Speaker
Description
Spectroscopic techniques offer important advantages when it comes to the analysis of biological samples, particularly due to their contact-free and label-free nature, allowing extraction of sample information without interference with sample viability. Here we present the combined Raman and Brillouin spectroscopic acquisition system developed in our Lab [1]. Raman Spectroscopy is a well-established technique able to extract information about the chemical properties of the sample by investigating its molecular vibrations. On the other hand, Brillouin spectroscopy investigates the sample’s mechanical properties by measuring the spontaneous acoustic waves propagating inside the material. Traditionally, Brillouin spectroscopy was applied to investigate homogeneous samples. However, in recent years, technological advances allowed to couple confocal microscopes to Brillouin spectrometers, achieving higher spatial resolutions. Enabling the mechanical characterisation of single living cells and tissues, BLS is becoming an emerging technique in mechanobiology [2]. This instrument has proven its effectiveness across a broad spectrum of applications. Here, relevant results acquired on biomedical samples will be presented, highlighting the capability of the technique to be sensitive to the modification of the chemo-mechanical properties induced by genetic modifications, drug treatments or disease progression [3-4].
References:
[1] Scarponi F. et al. (2017). High-Performance Versatile Setup for Simultaneous Brillouin-Raman Microspectroscopy. Physical Review X 7, 031015. doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevX.7.031015
[2] Bouvet P. et al. (2025). Consensus statement on Brillouin light scattering microscopy of biological materials, Nature Photonics volume 19, 681–691. doi.org/10.1038/s41566-025-01681-6
[3] Passeri A. A. et al (2024). Beyond Water Content: Unraveling Stiffness in Hydrated Materials by a Correlative Brillouin–Raman Approach, ACS Photonics 2025 12 (7), 3794-3802. doi.org/10.1021/acsphotonics.5c00808
[4] Makkieh M. et al. (2025). Brillouin Microscopy of Breast tumor Spheroids On-a-Chip: Mechanical and Transcriptional Responses to Microfluidic-Induced Rapid Deformations, Advanced Science13, 4, e13153. doi.org/10.1002/advs.202513153