SPECTROSCOPY, IMAGING, OTHER TECHNIQUES |
Depth Resolved Measurement of Transient Structural Changes
during Action Potential Propagation
Taner Akkin 1*, Chulmin Joo 2 and Johannes F. de Boer 3
1 University of Minnesota
2 Wellman Center for Photomedicine at Massachusetts General Hospital
3 Harvard Medical School and Wellman Center for Photomedicine at Massachusetts General Hospital
* To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: akkin{at}umn.edu.
Submitted on June 14, 2006
Revised on July 17, 2006
Accepted on 17 April 2007
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Abstract |
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We report non-contact optical measurement of fast transient structural changes in the crustacean nerve during action potential propagation without the need for exogenous chemicals or reflection coatings. The technique, spectral domain optical coherence tomography, provides real-time cross-sectional images of the nerve with micron scale resolution to select a specific region for functional assessment, and interferometric phase sensitivity for sub-nanometer scale motion detection. Non-contact optical measurements demonstrate nanometer scale transient movement on a 1 millisecond time scale associated with the action potential propagation in crayfish and lobster nerves.
Key Words:
OCT, displacement, imaging, neural activity, phase, spectral domain
