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Combining photothermal therapy (PTT) with clinical technology to kill cancer via overcoming the low tumor targeting and poor therapy efficiency has great potential in basic and clinical researches. A brand-new MoS2 nanostructure is designed and fabricated, i.e., layered MoS2 hollow spheres (LMHSs) with strong absorption in near-infrared region (NIR) and high photothermal conversion efficiency via a simple and fast chemical aerosol flow method. Owing to curving layered hollow spherical structure, the as-prepared LMHSs exhibit unique electronic properties comparing with MoS2 nanosheets. In vitro and in vivo studies demonstrate their high photothermal ablation of cell and tumor elimination rate by single NIR light irradiation. Systematic acute toxicity study indicates that these LMHSs have negligible toxic effects to normal tissues and blood. Remarkably, minimally invasive interventional techniques are introduced to improve tumor targeting of PTT agents for the first time. To explore PTT efficiency on orthotopic transplantation tumors, New Zealand white rabbits with VX2 tumor in liver are used as animal models. The effective elimination of tumors is successfully realized by PTT under the guidance of digital subtraction angiography, computed tomography, and thermal imaging, which provides a new way for tumor-targeting delivery and cancer theranostic application.

Near-infrared (NIR) photothermal therapy using biocompatible single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) is advantageous because as-produced SWNTs, without additional size control, both efficiently absorb NIR light and demonstrate high photothermal conversion efficiency. In addition, covalent attachment of receptor molecules to SWNTs can be used to specifically target infected cells. However, this technique interrupts SWNT optical properties and inevitably lowers photothermal conversion efficiency and thus remains major hurdle for SWNT applications. This paper presents a smart-targeting photothermal therapy platform for inflammatory disease using newly developed phenoxylated-dextran-functionalized SWNTs. Phenoxylated dextran is biocompatible and efficiently suspends SWNTs by noncovalent π-π stacking, thereby minimizing SWNT bundle formations and maintaining original SWNT optical properties. Furthermore, it selectively targets inflammatory macrophages by scavenger-receptor binding without any additional receptor molecules; therefore, its preparation is a simple one-step process. Herein, it is experimentally demonstrated that phenoxylated dextran-SWNTs (pD-SWNTs) are also biocompatible, selectively penetrate inflammatory macrophages over normal cells, and exhibit high photothermal conversion efficiency. Consequently, NIR laser-triggered macrophage treatment can be achieved with high accuracy by pD-SWNT without damaging receptor-free cells. These smart targeting materials can be a novel photothermal agent candidate for inflammatory disease.

Photoactivation technology is a very powerful tool in chemical biology, as light is a remote, bio-orthogonal, fast-acting stimulus to activate effectors (such as chemically caged drugs, hormones, peptides, proteins, or genetic materials already deposited in a living subject being studied) with high spatiotemporal resolution and minimal invasion. However, most of the photoactivable compounds only respond to ultraviolet (UV), which has phototoxicity in the living organism and very poor penetration depth in biological tissue. Photoactivation technology based on lanthanide-doped upconversion nanoparticle (UCNP), which can upconvert NIR to visible or even UV band, provides a mean to overcome the shortcomings of traditional UV photoactivation techniques. The upconverted UV provides spatiotemporally restricted photochemical reactions near the particle surface in nanometer regime and hence results in minimal photodamage in the subject being studied. NIR light source also enhanced the penetration depth when applied to the uncaging technique in deep biological tissue. Unlike two-photon technology, UCNP-assisted photoactivation does not require an expensive light source or redeveloping the large cross-sectional photoprotecting groups. The aim of this chapter is to address the recent developments in photoactivation technology with an emphasis on upconversion luminescence-assisted photolysis.

Lanthanide-based near infrared (NIR) nanomaterials, when excited by continuous-wave NIR light, exhibit a unique photoluminescence with higher or lower energy, corresponding respectively to an upconversion (UC) or downconversion (DC) process. This special luminescence property makes them promising as bioimaging probes with attractive features, such as no autofluorescence from biological samples and a large penetration depth. As a result, lanthanide-based NIR nanomaterials have emerged as novel agents for imaging of small animals. In this chapter, recent reports regarding the biomedical imaging investigation using these novel nanoprobes are summarized. Finally, we discuss the challenges and opportunities in the development of lanthanide-based NIR nanomaterials for biomedical imaging.

Near infrared (NIR) light-triggered drug and gene delivery platforms have emerged as an elegant and non-invasive tool for remote spatiotemporal control of drug and gene payload release because NIR light can not only be easily tuned and focused, but also have deeper tissue penetration and minimal damage to healthy tissues. This control is considered crucial to boost local effective drug or gene accumulation while minimizing side effects, thereby resulting in improved therapeutic efficacy. Exploration of NIR light-responsive drug or gene delivery systems opens up a new and exciting possibility for applications in nanomedicine. This chapter provides a general introduction of NIR nanomaterials, followed by the presentation of nanocarriers for NIR triggered drug or gene release. Three different kinds of strategies to achieve NIR light-based control over the delivery process are then discussed: photoresponsive nanocarriers, photocaging of bioactive cargos, and photothermal transduction for NIR triggered nanocarriers. The final section reviews current challenges in the use of NIR nanomaterials and potential solutions.

Background: Since the discovery of laser for the use of clinical therapies in the early 1960s, light therapies has expanded vastly to accommodate light emitting diodes which the wavelength ranges from red to near infrared. Both laser and light emitting diode have shown to be effective with wound healing, inflammation, and neuroprotection where most lesions occur, with both medical and therapeutic qualities. The utility of NIR fluorescence allows for the ability to detect and give reference to the stability of carotid plaques and their microanatomy. Recently, research has begun to look into the therapeutic effects of NIR light on neurodegenerative diseases. Objective: To demonstrate that the laser and light emitting diode have shown to be effective and therapeutic for the control of wound healing metabolisms and modulation of inflammation. This article focuses on recent literature with new applications for wound healing, inflammation, as well as neurodegenerative diseases. Also discussed is a comparison of near infrared light emitting diodes and low level laser therapies. Materials and method: We analyzed medical and engineering books, journals, index medicus, PubMed, FDA recommendations, requirements, patents, social media, and anecdotal evidence related to near infrared light therapy, from 1976 through 2015. The manuscript contains 72 pertinent referenced articles after research of over 250articles. Conclusion: Light therapy has been shown to be an effective coadjutant therapy for many neurosurgical applications. The LED has had technological advancement in the last decade which makes it an excellent option for light therapy. Unlike the laser, LED devices are portable, cost effective, safer, easy to use and has shown to be effective in wound healing and inflammation on the central and peripheral nervous systems.

Photochemical excitation spatially and temporally resolved offers the possibility to induce a medicinal effect with strict specificity. Thus, a prodrug can be preferentially adsorbed in a body location and activated when desired or incorporated in some carrier and released when appropriate. The use of visible or NIR light allows penetration into the tissues. Further possibilities include two-photon emission, nowadays largely used for diagnostic applications, as is aggregation-induced fluorescence.

One of the practical problems in neuroimaging using near infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) is to choose an appropriate source-detector distance to maximize the sensitivity to cerebral blood oxygenation and to improve the spatial resolution for mapping cortical activation. While NIRS has attracted increasing attention in neuroimaging in infants, there has been no report of comparative data regarding source-detector distance for the infant brain. In the present study, 9 quietly sleeping 3-month-old infants were exposed to 3-s speech sounds, and hemodynamic responses over the bilateral temporal cortices were assessed by using multiple pairs of source and detector of NIR light with varying distances (1, 2, 3 and 4 cm) and varying intensities (0.6 and 1.2 mW). The statistical analyses of the group-averaged hemodynamic responses and the frequency analyses of the signal-to-noise ratios revealed that a 2-cm source-detector distance with 0.6-mW NIR light provided the highest sensitivity to cortical responses. This indicates that NIRS can be used to detect the activation of the cortical regions, in the infant brain, by using the source-detector distance scaled to the smaller head size of infants and a relatively low intensity of NIR light compared to the ones that have been routinely used in adult studies.

Irradiation with NIR light (λ = 828 nm) gives somewhat lower yields while irradiation with visible light in absence of any solvents shows a significant decline in yields.

Detection and tracking of hands from visual information is a key issue for gesture recognition. Based on Near Infrared (NIR) imagery we present a new procedure for hand detection. The sensor we propose is a single NIR camera with an attached NIR light source and a visible light filter, which makes our system invariant under changing environments and uncontrolled lighting conditions. The main contributions are twofold. On the one hand we propose a new shape descriptor composed of inner-angles and inner-distances. On the other hand, our novel parametrization of the extracted descriptor allows for elastic hand contour matching. The proposal is validated experimentally and tested with the standard data set MPEG-7.

An NIR-controlled gene expression system based on upconverting rods (UCRs) is demonstrated. The UCRs can harvest the "biocompatible" NIR light and convert it into local UV light, resulting in cleavage of the photosensitive molecule (4-(hydroxymethyl)-3-nitrobenzoic acid, ONA) and on-demand release of gene carriers, thus realizing target gene expression at high spatial and temporal resolutions.

Light is an excellent means to externally control the properties of materials and small molecules for many applications. Light's ability to initiate chemistries largely independent of a material's local environment makes it particularly useful as a bio-orthogonal and on-demand trigger in living systems. Materials responsive to UV light are widely reported in the literature; however, UV light has substantial limitations for in vitro and in vivo applications. Many biological molecules absorb these energetic wavelengths directly, not only preventing substantial tissue penetration but also causing detrimental photochemical reactions. The more innocuous nature of long-wavelength light (>400nm) and its ability at longer wavelengths (600-950nm) to effectively penetrate tissues is ideal for biological applications. Multi-photon processes (e.g. two-photon excitation and upconversion) using longer wavelength light, often in the near-infrared (NIR) range, have been proposed as a means of avoiding the negative characteristics of UV light. However, high-power focused laser light and long irradiation times are often required to initiate photorelease using these inefficient non-linear optical methods, limiting their in vivo use in mammalian tissues where NIR light is readily scattered. The development of materials that efficiently convert a single photon of long-wavelength light to chemical change is a viable solution to achieve in vivo photorelease. However, to date only a few such materials have been reported. Here we review current technologies for photo-regulated release using photoactive organic materials that directly absorb visible and NIR light.

Herein, we present a phototriggered drug delivery system based on light responsive nanoparticles, which is able to release doxorubicin upon NIR light illumination. The proposed system is based on upconversion fluorescence nanoparticles of β-NaYF4:Yb,Tm@SiO2-PEG with a mean diameter of 52 ± 2.5 nm that absorb the NIR light and emit UV light. The UV radiation causes the degradation of photodegradable ortho-nitrobenzyl alcohol derivates, which are attached on one side to the surface of the nanoparticles and on the other to doxorubicin. This degradation triggers the doxorubicin release. This drug delivery system has been tested "in vitro" with HeLa cells. The results of this study demonstrated that this system caused negligible cytotoxicity when they were not illuminated with NIR light. In contrast, under NIR light illumination, the HeLa cell viability was conspicuously reduced. These results demonstrated the suitability of the proposed system to control the release of doxorubicin via an external NIR light stimulus., Mineco for the grants MAT2014-55065R and BIO2013-42984R and Comunidad de Madrid for the Grant S2010/BMD-2457 are gratefully acknowledged. P.A.C. acknowledges the Spanish Ministry of Education for FPU Grant No. AP2010-1163. E.L.C. would also like to thank the EU COST action CM1101. We wish to thank Ailyn Martinez for her technical assistance.

Nanomaterials that integrate diagnostic and therapeutic functions within a single nanoplatform promise great advances in revolutionizing cancer therapy. A smart multifunctional theranostic drug-delivery system (DDS) based on gold nanorods (abbreviated as GNR/TSDOX) is designed for cancer-targeted imaging and imaging-guided therapy. In this intelligent theranostic DDS, the active targeting ligand biotin is introduced to track cancer sites in vivo. With the aid of photothermal/photoacoustic imaging, GNR/TSDOX can ablate cancer specifically and effectively. When stimulated with a single near-infrared (NIR) light source, this NIR light energy is effectively absorbed and converted into heat by GNR/TSDOX for localized photothermal therapy and the increase in temperature also further triggers the cascaded release of the anticancer drug for combined thermo-chemotherapy. More importantly, the in vivo cure effect can be well guided by regulating the irradiation time and intensity of the NIR light.

We developed a near infrared (NIR) virtual intraoperative surgical photoacoustic microscopy (NIR-VISPAM) system that combines a conventional surgical microscope and an NIR light photoacoustic microscopy (PAM) system. NIR-VISPAM can simultaneously visualize PA B-scan images at a maximum display rate of 45Hz and display enlarged microscopic images on a surgeon's view plane through the ocular lenses of the surgical microscope as augmented reality. The use of the invisible NIR light eliminated the disturbance to the surgeon's vision caused by the visible PAM excitation laser in a previous report. Further, the maximum permissible laser pulse energy at this wavelength is approximately 5 times more than that at the visible spectral range. The use of a needle-type ultrasound transducer without any water bath for acoustic coupling can enhance convenience in an intraoperative environment. We successfully guided needle and injected carbon particles in biological tissues ex vivo and in melanoma-bearing mice in vivo.

Organic photothermoelectric (PTE) materials are promising candidates for various photodetection applications. Herein, we report on poly[Cux(Cu-ett)]:PVDF, which is an excellent polymeric thermoelectric composite, possesses unprecedented PTE properties. The NIR light irradiation on the poly[Cu(x)(Cu-ett)]:PVDF film could induce obvious enhancement in Seebeck coefficient from 52 ± 1.5 to 79 ± 5.0 μV/K. By taking advantage of prominent photothermoelectric effect of poly[Cu(x)(Cu-ett)]:PVDF, an unprecedented voltage of 12 mV was obtained. This excellent performance enables its promising applications in electricity generation from solar energy and NIR detection to a wide range of light intensities ranging from 1.7 mW/cm(2) to 17 W/cm(2).

A quantitative comparison has been performed between two commercial near-infrared (NIR) vein-viewing systems which are designed to supplement the clinician’s traditional skills in locating veins by means of visualization and palpation. The AccuVein AV300 and Novarix IV-eye real-time imaging systems employ very different imaging geometries; the former generates an image from reflected NIR light produced by a beam scanned across the surface, while the latter illuminates the viewed region at four points on the periphery and records the resulting distribution of diffusely transmitted light. The comparison involved measuring the contrast produced by absorbing rods (simulated blood vessels) in a cylindrical phantom with tissue-like optical properties, and the contrast of superficial blood vessels in the arms of healthy volunteers. The locations and sizes of the blood vessels were independently verified using a clinical ultrasound imaging system. The phantom measurements suggested that the AV300 displays the most superficial vessels with greater contrast, but the IV-eye is able to detect vessels when they are at a depth up to 2 mm greater than the limit observed for the AV300. The results for thirty healthy volunteers also indicated that the AV300 typically displays vessels with higher overall contrast, but the effectiveness of the IV-eye at visualizing deeper vessels was even more pronounced, with a maximum depth several millimeters greater than that achieved by the AV300, and more than ten times as many vessels observed at depths below 4 mm.

Background: Prior research indicates the epidermal pigment layer of human skin (Melanin) has a significant absorption coefficient in the near infra-red (NIR) region; hence attenuation of light in vivo is a potential confounder for NIR spectroscopy (NIRS). A NIRS method developed for transcutaneous evaluation of bladder function is being investigated as a means of improving the burden of bladder disease in sub-Saharan Africa. This required development of a simple wireless NIRS device suitable for use as a screening tool in patients with pigmented skin where the NIR light emitted would penetrate through the epidermal pigment layer and return in sufficient quantity to provide effective monitoring. Methods: Two healthy subjects, one with pigmented skin and one with fair skin, were monitored as they voided spontaneously using the prototype transcutaneous NIRS device positioned over the bladder. The device was a self-contained wireless unit with light emitting diodes (wavelengths 760 and 850 nanometres) and interoptode distance of 4cm. The raw optical data were transmitted to a laptop where graphs of chromophore change were generated with proprietary software and compared between the subjects and with prior data from asymptomatic subjects. Results: Serial monitoring was successful in both subjects. Voiding volumes varied between 350 and 380 cc. In each subject the patterns of chromophore change, trend and magnitude of change were similar and matched the physiologic increase in total and oxygenated hemoglobin recognized to occur in normal bladder contraction during voiding. Conclusions: Skin pigmentation does not compromise the ability of transcutaneous NIRS to interrogate physiologic change in the bladder during bladder contraction in healthy subjects.

The photothermal effect is not able to break bonds and release small molecules from the surface of SiO2–Au core–shell nanoparticles unless the nanosystem is first exposed to visible light. Only after this light triggers the ring-opening reaction of dithienylethene chromophores attached to the surface of the nanoparticles can the heat generated by the NIR light induce reverse Diels–Alder reactions.

A novel technique for creating in-line images of black oil/water systems is presented. The technique utilizes the sensitivity of a CCD (Charge Couple Device) in the NIR wavelength region where crude oils are transparent to light. The measuring system consists of a probe, an endoscope, a CCD camera, a strobe light and a PC. A high-pressure in-line instrument based on the technique is presented in detail, and typical resulting images are included. The measuring system has shown that it is possible to create images from black crude oil systems with the use of NIR light, and the technique has been applied in an in-line instrument facilitating observations in high-pressure real hydrocarbon systems.

Upconverting nanoparticles (UCNPs) convert near-infrared (NIR) light into UV or visible light that can trigger photoreactions of photosensitive compounds. In this paper, we demonstrate how to reduce the intensity of NIR light for UCNP-assisted photochemistry. We synthesized two types of UCNPs with different emission bands and five photosensitive compounds with different absorption bands. A λ=974 nm laser was used to induce photoreactions in all of the investigated photosensitive compounds in the presence of the UCNPs. The excitation thresholds of the photoreactions induced by λ=974 nm light were measured. The lowest threshold was 0.5 W cm(-2) , which is lower than the maximum permissible exposure of skin (0.726 W cm(-2) ). We demonstrate that low-intensity NIR light can induce photoreactions after passing through a piece of tissue without damaging the tissue. Our results indicate that the threshold for UCNP- assisted photochemistry can be reduced by using highly photosensitive compounds that absorb upconverted visible light. Low excitation intensity in UCNP-assisted photochemistry is important for biomedical applications because it minimizes the overheating problems of NIR light and causes less photodamage to biomaterials.

This study focuses on developing a facile approach to prepare biocompatible poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) composite hydrogels containing polydopamine particles (PDAPs) with ultrafast near-infrared (NIR) light-triggered shape memory and self-healing capability. The PVA-PDAPs composite hydrogels with excellent mechanical properties can be achieved after freezing/thawing treatment, and the formation of physically cross-linked networks from the hydrogen bonding (H-bonding) between PVA and PDAPs. Due to the excellent photothermal effect of polydopamine, the composited hydrogel can achieve rapid shape recovery and efficient self-healing properties under NIR light exposure in a short time. With the excellent shape memory performance, good biocompatibility, and self-healing property, this hydrogel should have great potential in biomedical fields such as tissue engineering, arthrodial cartilage, and artificial skin.

Dual-band electrochromic composite materials are of utmost importance in advancing the electrochromic field toward achieving the ideal smart window with independent control over visible and near-infrared (NIR) radiation. However, such composites usually need deliberate architecting of their mesoscale structure (e.g., via block copolymer-templating method) to make the electrolyte contact with both NIR and visible-light modulating components. Herein, instead of arduously making exterior pores, the intrinsic structural tunnels are utilized directly in electrochromic materials to facilitate the accommodation and transportation of insertion ions, which permit the infiltration of the electrolyte to be in contact with both visible (Prussian blue) and NIR-light modulating components (nonstoichiometric tungsten oxide). Such simple-fabricated composite materials exhibit excellent dual-band electrochromic performance with an unprecedented dynamic optical range for modulation of visible and NIR light, up to 71.2% at 633 nm and 64.8% at 1600 nm, respectively.

Light-activated therapy (LAT) has attracted enormous attention over the past decades because light enables noninvasive activation or release of various therapeutic compounds, such as photosensitizers, chemotherapeutic drugs, proteins, and genes with high spatial and temporal resolution. However, most currently used photosensitive compounds in LAT are sensitive to ultraviolet (UV) or visible light which suffers from some limitations such as low tissue penetration and photodamage to living organisms. Upconversion nanoparticles (UCNPs) that can convert near-infrared (NIR) light to visible/UV light have been proven to be effective for LAT in vivo in recent years, owing to the high tissue penetration and minimal photocytotoxicity of NIR light. Furthermore, hydrophilic UCNPs with targeting moieties can transport hydrophobic drugs in biological media and achieve active targeting, thus enhancing the therapeutic efficacy. In this chapter, we review the recent advances in the field of UCNP-based LAT with focus on photodynamic therapy (PDT) and NIR light-triggered release and uncaging.

Lanthanide ion (Ln(3+))-based upconversion nano/micromaterials that emit higher-energy visible light when excited by low-energy NIR light have aroused considerable attention in the forefront of materials science and biomedical fields, which stems from their unique optical and chemical properties including minimum photodamage to living organisms, low autofluorescence, high signal-to-noise ratio and detection sensitivity, and high penetration depth in biological or environmental samples. Thus, Ln(3+)-based upconversion materials are rising new stars and are quickly emerging as potential candidates to revolutionize novel biomedical applications. In this review article, we mainly focus on the recent progress in various chemical syntheses of Ln(3+)-based upconversion nanomaterials, with special emphasis on their application in stimuli-response controlled drug release and subsequent therapy. Functional groups that are introduced into the stimuli-responsive system can respond to external triggers, such as pH, temperature, light, and even magnetic fields, which can regulate the movement of the pharmaceutical cargo and release the drug at a desired time and in a desired area. This is crucial to boost drug efficacy in cancer treatment while minimizing the side effects of cytotoxic drugs. Many multifunctional (magnetic/upconversion luminescence and porous) composite materials based on Ln(3+) have been designed for controlled drug delivery and multimodal bioimaging. Finally, the challenges and future opportunities for Ln(3+)-based upconversion materials are discussed.

Background Gold nanorod (AuNR) laser therapy (LT) is a non-invasive method of increasing the temperature of a target tissue using near infrared light. In this study, the effects of ultrasound and microbubbles (USMB) with AuNR and LT were investigated on cell viability. Methods MDA-MB-231 cells in suspension were treated with three different treatment combinations of AuNR, LT and USMB (Pneg = 0.6 or 1.0 MPa): (1) AuNR with USMB followed by LT, (2) AuNR and LT followed by USMB, and (3) USMB followed by AuNR and LT. Cells were also exposed to USMB and LT without AuNR. The USMB conditions were: 500 kHz frequency, 16 cycles, 1 kHz pulse repetition frequency for 1 min in the presence of Definity microbubbles (1.7% v/v). AuNR and LT conditions were: mPEG coated AuNR at 3 × 1011 np/mL and 1.9 W/cm2 for 3 min. Following the treatment, cell viability was assessed using propidium iodide (PI) fluorescent marker and flow cytometry (VPI), and colony assay (VCA). Cell viabilities were compared using a non-parametric Mann–Whitney U-test and synergism was assessed using the Bliss Independence Model. Results and discussion USMB improved cell death when combined with AuNR and LT. VPI of 17 ± 2% (at 0.6 MPa) and 11 ± 4% (at 1.0 MPa) were observed with combined treatment of AuNR and USMB followed by LT compared to VPI of 60 ± 2% (at 0.6 MPa) and 42 ± 3% (at 1.0 MPa) with USMB alone and VPI of 22 ± 3% for AuNR and LT. The combined effect of AuNR and LT with USMB was additive regardless of treatment order. VCA results agreed with the additive effect caused by combining AuNR and LT with USMB for all treatment orders. In the absence of AuNR, samples exposed to LT prior to USMB at 0.6 MPa increased VPI by 13% (p Conclusion Combining AuNR and LT with USMB resulted in an additive effect on cell viability compared to AuNR and LT, or USMB. In addition, cells exposed to low intensity NIR light appear to be protected against USMB exposure.

The lack of biosafety and insufficient delivery efficiency of gene-carriers are still obstacles to human gene therapy. This paper reported highly biocompatible chitosan (CS) functionalized Prussian blue (PB) nanoparticles (designated as CS/PB NPs) for photocontrollable gene delivery. The ultra-small size (∼3 nm), positive charge and high physiological stability of CS/PB NPs make it suitable to be a nonviral vector. In addition, CS/PB NPs could effectively convert the near infrared (NIR) light into heat due to its strong absorption in the NIR region, assisting the uptake of NPs by cells. Upon NIR light irradiation, CS/PB NPs showed superior gene transfection efficiency, much higher than that of free polyethylenimine (PEI). Both in vitro and in vivo experiments demonstrated that CS/PB NPs had excellent biocompatiblity. This work also encourages further exploration of the CS/PB NPs as a photocontrollable nanovector for combined photothermal and gene therapy.

The presented microrobotic platform combines the advantages of self-folding NIR light sensitive polymer bilayers, magnetic alginate microbeads, and a 3D manipulation system and introduces a solution for targeted, on-demand drug and cell delivery. First feasibility studies are presented together with the potential of the full design.

Intraurethral injection of indocyanine green (ICG; Akorn, Lake Forest, IL) and visualization under near-infrared (NIR) light allows for real-time delineation of the ureter. This technology can be helpful to prevent iatrogenic ureteral injury during pelvic surgery. Patients were scheduled to undergo robot-assisted laparoscopic sacrocolpopexy. Before the robotic surgery started, the tip of a 6-F ureteral catheter was inserted into the ureteral orifice. Twenty-five milligrams of ICG was dissolved in 10-mL of sterile water and injected through the open catheter. The same procedure was repeated on the opposite side. The ICG reversibly stained the inside lining of the ureter by binding to proteins on urothelial layer. During the course of robotic surgery, the NIR laser on the da Vinci Si surgical robot (Intuitive Surgical, Inc, Sunnyvale, CA) was used to excite ICG molecules, and infrared emission was captured by the da Vinci filtered lens system and electronically converted to green color. Thus, the ureter fluoresced green, which allowed its definitive identification throughout the entire case. In all cases of >10 patients, we were able to visualize bilateral ureters with this technology, even though there was some variation in brightness that depended on the depth of the ureter from the peritoneal surface. For example, in a morbidly obese patient, the ureters were not as bright green. There were no intraoperative or postoperative adverse effects attributable to ICG administration for up to 2 months of observation. In our experience, this novel method of intraurethral ICG injection was helpful to identify the entire course of ureter and allowed a safe approach to tissues that were adjacent to the urinary tract. The advantage of our technique is that it requires the insertion of just the tip of ureteral catheter. Despite our limited cohort of patients, our findings are consistent with previous reports of the excellent safety profile of intravenous and intrabiliary ICG. Intraurethral injection of ICG and visualization under NIR light allows for real-time delineation of the ureter. This technology can be helpful to prevent iatrogenic ureteral injury during pelvic surgery.

The presented microrobotic platform combines together the advantages of self-folding NIR light sensitive polymer bilayers, magnetic alginate microbeads, and a 3D manipulation system, to propose a solution for targeted, on-demand drug and cell delivery. First feasibility studies are presented together with the potential of the full design.

Phytophthora foot rot, caused by Phytophthora parasitica (Dast), can result in economic losses for the citrus industry in the Lower Rio Grande Valley of Texas. Therefore, locating foot rot-infected trees in citrus groves is important to citrus growers. Symptoms of the infection include leaf yellowing, canopy defoliation, twig dieback, and short growth flushes. This study evaluated the use of the latest remote sensing technology, that of airborne digital imagery, for the detection of citrus trees exhibiting mild symptoms of foot rot infection. Airborne color-infrared (CIR) digital imagery of two citrus orchards having problems with foot rot infection was acquired. In addition to the aerial digital imagery, ground spectroradiometric measurements were conducted to determine the visible and near-infrared (NIR) spectral reflectance differences between healthy and infected trees. These measurements were also used to help interpret the color tonal renditions between the trees. The CIR digital imagery distinguished infected from noninfected trees. The noninfected trees had a bright red-magenta color rendition, while the infected trees had a dull grayish red tonal response. The NIR spectroradiometric and digital readings were significantly lower for infected trees than for healthy ones (P ≤ 0.05), whereas the visible reflectance and digital data revealed no significant differences between the trees. The infected trees' dull tonal response in the CIR image was attributed to their lower NIR light intensity. These results indicated that digital imagery has potential for detecting foot rot-infected trees in citrus groves based upon NIR spectral differences. The advantage of airborne digital imagery is its real-time survey for quick field assessment.

Drug delivery with precise spatial and temporal control is of broad current interest in biology and medicine. Despite recent advances achieved by combining drugs or drug carriers with NIR light responsive plasmonic nanomaterials, existing technologies are not capable of preventing drug leakage or degradation. We report a new class of monodisperse gold nanocontainer that can stably encapsulate cargo molecules, yet is compact in size and tunable in spectral responses.

duced to defi ne the application of spectrophotometry in the visible/near infrared region to the understanding of the infl uence of water on the structure and functioning of biological systems. Nowadays, medical and veterinary di- agnostics is supported by clinical chem- istry and near infrared (NIR) spectroscopy is adding a new dimension with very high potential to provide valuable information in this area. Recent work on mastitis diagnos- tics with NIR spectroscopy has shown that the spectra of biofl uids, such as raw milk, blood, urine and rumen juice, are very simi- lar. 2 This result is logical because all of these sample types are dominated by water and water strongly absorbs NIR light energy. Further study showed that the loadings and regression vectors developed for various constituents in these fl uids had a substan- tial number of common wavelengths of high importance to each respective model. The intriguing fi nding was that some of these common wavelengths were well-known water absorbance bands, no matter what was the measured substance. Further on, spectra of the biological fl u- ids referred to above were re-examined to determine how this new WAMACS con- cept could be used in the interpretation of biological phenomena. Water is a natural biological matrix containing only small mol- ecules and hydrogen bonding, and chang- es its absorbance pattern when adapting to physical or chemical change in biologi- cal systems. It was considered that water activating perturbations (WAPs) could be an effective way to increase the information for the solute extracted from the spectra, to obtain new knowledge related to func- tionality of water in biological systems and for diagnosis. Using WAPs, the spectral gradient at a number of wavelengths ob- tained under various perturbations allowed measurement of even subtle quantities or structural changes of other molecules in the system. 9

We analyze the host galaxy of the tidal disruption object, Swift J1644+57, based on long-term optical to NIR data obtained with CQUEAN and UKIRT WFCAM observations. We decompose the bulge component using high resolution HST WFC3 images. We conclude that the host galaxy is bulge dominant. We investigate optical to NIR light curves and estimate the multi-band fluxes of the host galaxy. We fit spectral energy distribution (SED) models in order to determine the stellar mass. Finally, we estimate the mass of the black hole in the center of the host galaxy based on several scale relations.

The use of near-infrared (NIR) light to non-destructively determine the soluble solids content, the dry matter content, and their ratio, for intact kiwifruit is described. Special mention is made of the changes that occur in carbohydrate composition of kiwifruit during storage, and how NIR spectra measured at harvest time may relate to the composition of the fruit at maturity. The electronic and optical hardware used to capture NIR spectra of each fruit is described. We discuss the results obtained using ridge regression and principle component analysis which, to date, have produced the most reliable estimates. We then discuss price and performance of commercially available technology which might be used in an on-line grader to measure internal fruit quality. Finally some indicative costings of a multi-lane grader system are provided, and we describe tests on other crops.

Recently, a near-infrared (NIR) Fluorescence Biomedical Imaging (FBI) attracts increasing attention from many researchers. The light wavelength region in 1000 nm to 1700 nm has been known to be a “biological window” where the both tails of scattering and infrared absorption decrease to form a valley in optical loss spectra of biological objects. The inside of biological objects which cannot be usually seen in a normal endoscopy can be seen by using NIR, because of NIR light can penetrate in biological objects, and the further development of medical equipment is expected by using NIR. We are developing towards the realization of a NIR laparoscope which composes of a NIR camera and a visible light camera. The visible light camera can observe the surface in biological objects, and the NIR camera can observe the inside of biological objects. The NIR laparoscope has a potential of the helpful in the early detection of tumor. In our current system, the images captured by a NIR laparoscope and a normal laparoscope are shown on the separate screens simultaneously. The operator need to more experience to use the system. It was difficult to figure out the clinical usefulness of the NIR laparoscope with a visible light camera. We proposed the image composite method using a projection transform and a distance correction. The proposed method, compared to existing methods, is simple and fast. The proposed composite method of the two video images from a NIR camera and a visible light camera can facilitate the diagnosis and the surgery. The proposed system can reduce not only operator’s burden but also patient one’s. We are applying the proposed method to a laparoscope and conducting the evaluation experiment of the proposed method.

In this presentation, we will review our translational efforts in image-guided surgery using diffuse NIR light. We will present our latest developments in imaging devices and contrast agents towards clinically-realistic image guidance during surgical interventions.

In the past few years the number of well-sampled optical to NIR light curves of long Gamma-Ray Bursts (GRBs) has greatly increased particularly due to simultaneous multi-band imagers such as GROND. Combining these densely sampled ground-based data sets with the Swift UVOT and XRT space observations unveils a much more complex afterglow evolution than what was predicted by the most commonly invoked theoretical models. GRB 100814A represents a remarkable example of these interesting well-sampled events, showing a prominent late-time rebrightening in the optical to NIR bands and a complex spectral evolution. This represents a unique laboratory to test the different afterglow emission models. Here we study the nature of the complex afterglow emission of GRB 100814A in the framework of different theoretical models. Moreover, we compare the late-time chromatic rebrightening with those observed in other well-sampled long GRBs. We analysed the optical and NIR observations obtained with the seven-channel Gamma-Ray burst Optical and Near-infrared Detector at the 2.2 m MPG/ESO telescope together with the X-ray and UV data detected by the instruments onboard the Swift observatory. The broad-band afterglow evolution, achieved by constructing multi-instrument light curves and spectral energy distributions, will be discussed in the framework of different theoretical models. We find that the standard models that describe the broad-band afterglow emission within the external shock scenario fail to describe the complex evolution of GRB 100814A, and therefore more complex scenarios must be invoked. [abridged], 11 pages, 7 figures, 2 tables; Astronomy & Astrophysics, in press

Novel materials for the phototherapeutic release of the bioregulator nitric oxide (nitrogen monoxide) are described. Also reported is a method for scanning these materials with a focused NIR beam to induce photouncaging while minimizing damage from local heating. The new materials consist of poly(dimethylsiloxane) composites with near-infrared-to-visible upconverting nanoparticles (UCNPs) that are cast into a biocompatible polymer disk (PD). These PDs are then impregnated with the photochemical nitric oxide precursor Roussin's black salt (RBS) to give UCNP-RBS-PD devices that generate NO when irradiated with 980 nm light. When the UCNP-RBS-PD composites were irradiated with NIR light through filters composed of porcine tissue, physiologically relevant NO concentrations were released, thus demonstrating the potential of such devices for minimally invasive phototherapeutic applications. © 2013 American Chemical Society.

Nuclear stellar cusps are defined as central excess light component in the stellar light profiles of galaxies and are suggested to be stellar relics of intense compact starbursts in the central ~100-500 pc region of gas-rich major mergers. Here we probe the build-up of nuclear cusps during the actual starburst phase for a complete sample of Luminous Infrared Galaxy systems (85 LIRGs, with 11.4, Comment: 30 pages, 15 figures, Accepted for publication in MNRAS