by Emily Ann Williams
Daily Lobo
Diffused light and innovations in breast cancer and stroke research was the topic of a Sigma Xi sponsored lecture at UNM Thursday.
Sigma Xi, the scientific research society on campus sponsors a lecture series meant to bring professionals and researchers to UNM to discuss and demonstrate their work.
Arjun Yodh, professor of science at the University of Pennsylvania, discussed some of his work and research using diffused light for the functional imaging of tissues during a lecture at the UNM Continuing Education Building.
Yodh explained how his research has contributed to the way clinicians test for breast cancer and strokes.
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"We can't see through things because light gets scattered," Yodh said. "We look at big chunks of tissue below the surface."
Although the two afflictions are seemingly unrelated, the research technique of diffused light used by Yodh can be applied to both.
A light diffusion machine Yodh and his research group created locates a stroke within the brain using diffusing light probes.
Once located, the machine displays the area affected by the stroke on a photographic plate.
The light used has wave-like properties and if something such as a tumor is present, the waves will be distorted reflecting the location of the affliction.
The machine, which works similarly to magnetic resonance imaging, locates the stroke and can determine the damage caused by it.
Yodh said his device may begin to replace mammograms which use more pressure than his machine.
This low-resolution functional imaging can also benefit infant care and animal testing, Yodh said.
The probes can be used with babies to monitor the oxygen levels in the brain and ensure proper development.
Yodh added that through animal testing, tumors could be researched further and with less chance of invasive techniques. Yodh said diffused light is nothing new.
He added that scientists better understand it now and research is more focused toward clinical applications.
Because of its advantages, the future of light diffusing is on the rise, Yodh said.
"It is lucrative and stimulates research," Yodh said. "It is just a matter of getting resources and a lot of capital."
