Frontiers in Photonics: Dr. Steven Jacques

A new seminar of the Frontiers in Photonics series will take place this Wednesday, Dec. 3, 2014.
Dr. Steven Jacques from the Oregon Health and Science University will talk about
Probing the nanoarchitecture of tissues using optical scattering
Time: Wednesday, Dec. 3, 2014 at 12pm
Place: BLI library
Lunch will be provided.
Abstract: This seminar will discuss our current work on using optical scattering as a contrast mechanism in images to sense changes in cells and tissues. We are utilizing (1) elastic scattering and (2) non-linear scattering. The elastic scattering work involves (a) spectral imaging (reduced scattering coefficient versus wavelength), (2) confocal reflectance microscopy (detect anisotropy versus scattering coeff.), (3) granularity imaging (phase-matched retroreflectance versus wavelength), and (4)holographic detection of the angular dependence of scattering. The non-linear scattering involves second harmonic generation (SHG) imaging (a) in reflectance mode from thick samples or in vivo tissue, and (b) in thin-sectioned samples to detect forward versus backward SHG. The motivation is to develop tools that follow dynamic structural changes in the nucleus, mitochondria, cytoskeleton, and extracellular matrix.
Bio: Steven L. Jacques, Ph.D., received a B.S. degree in Biology at M.I.T., and an M.S. degree in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science and a Ph.D. degree in Biophysics and Medical Physics from the University of California-Berkeley (1984), where he used dielectric microwave measurements to explore the in vivo distribution of water in the stratum corneum of human skin.  His postdoctoral work was at the Wellman Center for Photomedicine at Massachusetts General Hospital, rising to the position of Lecturer in Dermatology/Bioengineering, Harvard Medical School. His team developed the use of Monte Carlo computer simulations to study optical transport in biological tissues, which is now widely used in the field of biophotonics.
In 1988, he joined the University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer as an Assistant Professor of Urology/Biophysics and established a laboratory developing novel laser and optical methods for medicine, later achieving a tenured position as Associate Professor. He developed a hand-held spectrometer and the analysis software to noninvasively measure hyperbilirubinemia in newborns. This device was patented, licensed, and FDA approved to replace painful heel stick tests, and is now in practice in neonatal care. As of 2009, over 20 million newborns have been tested with the device. In 1996, he joined the Oregon Health & Science University in Portland, Oregon, where he now serves as Professor of Dermatology and Biomedical Engineering.  His work continues on developing novel uses of optical technologies for both therapy and diagnosis. Currently, he has developed a hand-held polarized light camera to visualize skin cancer margins and guide surgical excision, now in clinical trials. He has developed in vivo sub-nm measurements of vibration of the cochlear membrane of the inner ear in animal models. He is developing novel microscopes that are sensitive to the ultrastructure of cells and tissues.