temperature (OCT) samples,where this unique sensitivity to nanostructure comes from mode-specificcoherent interference. Yet, most clinical tissues are processed asformalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded (FFPE) blocks, which remains unknownwhether these harsh fixations and embedding processes destroy thesubtle structural cues that VSFG detects. Thus, it could present alarge barrier for further application of VSFG broadly into biophysicsand biomedical research of tumors. Here, we demonstrate that VSFGremains fully effective in deparaffinized FFPE tissues. Crucially,following deparaffinization, key diagnostic metrics were statisticallyindistinguishable from OCT cryosection controls. These metrics includedVSFG spectra, chemical images, and the collagen ratio <em>I</em><sub><em>NHs</em></sub>/<em>I</em><sub><em>CH<sub>2</sub></em></sub><sub>,<em>Ss</em></sub>. Complementaryatomic force microscopy (AFM) nanomechanics corroborated this finding.These findings open the path of using VSFG imaging for standard clinicalworkflows and the vast global archives of FFPE tissues for retrospectiveprognostic studies and label-free diagnostics.</p>","PeriodicalId":53181,"journal":{"name":"Chemical & Biomedical Imaging","volume":"4 7","pages":"1352–1360"},"PeriodicalIF":6.7,"publicationDate":"2026-07-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148622463","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Brenno A. D. Neto, Fabiano S. Rodembusch, Jose Raimundo Correa, Raissa Kelly Correa de Paiva, Jenny Esmeralda Padilla Sorto, Luciana Machado Ramos, Lilian C. da Luz, Luana Lemos Reis, Paulo Eduardo Narcizo de Souza, Daniel Francisco Scalabrini, Thaís Moura, Claudia C. Gatto, Wanderson Ferreira, Gustavo B. Menezes
{"title":"Lipid-Targeting Multiresponsive Benzothiadiazole Fluorophore for Live-Cell Imaging and Real-Time Liver Injury Monitoring","authors":"Brenno A. D. Neto, Fabiano S. Rodembusch, Jose Raimundo Correa, Raissa Kelly Correa de Paiva, Jenny Esmeralda Padilla Sorto, Luciana Machado Ramos, Lilian C. da Luz, Luana Lemos Reis, Paulo Eduardo Narcizo de Souza, Daniel Francisco Scalabrini, Thaís Moura, Claudia C. Gatto, Wanderson Ferreira, Gustavo B. Menezes","doi":"10.1021/cbmi.5c00242","DOIUrl":"10.1021/cbmi.5c00242","url":null,"abstract":"<p>This work describes the multiresponsive photophysicalbehaviorof <strong>BTD-4AS</strong>, a donor–acceptor benzothiadiazolefluorophore. <strong>BTD-4AS</strong> shows pronounced solvatochromism,viscosity- and temperature-dependent emission, and large Stokes shifts,consistent with a twisted intramolecular charge transfer state supportedby Lippert-Mataga and Reichardt analyses. Its fluorescence is stronglypH-sensitive (maximum near pH ≈6–8) and markedly enhancedin micellar and viscous media. The dye’s photostability andlipophilicity support its use as a versatile probe for polarity, viscosity,pH, and lipid-rich environments. Building on these properties, <strong>BTD-4AS</strong> enables selective cellular bioimaging of lipid dropletsand, in a mouse model, reports liver injury through polarity/viscosity-dependentspectral shifts─red emission in damaged regions exposed toextracellular milieu and green emission in intact lipid-rich cells.</p>","PeriodicalId":53181,"journal":{"name":"Chemical & Biomedical Imaging","volume":"4 7","pages":"1432–1454"},"PeriodicalIF":6.7,"publicationDate":"2026-07-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148622558","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Linking Adjuvant Immune Stimulation to Spatiotemporal Dynamics via Cross-Scale Photoacoustic Microscopy","authors":"Dong Liu, Fengbing He, Yu Zhang, Yiqing Zhang, Yibo Tang, Zixi Liu, Zhangyong Hong, Jian Zhang","doi":"10.1021/cbmi.5c00265","DOIUrl":"10.1021/cbmi.5c00265","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Adjuvants can stimulate the innateimmune system independentlyof vaccine antigens. Elucidating their spatiotemporal distributionacross biological scales and correlating this distribution with immuneactivation are of considerable significance. A cross-scale photoacoustic/fluorescencedual-modality imaging system was developed to enable dynamic trackingof the adjuvant from the cellular to the organismal level. Single-cellimaging results revealed that macrophages exhibited differential activationafter the uptake of different adjuvants. Notably, high-resolutionphotoacoustic microscopy (PAM) revealed size-dependent differencesin the intravascular kinetics of adjuvant in zebrafish tail veinsas well as their accumulation and clearance during circulation. Ina tail amputation-induced inflammation model, fluorescence microscopydemonstrated that CpG oligodeoxynucleotides elicited a 5-fold enhancementin immune cell recruitment efficiency compared to controls, whilenano/micron aluminum adjuvants induced 2-fold and 1.5-fold increases,respectively. The dual-modality photoacoustic/fluorescence systemquantitatively established that these immune outcomes directly originatefrom the spatiotemporal dynamics of the adjuvant. By bridging single-cellphagocytic behavior with systemic biodistribution, this study deciphereda causal mechanism. The activation of the immune system by adjuvantsresults from the synergistic interaction of their chemical compositionsand spatiotemporal distribution. This imaging-driven framework offersquantitative design principles for precision vaccine adjuvants.</p>","PeriodicalId":53181,"journal":{"name":"Chemical & Biomedical Imaging","volume":"4 7","pages":"1464–1476"},"PeriodicalIF":6.7,"publicationDate":"2026-07-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147877729","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Advances, Challenges, and Opportunities in Electrochemiluminescence Bioimaging","authors":"Wenxin Zhu, Xin Wang, Yuxin Wan, Jiandong Feng","doi":"10.1021/cbmi.5c00297","DOIUrl":"10.1021/cbmi.5c00297","url":null,"abstract":"<p>As an imaging technique triggeredby redox reactions at the electrode,electrochemiluminescence (ECL), requiring no external light excitation,is becoming a widely used tool in bioimaging. Taking advantage ofits near-zero background and high signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), ECLis increasingly demonstrating its potential as a uniquely quantitativetool for biological analysis. The rapid development of luminophores,electrodes, and optical imaging systems has significantly improvedECL performance, enabling high-spatiotemporal-resolution ECL imaging.Currently, progress in ECL bioimaging has involved in vitro immunoassays,in vivo cell imaging, and heterogeneous tissue imaging. In this review,we highlight the core mechanisms and constructions of ECL bioimaging.Building upon this foundation, its applications in multiscale biologyare discussed, from immunoassays to tissue imaging. Despite theseadvances, ECL bioimaging faces challenges arising from low photonflux and penetration depth. We then highlight the intrinsic challengesand opportunities of ECL bioimaging in terms of spatiotemporal resolution,three-dimensional (3D) excitation, biocompatibility, and multipleximaging. This review aims to outline a roadmap for the future of ECLbioimaging, which is expected to become a central bioanalytical toolwith widespread applications, ranging from basic biological researchto clinical diagnostics.</p>","PeriodicalId":53181,"journal":{"name":"Chemical & Biomedical Imaging","volume":"4 7","pages":"1338–1351"},"PeriodicalIF":6.7,"publicationDate":"2026-07-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148622532","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"ROS-Activatable J-Aggregate Formation of a NIR-II Fluorescent Sensor for Detecting and Imaging Oxidative Stress-Associated Diseases In Vivo","authors":"Rui Chen, Chaobang Zhang, Fang Zeng, Shuizhu Wu","doi":"10.1021/cbmi.5c00244","DOIUrl":"10.1021/cbmi.5c00244","url":null,"abstract":"<p>J-aggregates are prized for their unique optical propertiesinbioimaging, yet the development of activatable sensors based on J-aggregationhas been hindered by the scarcity of dyes capable of in situ assemblyafter a specific biological trigger. To address this, we report anactivatable NIR-II fluorescent sensor that enables high-contrast imagingof oxidative stress by leveraging reactive oxygen species (ROS)-triggeredJ-aggregate formation. We designed and synthesized a heptamethinecyanine dye with a strong propensity for J-aggregation. Its reduced,nonfluorescent hydrocyanine form serves as the probe, which, uponreaction with hydroxyl radicals, regenerates the parent dye. Thisdye rapidly self-assembles into J-aggregates, emitting a strong NIR-IIfluorescence at 1050 nm. The sensor exhibits a nanomolar detectionlimit for ROS, high specificity, excellent aqueous stability, rapidresponse, and superb biocompatibility. We successfully demonstratedits utility through in vivo imaging in mouse models of pneumonia andhepatic ischemia–reperfusion injury, where localized fluorescenceactivation precisely mapped ROS production, enabling deep-tissue imaging.This work underscores the significant potential of J-aggregation-basedprobes for advanced disease diagnostics and redox biology studies.</p>","PeriodicalId":53181,"journal":{"name":"Chemical & Biomedical Imaging","volume":"4 7","pages":"1455–1463"},"PeriodicalIF":6.7,"publicationDate":"2026-07-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148622561","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Yuan-Yuan Zhao, Suyoung Park, Hyunsun Jeong, Juyoung Yoon
{"title":"Endogenous Albumin-Mediated Disassembly of Phthalocyanine Nanoparticles for Tumor-Selective Imaging and Sonodynamic Therapy","authors":"Yuan-Yuan Zhao, Suyoung Park, Hyunsun Jeong, Juyoung Yoon","doi":"10.1021/cbmi.5c00281","DOIUrl":"10.1021/cbmi.5c00281","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Albumin, the most abundant plasma protein, is a clinicallysignificantbiomarker that has been extensively utilized as an endogenous carrierfor drug delivery due to its high binding affinity for hydrophobicligands and its tendency to accumulate and be metabolized in tumors.Sonodynamic therapy (SDT) combines low-intensity ultrasound with sonosensitizersto produce cytotoxic reactive oxygen species, offering deep tissuepenetration and spatiotemporal control that can complement or evensurpass traditional photodynamic therapies. However, there is a needfor straightforward, activatable platforms that link tumor-associatedalbumin recognition with selective SDT activation. In this study,we engineer an amphiphilic zinc(II) phthalocyanine derivative thatself-assembles into albumin-responsive nanoaggregates (NanoPcS). Theseaggregates exhibit quenched fluorescence and sonoactivity, which areactivated upon binding to albumin and subsequent disassembly. Thisversatile design allows NanoPcS to serve as both an activatable probeand an effective SDT agent, enabling fluorescence reporting of albumin-richtumor microenvironments while also generating ultrasound-triggeredreactive oxygen species for cancer treatment.</p>","PeriodicalId":53181,"journal":{"name":"Chemical & Biomedical Imaging","volume":"4 7","pages":"1501–1508"},"PeriodicalIF":6.7,"publicationDate":"2026-07-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148622495","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Gil A. Gonzalez, Laura L. Lukov, Ambhranee Yakkundi, Seohee Ma, Shivam Mahapatra, Natalie C. Fiur, Chi Zhang
{"title":"Reconfiguration of the Microtubule Network and Dynamics in Hypoxic Cancer Cells","authors":"Gil A. Gonzalez, Laura L. Lukov, Ambhranee Yakkundi, Seohee Ma, Shivam Mahapatra, Natalie C. Fiur, Chi Zhang","doi":"10.1021/cbmi.5c00273","DOIUrl":"10.1021/cbmi.5c00273","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Cancer cells within solid tumorsadapt to hypoxic microenvironmentscaused by vasculature disruption. Oxygen deprivation induces changesin cell signaling and metabolism, leading to increased resistanceto treatment and elevated metastasis. The microtubule network playsa crucial role in cell signaling and migration; however, few studieshave investigated its time-dependent dynamics in live hypoxic cancercells. Here, we applied advanced optical microscopy to study microtubuledynamics and their relationships with local mitochondrial activitiesand cell migration in hypoxia. Our results show that hypoxia exposuredoes not significantly alter the speed of microtubule polymerizationbut induces the formation of microtubule-rich protrusions. This protrusionformation largely requires glycolytic activity and the availabilityof nutrients. Furthermore, mitochondria relocation into these protrusionswas found, along with localized expression of nucleoside-diphosphatekinase. Using real-time precision opto-control technology, we selectivelydisrupted mitochondrial function within the protrusions, which ledto reduced local microtubule polymerization, highlighting the roleof site-specific mitochondrial activity in supporting local microtubuledynamics. Moreover, hypoxia-induced microtubule-rich protrusions canbe correlated with cancer cell migration. Together, these findingsreveal how hypoxia reorganizes microtubules and mitochondria in cancercells, how localized mitochondrial activity regulates microtubulepolymerization, and how these changes influence cancer cell migrationunder hypoxia.</p>","PeriodicalId":53181,"journal":{"name":"Chemical & Biomedical Imaging","volume":"4 7","pages":"1477–1490"},"PeriodicalIF":6.7,"publicationDate":"2026-07-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148622507","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Untrained Position-Encoded Multilayer Perceptron Network for Structured Illumination Microscopy Reconstruction","authors":"Sahil Sharma, Leonidas Zimianitis, Krishnendu Samanta, Balpreet Singh Ahluwalia, Joby Joseph, Dushan N. Wadduwage","doi":"10.1021/cbmi.5c00153","DOIUrl":"10.1021/cbmi.5c00153","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Structured Illumination Microscopy(SIM) enables super-resolutionimaging by encoding high-frequency spatial information through patternedlight. While traditional Fourier-based reconstruction methods areprone to artifacts under suboptimal conditions, recent deep learningapproaches often require large training datasets and lack adaptabilityacross different imaging setups. In this work, we present PositionEncoded Multi-Layer Perceptron (PEM) network that leverages implicitneural representations (INRs) and SIM forward-model-driven modelingto reconstruct super-resolved images without any training data. PEM-SIMrepresents each spatial coordinate as a combination of sinusoidalfunctions across multiple frequencies, enabling rich encoding of finespatial detail. A forward model grounded in SIM image formation principlesis then used to iteratively optimize reconstructions by minimizingthe structural similarity loss between the generated images and theacquired SIM data. We demonstrate that PEM-SIM reconstructs both 2Dand 3D SIM images with fewer input frames than conventional methodsand successfully predicts missing axial planes in 3D stacks. The methodshows robustness across varying signal-to-noise ratios and performscomparably to standard algorithms on both synthetic and experimentaldatasets. By eliminating the dependency on large datasets and enablingflexible, high-resolution reconstructions, PEM-SIM offers a data-efficientalternative for super-resolution imaging in microscopy.</p>","PeriodicalId":53181,"journal":{"name":"Chemical & Biomedical Imaging","volume":"4 6","pages":"1087–1097"},"PeriodicalIF":6.7,"publicationDate":"2026-06-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148334031","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Salma Sultana Tunny, Toby D. M. Bell, Ekaterina Salimova, Kevin W. Plaxco, Christoph E. Hagemeyer, Simon R. Corrie
{"title":"Characterization of Fluorophore-Quencher Pairs for Distance-Dependent Molecular Sensing in Photoacoustic Imaging","authors":"Salma Sultana Tunny, Toby D. M. Bell, Ekaterina Salimova, Kevin W. Plaxco, Christoph E. Hagemeyer, Simon R. Corrie","doi":"10.1021/cbmi.5c00178","DOIUrl":"10.1021/cbmi.5c00178","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Photoacousticimaging coupled with molecularly responsivesensorsis emerging as an attractive alternative to traditional fluorescencesensors in the deep-tissue quantification of specific molecular analytes.The range of fluorophore/quencher pairs suitable for this approachremains limited. In response, here we have systematically evaluateda set of near-infrared fluorophores for their ability to support photoacousticimaging coupled with molecularly responsive sensors. Specifically,we have used a DNA molecular ruler to precisely vary the fluorophore-quencherdistance while monitoring the absorbance, fluorescence, and photoacousticspectra of five near-infrared fluorophores. Our results confirm previousfindings identifying IRDye 800CW as a strong candidate and furtherestablish ICG and IRDye 800 as highly promising fluorophores for responsivephotoacoustic applications. We also demonstrated robust tissue penetrationand preserved distance-dependent behavior under biologically relevantconditions, with ICG achieving the highest signal-to-noise ratio andthe most predictable quenching response. These findings expand thepalette of near-infrared probes and provide a clear framework fordesigning next-generation photoacoustic molecular sensors for in vivoimaging.</p>","PeriodicalId":53181,"journal":{"name":"Chemical & Biomedical Imaging","volume":"4 6","pages":"1128–1138"},"PeriodicalIF":6.7,"publicationDate":"2026-06-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148334265","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Quantitative Assessment of Brain Glucose Metabolism Using Dynamic Glucose-Enhanced Magnetic Resonance Fingerprinting (DGE-MRF)","authors":"Mou Jiang, Yaping Yuan, Yue Zhu, Zhihao Zhou, Tian Xia, Louis-S. Bouchard, Shizhen Chen, Xin Zhou","doi":"10.1021/cbmi.5c00213","DOIUrl":"10.1021/cbmi.5c00213","url":null,"abstract":"<p>The brain relies heavily on glucoseto sustain neuronal and glialfunctions, with metabolism closely regulated by both glucose levelsand underlying physiological or pathological states. To investigatethis complex process, a dynamic glucose-enhanced magnetic resonancefingerprinting (DGE-MRF) approach was implemented at a 9.4 T MRI system,integrating established multiparametric MRF with DGE-MRI and γ-variatekinetic modeling to track glucose uptake and clearance in gliomas.Dynamic Δ<em>R</em><sub>1</sub>, Δ<em>R</em><sub>2</sub>, and Δ<em>R</em><sub>1ρ</sub> curvesrevealed distinct temporal profiles: Δ<em>R</em><sub>1</sub> peaked early, reflecting vascular glucose accumulation, whereasΔ<em>R</em><sub>2</sub> and Δ<em>R</em><sub>1ρ</sub> captured slower tissue-level processes. Kineticmodeling using a γ-variate function demonstrated elevated glucoseuptake rates (μ<sub>in</sub>) and greater peak glucose changes(Δ<em>G</em><sub>max</sub>) in gliomas, while clearancerates (μ<sub>out</sub>) were comparable to those of controls.Overall, DGE-MRF provides accurate, reproducible, and region-specificmapping of cerebral glucose kinetics, offering a noninvasive frameworkfor probing metabolic heterogeneity in gliomas and potential applicationsin tumor characterization and neurodegenerative disease research.</p>","PeriodicalId":53181,"journal":{"name":"Chemical & Biomedical Imaging","volume":"4 6","pages":"1173–1185"},"PeriodicalIF":6.7,"publicationDate":"2026-06-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148334282","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}