Science through imaging The understanding of biological processes owes much to progress in imaging. As well as improving the resolution of existing techniques, researchers are continuing to develop new systems based on the use of ultrasound and lasers. Ultrasound enters the world of functional brain imaging Blood flow simulation in a human carotid using data from an MRI patient. Researchers have developed a new ultrasensitive medical imaging technique based on the study of blood flow. The system, called fUltrasound, makes use of ultrasound to observe changes in brain activity with excellent spatial and temporal resolution. This method enabled scientists to monitor the development of an epileptic seizure in the brain of a rat. This remarkable feat bodes well for applications in neonatology, as functional brain MRI is extremely difficult to perform on infants. Nature Methods July 2011 Laser for observing living material A new method for the observation of biological samples has been Existence of negative wave developed by a French-Japanese team. By using a white light laser to illuminate a target, the new imaging system, called microspectroscope, refraction established makes it possible to recreate several images from a single measurement, The negative refraction of elastic waves, which travel through solid each one showing a different chemical constituent. It thus allows access deformable media, well and truly exists. Researchers have shown— to anatomical and functional information that can be used to study both theoretically and experimentally—that in phononic crystals, phenomena such as apoptosis or changes in cell metabolism. which are made up of periodic arrangements of different materials, the refracted wave travels on the same side of the normal to the surface as Journal of Raman Spectroscopy May 2011 the incident wave. Negative refraction could form the basis of acoustic imaging systems with unparalleled resolution. Physical Review B February 2011 21 2011 A year at CNRS
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