Bio Photonics Research

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Paper-Based Test Scans for Multiple Biomarkers in Human Serum

Researchers led by UCLA professor Aydogan Ozcan developed a deep learning -enabled biosensor for multiplexed, point-of-care (POC) testing of disease biomarkers. POC biosensors provide remote and resource-limited communities with an economical, practical alternative to centralized laboratory testing. The UCLA-developed POC sensor includes a paper-based fluorescence vertical flow assay to simultaneously detect three biomarkers of acute coronary syndrome from human serum samples. The vertical flow assay is processed by a low-cost mobile reader, which quantifies the target biomarkers through trained neural networks. According to the researchers, the competitive performance of the multiplexed computational fluorescence vertical flow assay, along with its inexpensive, paper-based design and hand-held footprint, give the POC sensor promise as a platform to expand access to diagnostics in resource-limited settings. “Compared to a commonly used linear calibration method,...

Pensievision's 3D Imaging Tech Shines at Luminate Finals Competition

Pensievision, a creator of 3D imaging technology for industrial applications and medical devices, received the Company of the Year Award at the Luminate NY Finals 2025, held this week in Rochester. Along with the title, the company received a $1 million investment from New York State through the Finger Lakes Forward Upstate Revitalization Initiative. Pensievision's solution delivers 3D imaging for demanding environments, from medical diagnostics and factory floors to orbital missions. Its technology combines a miniaturized single-lens setup, artificial intelligence, and astronomy-inspired optics to enable high-precision insights in tight or complex environments where bulky, multi-lens or laser-based systems fail. “It’s a compact, affordable camera that does very high-accuracy 3D mapping of surfaces, and it’s compact enough that it can fit on anything from a robotic arm to an endoscope that goes inside the body,” said Pensievision CTO Joseph Carson. The technology has been demonstr...

Laser-Induced Protein Detection Speeds Diagnosis of Disease

Researchers at Osaka Metropolitan University have developed an optical alternative to immunoassays and other methods used for protein analysis. The alternative method provides rapid, highly sensitive detection of proteins through laser irradiation. According to the researchers, the light-induced acceleration-based technique could improve detection limit and quantitative measurement, using a small number of biological samples and a simple process, to aid in the ultra-early diagnosis of cancer, dementia, and infectious diseases. Conventional techniques for protein detection, such as enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), require several hours and involve multiple steps, in addition to being less sensitive than the recently developed light-induced method. In experiments, the researchers showed a successful deployment of their approach using only three minutes of laser irradiation. They achieved a sensitivity and ultrafast specific detection more than 100× that obtained in comparison...

Team Applies Synthetic Wavelength Imaging to Skin Cancer Diagnoses, Treatment

Researchers at the University of Arizona will pursue the development of optical imaging technologies capable of deeper, clearer views into biological tissues, such as skin or soft tissue linings within the body. Led by Florian Willomitzer and Clara Curiel-Lewandrowski, the team is one of just four groups nationwide to receive funding through the Advancing Non-Invasive Optical Imaging Approaches for Biological Systems initiative. The group will receive nearly $2.7 million from the National Institute of Health (NIH)’s Common Fund Venture Program. The final award amount is pending successful completion of milestones and availability of funds. The team's noninvasive approach is based on synthetic wavelength imaging (SWI), which uses two separate illumination wavelengths to computationally generate one virtual, “synthetic” imaging wavelength. Due to the longer, synthetic wavelength, the signal is more resistant to light scattering inside tissue. At the same time, researchers can tak...

Computational Method Streamlines Spectral Imaging, Cuts Costs

The versatility and precision of hyperspectral imaging make it an indispensable tool in numerous scientific and industrial applications, from medical imaging to environmental monitoring to quality control. But traditional hyperspectral imaging systems can be costly, cumbersome, and challenging to scale. A computational spectral imaging system from the University of Utah provides a fast, inexpensive, efficient alternative to capturing high-quality spectral data. The system, which the team tested across biomedical, food-quality, and astronomical use cases, could establish a new framework for high-speed, high-fidelity spectral imaging with broad translational potential. The system uses a diffractive filter array to project spectral information into the spatial domain, enabling the capture of a single-channel, 2D image that contains both spatial and spectral data. This 2D image, called a diffractogram, is computationally decoded to reconstruct a spectral image cube with 25 spectral ...

Handheld Sensor Detects Markers for Early-Stage Alzheimer’s

A newly-developed, handheld optical sensor could make Alzheimer’s disease easier to detect in its early stages, when treatments for the disease are most effective. The photonic resonant sensor is the result of a collaboration among researchers at the University of York, the University of Strathclyde, and the University of São Paulo. The team developed a sensor that can simultaneously detect two of the amyloid peptides that are indicators for Alzheimer’s, at the levels clinically required for diagnosis. The capability to simultaneously detect beta amyloid 40 and beta amyloid 42 in the blood opens a route to quantifying and analyzing their ratio, enabling the progression of the disease to be tracked. Single biomarker detection is insufficient for clinical diagnosis. Photonic resonant sensors allow for the label-free detection of specific molecules, in addition to surface imaging and the multiplexing of different biomarkers. They are compatible with low-c...