Label-free multimodal nonlinear optical imaging and optical biopsies of fresh, unstained, resected tissue specimens offer a wealth of new biomarkers for assessing the tumor microenvironment and diagnosing disease. By developing widely coherent supercontinuum from photonic crystal fibers, new excitation wavelengths can be generated to tailor the light stimulus in new ways. As a result, Simultaneous Label-free Auto-fluorescence Multi-harmonic (SLAM) microscopy can visualize the rich intrinsic molecular, metabolic, and structural information in cells and tissues. Results suggest broad potential of this stain-free, slide-free, imaging technology and methodology for real-time point-of-procedure applications, including the histopathological assessment of living biopsy specimens.
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