Using optogenetics, a Swiss research team has at last proven the long-suspected link between cocaine use and physical brain change.

A new technique—a modified approach to optical coherence tomography (OCT) able to provide cross-sectional images of biomolecules—promises significant implications for both clinical and research applications.

An international research team has leveraged nonlinear optical microscopy to study the effect of zinc oxide (ZnO) nanoparticles in sunscreen that have raised a debate over product safety.

A new, label-free imaging tool that tracks single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNT) in both living cells and the bloodstream could help to boost the use of the nanotechnology in biomedical research and clinical applications.

You’ve heard of a lab on a chip: Now a group of researchers have developed a “lab on a bubble” approach to quickly concentrate samples in order to detect biological molecules.

In-vivo bioimaging is one of the applications promised by a new near-infrared (NIR) phosphor that glows for up to two weeks after a one-minute exposure to sunlight or even indoor fluorescent lighting.

An approach involving genetically modified neurons that fluoresce when active—in combination with an optical microscopy method—offers a substantial speed improvement over current drug development approaches.

Quantum dots are so tantalizing: The nanoscale semiconductor crystals glow more intensely, and for longer time periods, than do fluorescent probes.

Molecular imaging has become an important clinical and research tool for the study of heart disease, allowing in-vivo visualization of inflammation and other biological processes.

The full-day 15th annual Future of Light Symposium, held December 1, 2011, at Boston University’s Photonics Center, explored topics in neurophotonics, providing a specific focus on optogenetics and advanced imaging techniques.

As ever, it was difficult to find technology in the conference program at the Society for Neuroscience’s 2011 annual meeting (November 12–16, 2011). The presentations focused on science—though in many cases, that science depended on instrumentation.

A session on quantitative live cell microscopy by researchers from Harvard Medical School—presented during the American Society for Cell Biology (ASCB) annual meeting (December 3–7, 2011)—demonstrated how computer vision and biology are changing each other.

For the University of Southampton’s Optoelectronics Research Centre, the new year launches a five-year, £2.6 million ERC Advanced Grant designed to advance biophotonics research in the near- to mid-infrared range that should eventually produce fast, low-cost spectroscopic point-of-care devices and chemical analysis tools for protecting water quality and food safety.

During BiOS 2011, SPIE announced the launch of the Britton Chance Biomedical Optics award, to honor the memory of the prolific researcher, instructor, and leader whose contributions were so key to biomedical optics and photonics.

Some optics manufacturers cite the life sciences market as being a significant driver of their business.