University of St Andrews new light technique could help diagnose illness

A new method of using light to scan the human body, developed by researchers at the University of St Andrews, could result in less intrusive and more effective diagnosis for patients. The work is the result of a collaboration between researchers from the Schools of Physics and Astronomy, Biology, Medicine and the Scottish Oceans Institute at the University.

The new technique allows the light to be shaped so it can reach greater depths within biological tissue enabling high quality three-dimensional (3D) images to be acquired. It can also allow detailed 3D images of biological specimens to be made without dissection or having to rotate specimens and take multiple images which are then fused together.

Published in the journal Science Advances, the research shows that the new method adds value to two existing imaging techniques – Bessel beam based light-sheet microscopy and Airy beam based light-sheet microscopy.

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