Raman Spectroscopy Can Detect and Monitor Cancer at Cellular Level: Analysis of Resistant and Sensitive Subtypes of Testicular Cancer Cell Lines

Abstract: Raman spectroscopy has been applied to analyze testicular cancer cell lines. Spectral differences between resistant and sensitive subtypes of testicular cancer cell line 833k samples were successfully analysed. The technique allowed reproducible and quantitative analysis of the specimen and illustrated the chemical specifications of the samples precisely. Six pairs of testicular cancer cell line 833k were studied and the findings were backed by statistical methods; that is, partial least squares discriminant analysis (PLS-DA).

It was concluded that Raman spectroscopy can objectively differentiate between resistant and sensitive cell lines. These results suggest that in the future it may be possible to use cell lines and diagnostic Raman spectroscopy for preoperative classification of biological molecules. Further research is underway to determine whether results obtained from spectroscopic analysis of cell lines can be applied to actual human tissue samples.     

Diagnosis of head and neck squamous cell carcinoma using Raman spectroscopy: tongue tissues

Raman spectroscopy is a powerful optical technique capable of providing the structural information at the molecular level. Thus, the technique can be used to detect biochemical changes associated with carcinogenesis and identify the biomolecules involved in cancer. We studied the Raman spectral characteristics of normal, carcinoma in situ, and invasive squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) tissues of tongue, and identified the spectral features that can discriminate these three tissue types. We found that the intensities of Raman bands assignable to tryptophan increase while those attributable to protein keratin decrease when tissue changes from normal to invasive SCC. The variation observed in the intensity of many discriminating peaks including those of tryptophan and keratin as tissue changes from normal to carcinoma in situ and then to invasive SCC suggests that Raman spectroscopy can be used to monitor progression of the disease. We have also analyzed the data with multivariate statistical methods such as principal component analysis and discriminant function analysis. These chemometric methods clearly separate the whole data into three distinct groups consistent with results of pathology. We were able to detect with 91% success rate the normal and carcinoma in situ tissues and with 89% accuracy the invasive SCC tissues of the tongue. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Raman spectroscopic analysis of breast cancer tissues: identifying differences between normal,invasive ductal carcinoma and ductal carcinoma in situ of the breast tissue

A relatively non‐destructive method employing Raman spectroscopy for the analysis of histopathological specimens is described. Raman spectroscopy has allowed qualitative analysis of the same specimen used for histopathological evaluation. Breast cancer tissues have been analysed to demonstrate the feasibility of the chemical changes taking place in the biological tissue, which can be identified precisely, and the results are reproducible. Raman analysis of tissue sections provides distinct spectra that can be used to distinguish between the nuclear grades of ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) and invasive ductal carcinoma (IDC) of the breast. Sixty cases of breast carcinoma including DCIS and IDC and seven cases of normal breast tissues were studied employing the Raman spectroscopic technique. This study reports for the first time spectral differences between DCIS grades. It is concluded that Raman spectroscopy can objectively distinguish between DCIS and IDC grades and is non‐destructive and reproducible. It should become possible in future to use Raman spectroscopy as an informative and quantitative method suitable for classification of grades and diagnosis of breast carcinoma. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

In vivo study on the protection of indole‐3‐carbinol (I3C) against the mouse acute alcoholic liver injury by micro‐Raman spectroscopy

Micro‐Raman spectroscopy (MRS) was utilized for the first time to evaluate the effect of indole‐3‐carbinol (I3C) on acute alcoholic liver injury in vivo. In situ Raman analysis of tissue sections provided distinct spectra that can be used to distinguish alcoholic liver injury as well as ethanol‐induced liver fibrosis from the normal state. Sixteen mice with liver diseases including acute liver injury and chronic liver fibrosis, and eight mice with normal liver tissues, and eight remedial mice were studied employing the Raman spectroscopic technique in conjunction with biomedical assays. The biochemical changes in mouse liver tissue when liver injury/fibrosis occurs such as the loss of reduced glutathione (GSH), and the increase of collagen (α‐helix protein) were observed by MRS. The intensity ratio of two Raman peaks (I₁₄₅₀/I₆₆₆) and in combination with statistical analysis of the entire Raman spectrum was found capable of classifying liver tissues with different pathological features. Raman spectroscopy therefore is an important candidate for a nondestructive in vivo screening of the effect of drug treatment on liver disease, which potentially decreases the time‐consuming clinical trials. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Quantitative speciation of manganese oxide mixtures by RIXS/RRS spectroscopy

Resonant inelastic X‐ray scattering, also named X‐ray resonant Raman scattering, was recently used to discriminate local chemical environments. By means of this novel technique, the speciation of samples could be attained in a variety of samples and experimental conditions. Until now, this discrimination methodology had been applied only to pure compounds, being the speciation possible by two different mathematical treatments. Nevertheless, the effectiveness/sensitivity of this technique has not been tested yet in samples containing mixtures of oxides of the same element. In this work, the first results of quantitative speciation of mixtures of manganese compounds, using resonant inelastic X‐ray scattering/X‐ray resonant Raman scattering spectroscopy, are presented. The results show that it is possible to discriminate and quantify oxide mixtures of the same element in slightly different proportions, allowing a quantitative speciation of compound mixtures in a variety of experimental conditions, presenting also several advantages over conventional spectroscopic techniques. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Near‐infrared Raman spectroscopy for gastric precancer diagnosis

Raman spectroscopy is a molecular vibrational spectroscopic technique that is capable of optically probing the biomolecular changes associated with neoplastic transformation. The purpose of this study was to apply near‐infrared (NIR) Raman spectroscopy for differentiating dysplasia from normal gastric mucosa tissue. A total of 65 gastric mucosa tissues (44 normal and 21 dysplasia) were obtained from 35 patients who underwent endoscopy investigation or gastrectomy operation for this study. A rapid NIR Raman system was utilized for tissue Raman spectroscopic measurements at 785‐nm laser excitation. High‐quality Raman spectra in the range of 800–1800 cm⁻¹ can be acquired from gastric mucosa tissue within 5 s. Raman spectra showed significant differences between normal and dysplastic tissue, particularly in the spectral ranges of 850–1150, 1200–1500 and 1600–1750 cm⁻¹, which contained signals related to proteins, nucleic acids and lipids. The diagnostic decision algorithm based on the combination of Raman peak intensity ratios of I₈₇₅/I₁₄₅₀ and I₁₂₀₈/I₁₆₅₅ and the logistic regression analysis yielded a diagnostic sensitivity of 90.5% and specificity of 90.9% for identification of gastric dysplasia tissue. This work demonstrates that NIR Raman spectroscopy in conjunction with intensity ratio algorithms has the potential for the noninvasive diagnosis and detection of precancer in the stomach at the molecular level. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Comparison of molecular images as defined by Raman spectra between normal mucosa and squamous cell carcinoma in the oral cavity

Raman spectroscopy has been effectively applied to clinically differentiate normal and cancerous mucosal tissues. Micro‐Raman spectroscopy provides a tool to better understand the molecular basis for the Raman clinical signal. The objective of the current study was to utilize micro‐Raman spectroscopy to define the molecular/spectral differences between normal and abnormal squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) in oral mucosa (in vitro). Understanding this may help in identifying unique spectra or may be useful for in vivo application of this technology. Micro‐Raman (confocal) spectroscopy was used to obtain molecular images of normal and SCC cells of human oral mucosa. Four fresh flashed‐frozen tumor and four matched normal tongue specimens were studied. The spectra covered a wavenumber range from 300 to 4000 cm⁻¹ with a spectral resolution of 8 cm⁻¹ and a spatial resolution of 1.0 µm. The cells were located within thin sections of tongue mucosa biopsies. The excitation wavelength of 515 nm was used. We were able to obtain Raman images with rich information about the spectroscopic and structural features within the cytoplasm, cell membrane, and cell nuclei. Significant spectral differences were observed between the Raman images of normal and malignant squamous cells. The heterogeneity of tumor cells within the abnormal tissue was also demonstrated. Spectral differences demonstrated between both tissue types have provided important information regarding the origins of specific signals within the cells of each tissue type. In our search for specific spectral biomarkers, we believe that a cell surface protein, greatly upregulated in SCC cells, was discovered at 1583 cm⁻¹. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Amorphous,nanocrystalline and crystalline calcium carbonates in biological materials

Raman spectroscopy is a powerful tool in identifying different calcium carbonate polymorphs. Here, the method is applied to cultured pearls from freshwater (genus Hyriopsis) and marine bivalve species (Pinctada maxima) as well as to shells of Diplodon chilensis patagonicus bivalves. Raman spectra for vaterite, detected for the first time in an adult shell, and amorphous calcium carbonate (ACC) are discussed. Results for ACC are compared with those of synthetically produced ACC and with the Raman spectroscopic features of stable biogenic ACC from the crustacean Porcellio scaber. Decomposition of the most intense signal of all calcium carbonate polymorphs—the ν₁ symmetric stretching mode of the carbonate ion—leads to the identification of two polymorphs within the ACC areas: a mixure of an amorphous and a crystalline fraction. The amorphous phase is characterised by a broad peak in the region of the lattice modes, which is composed of two distinct lattice modes with very high full‐widths at half‐maximum (FWHMs). The FWHMs of most of the crystalline fractions (in the range of 6.3–10.7 cm⁻¹) are too high for well‐crystallised materials and support reports of nanocrystalline calcium carbonate polymorph clusters in ACC. Crystallinity indices of different samples are calculated and found to be useful to describe roughly the state of crystallisation in the ACC areas. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

傅里叶变换红外光谱和近红外傅里叶变换拉曼光谱法无损鉴定中国字画

利用傅里叶变换红外(FTIR)和近红外傅里叶变换拉曼(NIR FT-Raman)光谱法鉴定了中国字画,结果表明：与荧光光谱法相比,根据谱峰的强度和位置可更容易地将真伪字画区别开来。拉曼光谱和红外光谱相互印证,互相补充,在鉴定中具有快速、准确、操作简单、重复性好、不需对样品进行预处理的优点,适于珍贵字画的无损鉴定。     

Raman spectroscopic diagnosis of breast cancers: evaluation of models

Breast cancer is the leading cancer affecting women. Conventional screening and diagnostic methods are shown to suffer from well‐described limitations. The aim of this study was to evaluate Raman spectroscopic models, which were developed earlier, by blinded tissue samples. We have recorded Raman spectra of 69 blinded tissue samples. In each sample, six or more spectra were recorded at different locations. Pretreated spectra were matched against normal, malignant and benign standard sets to obtain a match/mismatch status, which in turn was correlated with histopathology. Among 69 samples analyzed, 61 could be unambiguously diagnosed as 29 normal, 17 malignant and 15 benign, as their spectra matched with only one standard set and mismatched against the others. In the cases of the remaining tissue samples, matching them against pathological sets was the determining criteria. These samples were diagnosed as pathological since at least one of the spectra of these tissues had matched with pathological sets. Thus, we demonstrate a good correlation between histopathology and Raman spectroscopic diagnosis. Therefore, findings of the study further support the efficacy of Raman spectroscopic models that were developed by us. Prospectively, by developing models for as many pathological conditions as possible followed by rigorous validation, objective/unambiguous Raman spectroscopic diagnosis of breast pathologies can be realized. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

拉曼光谱检测生物大分子损伤的研究进展

拉曼光谱是基于拉曼散射效应而发展起来的一种光谱分析技术,体现的是分子的振动或转动信息。由于拉曼光谱技术与常规化学分析技术相比,具有对样品无损、样品制备简单和所需样品量少等特点,广泛用于生物大分子结构变化的研究。拉曼光谱不仅可以用于蛋白质、核酸和脂类等生物大分子损伤的快速检测,而且可以用于癌症的诊断与手术治疗。通过对比正常组织与癌变组织的拉曼光谱,可以找到两种组织特征吸收峰的差异,从而为癌症的最终确诊和确定肿瘤切除范围提供重要信息。文章综述了拉曼光谱检测生物大分子损伤的研究进展,介绍了利用表面增强拉曼光谱、傅里叶变换拉曼光谱和紫外共振拉曼光谱等技术在检测蛋白质二级结构、膜脂及DNA损伤中的应用,并展望了未来拉曼光谱技术的发展前景。     

拉曼光谱技术在病理诊断中的研究进展

拉曼光谱技术能够提供与物质特定分子结构相关的光谱信息,可用于识别生物组织微小的生化变异,具有快速、实时、无损、无需样本预处理等优点,在临床病理诊断领域极具应用前景。与常规组织病理学分析相比,拉曼光谱技术能够直接检测活体组织,简化了分析程序,缩短了诊断时间。人体病变组织的细胞分子组成和结构可能发生变化,这为拉曼光谱技术在组织病理诊断中的应用提供了检测依据。基于组织分子组成与结构的差异,结合机器学习和化学计量学方法,拉曼光谱技术可以提供客观的诊断信息,实现快速、低侵入的病理诊断。回顾了近十年来拉曼光谱技术在组织病理诊断中的研究进展,对取得的关键成果进行了总结,阐述了当前离体和活体应用拉曼光谱技术的一些关键问题。针对离体拉曼光谱检测,重点评估福尔马林固定石蜡包埋样本、冷冻样本和新鲜组织样本等离体样本的适用情况;阐述拉曼光谱数据收集的关键技术,包括适用光源、光谱范围,以及病理样本光谱采集的方式等。对于活体拉曼光谱检测,重点介绍了活体检测研究中拉曼光谱技术应用的两种形式：结合医用内窥镜进行体内检测,以及开放手术中的直接检测;综述了临床适用的拉曼系统,重点介绍了当前活体拉曼研究中应用的光纤探头。同时,文章也讨论了拉曼光谱数据的处理与分析方法,通过光谱预处理,特征提取与分类识别,构建拉曼光谱病理诊断模型,在小样本范围能够获得较好的诊断结果。考虑临床实际应用,仍需要不断优化分析方法,实现拉曼光谱与生化信息的关联,将样本个体差异的影响纳入分类模型中,以提升模型性能。文章对拉曼光谱应用于病理诊断中的关键问题进行了讨论,为进一步开展研究提供参考。未来需要更深入和广泛地开展离体和活体研究,以促进拉曼光谱技术在临床中的应用。     

Raman spectroscopy at different excitation wavelengths (1064, 785 and 532 nm) as a tool for diagnosis of colon cancer

Raman spectroscopy is structure sensitive non‐destructive method that allows observing the status of biological tissues with minimal impact. This method has a great potential in the diagnosis of various types of degenerative diseases including cancer damages. Near‐infrared Fourier transform (NIR‐FT)‐Raman (λ_ex ~1064 nm), NIR‐visible (Vis)‐Raman (λ_ex ~785 nm) and Vis‐Raman (λ_ex ~532 nm) spectra of normal and colorectal carcinoma colon tissue samples were recorded in macroscopic mode at 10–20 randomly chosen independent sites. In the cases of NIR‐Vis‐ and Vis‐Raman spectra, enhanced resonance effects were observed for tissue chromophores absorbing in the visible area. Evident spectral differences were noticed for Raman spectra of normal colon tissue samples in comparison with abnormal samples. The average Raman spectra of colon tissue samples were analysed by principal component analysis (PCA) to discriminate normal and abnormal tissues. PCA of combined dataset containing Raman intensities of chosen NIR‐FT, NIR‐Vis or Vis‐Raman bands led to discrimination of normal and abnormal colon tissue samples. Therefore, combination of these three Raman methods can be helpful for recognizing cancer lesions in colon for diagnostic purposes. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The study of amorphous incubation layers during the growth of microcrystalline silicon films under different deposition conditions

<正>The structural un-uniformity of μc-Si:H films prepared using a very high frequency plasma-enhanced chemical vapour deposition method has been investigated by Raman spectroscopy,spectroscopic ellipsometer and atomic force microscopy.It was found that the formation of amorphous incubation layer was caused by the back diffusion of SiH_4 and the amorphous induction of glass surface during the initial ignition process,and growth of the incubation layer can be suppressed and uniformμc-Si:H phase is generated by the application of delayed initial SiH_4 density and silane profiling methods.     

Raman spectral properties of squamous cell carcinoma of oral tissues and cells

Early diagnosis is the key of the improved survival rates of oral cancer. Raman spectroscopy is sensitive to the early changes of molecular composition and structure that occur in benign lesion during carcinogenesis. In this study, in situ Raman analysis provided distinct spectra that can be used to discriminate between normal and malignant tissues, as well as normal and cancer cells. The biochemical variations between different groups were analyzed by the characteristic bands by comparing the normalized mean spectra. Spectral profiles of normal, malignant conditions show pronounced differences between one another, and multiple Raman markers associated with DNA and protein vibrational modes have been identified that exhibit excellent discrimination power for cancer sample identification. Statistical analyses of the Raman data and classification using principal component analysis (PCA) are shown to be effective for the Raman spectral diagnosis of oral mucosal diseases. The results indicate that the biomolecular differences between normal and malignant conditions are more obviously at the cellular level. This technique could provide a research foundation for the Raman spectral diagnosis of oral mucosal diseases.     

Time resolved Raman spectroscopy for depth analysis of multi‐layered mineral samples

Time resolved Raman spectroscopy (TRRS) can provide subsurface information from multi‐layered samples of transparent and translucent evaporative and silicate minerals up to several centimetres thick. Depth information was obtained using 3‐ps pulsed laser excitation at 720 nm and a gated intensified charge‐coupled device detector with stepwise increasing delay times. Blocks of different minerals were used as first, second or third layers, and Raman spectra from deeper layers could be detected through 10 mm of translucent calcite and up to 40 mm of transparent halite crystals. Measurements by conventional confocal Raman, as well as spatially offset Raman spectroscopy were also successful in distinguishing different mineral layers. This study establishes the great potential for the use of Raman spectroscopy in future planetary exploration, where TRRS could be used as a non‐invasive tool for profiling the (sub‐)surface at millimetre‐depth resolution. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Forensic analysis of automotive paints by Raman spectroscopy

In this work, the possible contribution of Raman spectroscopy in forensic science is evaluated, more specifically for the analysis of automotive paint samples. Spectra from paint flakes as well as from cross sections were examined, in order to identify not only the pigments but also binders and extenders in all paint layers. Moreover, the possibility of distinguishing paint samples from different cars was evaluated to assess the use of vibrational spectroscopic techniques in the investigation of a hit-and-run accident. The presence of rutile and extenders, such as calcite and barium sulphate, could be demonstrated by their characteristic Raman bands. However, the identification of the binder by Raman spectroscopy was hampered: only with additional information from IR analysis could most of the bands in the spectrum be assigned to molecular vibrations of the binders. In contrast, organic pigments, having very distinctive and well-resolved characteristic bands, could easily be identified by comparing the spectra from the basecoat of the sample with spectra from a reference database. Because of these characteristic bands, the basecoat seems to provide the best spectra to distinguish paint samples. Moreover, some paints can also be distinguished by the absence or presence of the bands from calcium carbonate and barium sulphate in the primer surfacer. When recording spectra from paint flakes, Raman bands from the spectra of the clearcoat as well as from the basecoat are obtained. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Applications of Raman spectroscopy in herbal medicine

Raman spectroscopic techniques are a group of chemical fingerprint detection methods based on molecular vibrational spectroscopy. They are compatible with aqueous solutions and are time saving, nondestructive, and highly informative. With complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) becoming increasingly popular, more people are consuming natural herbal medicines. Thus, chemical fingerprints of herbal medicines are investigated to determine the content of these products. In this study, I review the different types of Raman spectroscopic techniques used in fingerprinting herbal medicines, including dispersive Raman spectroscopy, resonance Raman spectroscopy, Fourier transform (FT)–Raman spectroscopy, surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) spectroscopy, and confocal/microscopic Raman spectroscopy. Lab-grade Raman spectroscopy instruments help detect the chemical components of herbal medicines effectively and accurately without the need for complicated separation and extraction procedures. In addition, portable Raman spectroscopy instruments could be used to monitor the health and safety compliance of herbal products in the consumer market.     

In situ detection of cocaine hydrochloride in clothing impregnated with the drug using benchtop and portable Raman spectroscopy

This study describes the application of benchtop and portable Raman spectroscopy for the in situ detection of cocaine hydrochloride in clothing impregnated with the drug. Raman spectra were obtained from a set of undyed natural and synthetic fibres and dyed textiles impregnated with the drug. The spectra were collected using three Raman spectrometers: one benchtop dispersive spectrometer coupled to a fibre‐optic probe and two portable spectrometers. Despite the presence of some spectral bands arising from the natural and synthetic polymer and dyed textiles, the drug could be identified by its characteristic Raman bands. High‐quality spectra of the drug could be acquired in situ within seconds and without any sample preparation or alteration of the evidential material. A field‐portable Raman spectrometer is a reliable technique that can be used by emergency response teams to rapidly identify unknown samples. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

MID-INFRARED AND RAMAN SPECTROSCOPY FOR MEDICAL DIAGNOSTICS

The spectroscopy of molecular vibrations using mid-infrared or Raman techniques has been applied to samples of human tissue or body fluids. This review gives examples for its potential in supporting medical diagnostics. Most of the investigations have been performed in the field of internal medicine, namely angiology, hematology, rheumatology, endocrinology, gastroenterology, and nephrology. Further potential applications in neurology, gynecology, obstetrics and dermatology are considered. Although some fundamental issues of the vibrational spectroscopy of biomedical samples still have to be solved, significant progress has been achieved in its clinical application in-vitro. First steps towards in-vivo applications are described.