Glycerol dehydration of native and diabetic animal tissues studied by THz-TDS and NMR methods

Quantitative polarization-sensitive super-resolution solid immersion microscopy reveals biological tissues' birefringence in the terahertz range

Terahertz (THz) technology offers a variety of applications in label-free medical diagnosis and therapy, majority of which rely on the effective medium theory that assumes biological tissues to be optically isotropic and homogeneous at the scale posed by the THz wavelengths. Meanwhile, most recent research discovered mesoscale ([Formula: see text]) heterogeneities of tissues; [Formula: see text] is a wavelength. This posed a problem of studying the related scattering and polarization effects of THz-wave-tissue interactions, while there is still a lack of appropriate tools and instruments for such studies. To address this challenge, in this paper, quantitative polarization-sensitive reflection-mode THz solid immersion (SI) microscope is developed, that comprises a silicon hemisphere-based SI lens, metal-wire-grid polarizer and analyzer, a continuous-wave 0.6 THz ([Formula: see text] µm) backward-wave oscillator (BWO), and a Golay detector. It makes possible the study of local polarization-dependent THz response of mesoscale tissue elements with the resolution as high as [Formula: see text]. It is applied to retrieve the refractive index distributions over the freshly-excised rat brain for the two orthogonal linear polarizations of the THz beam, aimed at uncovering the THz birefringence (structural optical anisotropy) of tissues. The most pronounced birefringence is observed for the Corpus callosum, formed by well-oriented and densely-packed axons bridging the cerebral hemispheres. The observed results are verified by the THz pulsed spectroscopy of the porcine brain, which confirms higher refractive index of the Corpus callosum when the THz beam is polarized along axons. Our findings highlight a potential of the quantitative polarization THz microscopy in biophotonics and medical imaging.

PEG-fibrin conjugates: the PEG impact on the polymerization dynamics

Fibrin and its modifications, particularly those with functionalized polyethylene glycol (PEG), remain highly attractive as a biomaterial in drug delivery and regenerative medicine. Despite the extensive knowledge of fibrinogenesis, there is little information on the processes occurring after its modification. Previously, we found structural differences between native fibrin and its conjugates with PEG that allows us to hypothesize that a combination of methods such as terahertz (THz) pulsed spectroscopy and rheology may contribute to the characterization of gelation and reveal the effect of PEG on the polymerization dynamics. Compared to native fibrin, PEGylated fibrins had a homogenously soft surface; PEGylation also led to a significant decrease in the gelation time: from 42.75 min for native fibrin to 31.26 min and 35.09 min for 5 : 1 and 10 : 1 PEGylated fibrin, respectively. It is worth noting that THz pulsed spectroscopy makes it possible to reliably investigate only the polymerization process itself, while it does not allow us to observe statistically significant differences between the distinct PEGylated fibrin gels. The polymerization time constant of native fibrin measured by THz pulsed spectroscopy was 14.4 ± 2.8 min. However, it could not be calculated for PEGylated fibrin because the structural changes were too rapid. These results, together with those previously reported, led us to speculate that PEG-fibrin conjugates formed homogenously distributed highly water-shelled aggregates without bundling compared to native fibrin, ensuring rapid gelation and stabilization of the system without increasing its complexity.

Spatio-Temporal Dynamics of Diffusion-Associated Deformations of Biological Tissues and Polyacrylamide Gels Observed with Optical Coherence Elastography

In this work, we use the method of optical coherence elastography (OCE) to enable quantitative, spatially resolved visualization of diffusion-associated deformations in the areas of maximum concentration gradients during diffusion of hyperosmotic substances in cartilaginous tissue and polyacrylamide gels. At high concentration gradients, alternating sign, near-surface deformations in porous moisture-saturated materials are observed in the first minutes of diffusion. For cartilage, the kinetics of osmotic deformations visualized by OCE, as well as the optical transmittance variations caused by the diffusion, were comparatively analyzed for several substances that are often used as optical clearing agents, i.e., glycerol, polypropylene, PEG-400 and iohexol, for which the effective diffusion coefficients were found to be 7.4 ± 1.8, 5.0 ± 0.8, 4.4 ± 0.8 and 4.6 ± 0.9 × 10^-6 cm²/s, respectively. For the osmotically induced shrinkage amplitude, the influence of the organic alcohol concentration appears to be more significant than the influence of its molecular weight. The rate and amplitude of osmotically induced shrinkage and dilatation in polyacrylamide gels is found to clearly depend on the degree of their crosslinking. The obtained results show that observation of osmotic strains with the developed OCE technique can be applied for structural characterization of a wide range of porous materials, including biopolymers. In addition, it may be promising for revealing alterations in the diffusivity/permeability of biological tissues that are potentially associated with various diseases.

Measurement of tissue optical properties in a wide spectral range: a review [Invited]

A distinctive feature of this review is a critical analysis of methods and results of measurements of the optical properties of tissues in a wide spectral range from deep UV to terahertz waves. Much attention is paid to measurements of the refractive index of biological tissues and liquids, the knowledge of which is necessary for the effective application of many methods of optical imaging and diagnostics. The optical parameters of healthy and pathological tissues are presented, and the reasons for their differences are discussed, which is important for the discrimination of pathologies and the demarcation of their boundaries. When considering the interaction of terahertz radiation with tissues, the concept of an effective medium is discussed, and relaxation models of the effective optical properties of tissues are presented. Attention is drawn to the manifestation of the scattering properties of tissues in the THz range and the problems of measuring the optical properties of tissues in this range are discussed. In conclusion, a method for the dynamic analysis of the optical properties of tissues under optical clearing using an application of immersion agents is presented. The main mechanisms and technologies of optical clearing, as well as examples of the successful application for differentiation of healthy and pathological tissues, are analyzed.

Terahertz absorption characteristics of ammonium salt solution based on self-sampling microfluidic chip

With the continuous development of terahertz (THz) detection technology, the use of terahertz spectroscopy to study chemical samples has become one of the indispensable tools in the field of biochemistry. While most biomolecules biological activity can only be expressed in aqueous solutions, water as a polar molecule has strong absorption properties for terahertz waves, making it difficult to use terahertz technology to study the activity of biological samples in aqueous solutions. In this study, a sandwich-type terahertz microfluidic chip with high terahertz wave transmission was designed and combined with a terahertz time domain spectroscopy (THz-TDS) system to test the terahertz spectra of distilled water, 0.9 mol/L NH₄Cl, (NH₄)₂SO₄, (NH₄)₂CO₃ and CH₃COONH₄ solutions, respectively, and to investigate the effect of the electric field action time on the hydrogen bond in the solution under the action of an external electric field. The experimental results show that the terahertz spectra of different ammonium solutions at the same concentration differ significantly, indicating that the ion hydration process affects the intermolecular hydrogen bonding in water, while the applied electric field also affects the hydrogen bonding in water, resulting in a change in the terahertz waves water absorption.

Nondestructive Evaluation of Thermal Barrier Coatings Thickness Using Terahertz Technique Combined with PCA–GA–ELM Algorithm

Thermal barrier coatings (TBCs) are usually used in high temperature and harsh environment, resulting in thinning or even spalling off. Hence, it is vital to detect the thickness of the TBCs. In this study, a hybrid machine learning model combined with terahertz time-domain spectroscopy technology was designed to predict the thickness of TBCs. The terahertz signals were obtained from the samples prepared in laboratory and actual turbine blade. The principal component analysis (PCA) method was used to decrease the data dimensions. Finally, an extreme learning machine (ELM) was proposed to establish the thickness of TBCs prediction model. Genetic algorithm (GA) was selected to optimize the model to make it more accurate. The results showed that the root correlation coefficient (R2) exceeded 0.97 and the errors (root mean square error and mean absolute percentage error) were less than 2.57. This study proposes that terahertz time-domain technology combined with PCA–GA–ELM model is accurate and feasible for evaluating the thickness of the TBCs.

Hyperspectral terahertz imaging and optical clearance for cancer classification in breast tumor surgical specimen

Purpose: We investigate the enhancement in terahertz (THz) images of freshly excised breast tumors upon treatment with an optical clearance agent. The hyperspectral imaging and spectral classifications are used to quantitatively demonstrate the image enhancement. Glycerol solution with 60% concentration is applied to excised breast tumor specimens for various time durations to investigate the effectiveness on image enhancement. Approach: THz reflection spectroscopy is utilized to obtain the absorption coefficient and the index of refraction of untreated and glycerol-treated tissues at each frequency up to 3 THz. Two classifiers, spectral angular mapping (SAM) based on several kernels and Euclidean minimum distance (EMD) are implemented to evaluate the effectiveness of the treatment. The testing raw data is obtained from five breast cancer specimens: two untreated specimens and three specimens treated with glycerol solution for 20, 40, or 60 min. All tumors used in the testing data have healthy tissues adjacent to cancerous ones consistent with the challenge faced in lumpectomy surgeries. Results: The glycerol-treated tissues showed a decrease in the absorption coefficients compared with untreated tissues, especially as the period of treatment increased. Although the sensitivity metric of the classifier presented higher values in the untreated tissues compared with the treated ones, the specificity and accuracy metrics demonstrated higher values for the treated tissues compared with the untreated ones. Conclusions: The biocompatible glycerol solution is a potential optical clearance agent in THz imaging while keeping the histopathology imaging intact. The SAM technique provided a good classification of cancerous tissues despite the small amount of cancer in the training data (only 7%). The SAM exponential kernel and EMD presented classification accuracy of ∼ 80 % to 85% compared with linear and polynomial kernels that provided accuracy ranging from 70% to 80%. Overall, glycerol treatment provides a potential improvement in cancer classification in freshly excised breast tumors.

Terahertz radiation in ophthalmology (review)

Terahertz (THz) radiation is one of the new, intensively studied interdisciplinary fi elds of scientifi c knowledge, including medicine, in the fi rst decades of the 21st century. At the beginning of this article (review), in a brief form, the basic statements on THz radiation, the main parameters and properties are presented; the modern THz biophtonics technologies used in biology and medicine are considered – THz refl ectometry, THz spectroscopy methods. Then a number of directions and examples of possible use of THz technologies in biology and medicine, including pharmaceuticals, are given. The main part of the review presents the progress of experimental research and the prospects for the clinical application of medical technologies of THz spectroscopy, THz imaging, in ophthalmology in the study of the morphological and functional state of the ocular surface structures, diagnosis, medical testing, and treatment of ophthalmopathology of the ocular surface. The article concludes with a review of experimental studies on the safety of using THz waves for medical diagnostics and treatment of ophthalmopathology. In the fi nal part, the main problems and prospects of introducing medical THz technologies into the clinical practice of an ophthalmologist are considered.

Moisture adsorption by decellularized bovine pericardium collagen matrices studied by terahertz pulsed spectroscopy and solid immersion microscopy

In this paper, terahertz (THz) pulsed spectroscopy and solid immersion microscopy were applied to study interactions between water vapor and tissue scaffolds-the decellularized bovine pericardium (DBP) collagen matrices, in intact form, cross-linked with the glutaraldehyde or treated by plasma. The water-absorbing properties of biomaterials are prognostic for future cell-mediated reactions of the recipient tissue with the scaffold. Complex dielectric permittivity of DBPs was measured in the 0.4-2.0 THz frequency range, while the samples were first dehydrated and then exposed to water vapor atmosphere with 80.0 ± 5.0% relative humidity. These THz dielectric measurements of DBPs and the results of their weighting allowed to estimate the adsorption time constants, an increase of tissue mass, as well as dispersion of these parameters. During the adsorption process, changes in the DBPs' dielectric permittivity feature an exponential character, with the typical time constant of =8-10 min, the transient process saturation at =30 min, and the tissue mass improvement by =1-3%. No statistically-relevant differences between the measured properties of the intact and treated DBPs were observed. Then, contact angles of wettability were measured for the considered DBPs using a recumbent drop method, while the observed results showed that treatments of DBP somewhat affects their surface energies, polarity, and hydrophilicity. Thus, our studies revealed that glutaraldehyde and plasma treatment overall impact the DBP-water interactions, but the resultant effects appear to be quite complex and comparable to the natural variability of the tissue properties. Such a variability was attributed to the natural heterogeneity of tissues, which was confirmed by the THz microscopy data. Our findings are important for further optimization of the scaffolds' preparation and treatment technologies. They pave the way for THz technology use as a non-invasive diagnosis tool in tissue engineering and regenerative medicine.

Terahertz radiation and the skin: a review

SIGNIFICANCE

Terahertz (THz) radiation has demonstrated a great potential in biomedical applications over the past three decades, mainly due to its non-invasive and label-free nature. Among all biological specimens, skin tissue is an optimal sample for the application of THz-based methods because it allows for overcoming some intrinsic limitations of the technique, such as a small penetration depth (0.1 to 0.3 mm for the skin, on average).

AIM

We summarize the modern research results achieved when THz technology was applied to the skin, considering applications in both imaging/detection and treatment/modulation of the skin constituents.

APPROACH

We perform a review of literature and analyze the recent research achievements in THz applications for skin diagnosis and investigation.

RESULTS

The reviewed results demonstrate the possibilities of THz spectroscopy and imaging, both pulsed and continuous, for diagnosis of skin melanoma and non-melanoma cancer, dysplasia, scars, and diabetic condition, mainly based on the analysis of THz optical properties. The possibility of modulating cell activity and treatment of various diseases by THz-wave exposure is shown as well.

CONCLUSIONS

The rapid development of THz technologies and the obtained research results for skin tissue highlight the potential of THz waves as a research and therapeutic instrument. The perspectives on the use of THz radiation are related to both non-invasive diagnostics and stimulation and control of different processes in a living skin tissue for regeneration and cancer treatment.

Detection of living cervical cancer cells by transient terahertz spectroscopy

The photonic energy of terahertz wave is in the same order of magnitude as the rotational and vibrational energy levels of organic and biological macromolecules, so it has unique advantages in detecting cells and biological macromolecules. However, in the life environment, the dynamic time scale of cell-environment interaction and structural conformation change of biological macromolecules are within picosecond to millisecond, and water has strong absorption to terahertz wave, which has become the bottleneck problem for the detection of cells and biological macromolecules by terahertz technology. In this article, we developed a set of terahertz single measurement system based on the tilt wave front of grating pulse technique. The system was employed for the terahertz detection of trace living cervical cancer cells. We achieved transient detection of the terahertz pulse time-domain waveform of the living HeLa cells. The characteristic absorption peaks were identified by Lambert-Beer law, respectively, at 0.49, 0.71, 1.04, 1.07, 1.26 and 1.37 THz. The absorbance is proportional to the cell concentration.

Optimal hyperosmotic agents for tissue immersion optical clearing in terahertz biophotonics

In this work, a thorough analysis of hyperosmotic agents for the immersion optical clearing (IOC) in terahertz (THz) range was performed. It was aimed at the selection of agents for the efficient enhancement of penetration depth of THz waves into biological tissues. Pulsed spectroscopy in the frequency range of 0.1 to 2.5 THz was applied for investigation of the optical properties of common IOC agents. Using the collimated transmission spectroscopy in visible range, binary diffusion coefficients of tissue water and agent in ex vivo rat brain tissue were measured. IOC agents were objectively compared using two-dimensional nomogram, accounting for their THz-wave absorption coefficients and binary diffusion coefficients. The results of this study demonstrate an interplay between the penetration depth enhancement and the diffusion rate and allow for pointing out glycerol as an optimal agent among the considered ones for particular applications in THz biophotonics.

Terahertz three-dimensional monitoring of nanoparticle-assisted laser tissue soldering

In view of minimally-invasive clinical interventions, laser tissue soldering assisted by plasmonic nanoparticles is emerging as an appealing concept in surgical medicine, holding the promise of surgeries without sutures. Rigorous monitoring of the plasmonically-heated solder and the underlying tissue is crucial for optimizing the soldering bonding strength and minimizing the photothermal damage. To this end, we propose a non-invasive, non-contact, and non-ionizing modality for monitoring nanoparticle-assisted laser-tissue interaction and visualizing the localized photothermal damage, by taking advantage of the unique sensitivity of terahertz radiation to the hydration level of biological tissue. We demonstrate that terahertz radiation can be employed as a versatile tool to reveal the thermally-affected evolution in tissue, and to quantitatively characterize the photothermal damage induced by nanoparticle-assisted laser tissue soldering in three dimensions. Our approach can be easily extended and applied across a broad range of clinical applications involving laser-tissue interaction, such as laser ablation and photothermal therapies.

Modeling of intracavity-pumped Q-switched terahertz parametric oscillators based on stimulated polariton scattering

In this paper, the rate equations describing the operation of intracavity-pumped Q-switched terahertz parametric oscillators based on stimulated polariton scattering are given for the first time. The rate equations are obtained under the plane-wave approximation, the oscillating fundamental and Stokes waves are supposed to be round uniform beam spots. Considering the fact that the terahertz wave nearly traverses the pump and Stokes beams and using the coupled wave equations, the terahertz wave intensity is expressed as the function of the fundamental and Stokes intensities. Thus, the rate equations describing the evolution processes of the fundamental and Stokes waves are obtained in the first step. The THz wave properties are then obtained. Several curves based on the rate equations are generated to illustrate the effects of the nonlinear coefficient, the THz wave absorption coefficient, and pulse repetition rate on the THz laser characteristics. Taking the intracavity-pumped Mg:LiNbO₃ TPO as an example, the THz frequency tuning characteristic and the dependences of the fundamental, Stokes, and THz wave powers on the incident diode pump power are calculated. The theoretical results are in agreement with the experimental results on the whole.

Terahertz pulse time-domain holography with balance detection: complex-domain sparse imaging

We investigated the peculiarities of the terahertz pulse time-domain holography principle in the case of raster scanning with the balance detection system. The noise in this system represents a Skellam distribution model, which differentiates it from systems based on a photoconductive antenna. We analyzed this Skellam model and provided both numerical and experimental investigations. We found that the variance of the noise in the balance detection system does not depend on the true signal. Complex-domain images obtained in this model are filtered by block-matching algorithms adapted for spatio-temporal and spatiospectral volumetric data. We presented a new cube complex-domain filter algorithm that uses block matching in all 3D data sets simultaneously in spatial and frequency coordinates. A combination of temporal and complex-domain filters allows us to expand the dynamic range of terahertz frequencies for which we can obtain amplitude/phase information. Experimental data demonstrate an improvement in the quality of the resultant images both in the time domain and complex-spectral domain. The simulation and experimental results are in good agreement.

Impact of laser-ionized liquid nonlinear characteristics on the efficiency of terahertz wave generation

The generation of terahertz (THz) radiation during the propagation of subpicosecond pulses in liquid media is investigated using a theoretical model considering the relative contribution of Kerr and plasma nonlinearity. The dependences of the THz emission generation efficiency on the contribution of plasma nonlinearity with a fixed third-order nonlinearity value revealed the existence of weak and strong ionization modes. It is shown that the transition between these modes is determined by the ratio of plasma to Kerr nonlinearity coefficients and the pump energy. In the strong ionization mode and with the fixed contribution of plasma nonlinearity, the optical-to-THz conversion efficiency decreases with increasing Kerr nonlinearity due to the redistribution of the pump energy for the third-order effects. These results contribute to estimating the potential of liquid media as highly efficient THz sources.

Visualization of moisturizer effects in stratum corneum in vitro using THz spectroscopic imaging

We use terahertz time-domain spectroscopic (THz-TDS) imaging for the evaluation of moisturizing-substances effects over stratum corneum (SC) samples. Excised SC of porcine skin is used as an in vitro skin model. We evaluate the interaction of SC samples with glycerine and lanolin, two substances commonly used in moisturizers. In order to do this, THz images of SC samples after deposition of the substances are scanned. The response of the SC samples to a commercial moisturizer is also analyzed. Our results show that THz imaging is capable of sensing the distinct interaction mechanisms of the substances with the SC samples. The occlusive nature of lanolin, the hyperosmotic behavior of glycerine, and the moisturizing effect of the commercial moisturizer can be observed using THz-TDS imaging.

Transmission Properties of FeCl3-Intercalated Graphene and WS2 Thin Films for Terahertz Time-Domain Spectroscopy Applications

Time-resolved terahertz spectroscopy has become a common method both for fundamental and applied studies focused on improving the quality of human life. However, the issue of finding materials applicable in these systems is still relevant. One of the appropriate solution is 2D materials. Here, we demonstrate the transmission properties of unique graphene-based structures with iron trichloride FeCl₃ dopant on glass, sapphire and Kapton polyimide film substrates that previously were not investigated in the framework of the above-described problems in near infrared and THz ranges. We also show properties of a thin tungsten disulfide WS₂ film fabricated from liquid crystal solutions transferred to a polyimide and polyethylene terephthalate substrates. The introduction of impurities, the selection of structural dimensions and the use of an appropriate substrate for modified 2D layered materials allow to control the transmission of samples for both the terahertz and infrared ranges, which can be used for creation of effective modulators and components for THz spectroscopy systems.

Multimodal Optical Diagnostics of Glycated Biological Tissues

Diabetes mellitus is a metabolic disorder characterized by chronic hyperglycemia accompanied by the disruption of carbohydrate, lipid, and proteins metabolism and development of long-term microvascular, macrovascular, and neuropathic changes. This review presents the results of spectroscopic studies on the glycation of tissues and cell proteins in organisms with naturally developing and model diabetes and in vitro glycated samples in a wide range of electromagnetic waves, from visible light to terahertz radiation. Experiments on the refractometric measurements of glycated and oxygenated hemoglobin in broad wavelength and temperature ranges using digital holographic microscopy and diffraction tomography are discussed, as well as possible application of these methods in the diabetes diagnostics. It is shown that the development and implementation of multimodal approaches based on a combination of phase diagnostics with other methods is another promising direction in the diabetes diagnostics. The possibilities of using optical clearing agents for monitoring the diffusion of substances in the glycated tissues and blood flow dynamics in the pancreas of animals with induced diabetes have also been analyzed.

Methodical inaccuracy of the Z-scan method for few-cycle terahertz pulses

Modern sources of THz radiation generate high-intensity pulses allowing to observe nonlinear effects in this spectral range. To describe many nonlinear effects theoretically, it is necessary to know the nonlinear refractive index coefficient of optical materials. The work studies the applicability of the Z-scan method to determine the nonlinear refractive index coefficient in the THz frequency range for few-cycle pulses. We have discussed the correctness of the known Z-scan method for calculating the nonlinear refractive index coefficient for broadband THz radiation regarding number of cycles pulses have. We have demonstrated that the error in determining the nonlinear refractive index coefficient is always greater than 70% for true single-cycle pulses. With the increase in the number of oscillations to the measurement error shows strong dependence on the sample thickness and can vary from 2% to 90% regarding the parameters chosen. The fact that such radiation dispersion length is commensurate with the nonlinear length or even less than the latter results in the discrepancy mentioned. It is demonstrated that the decrease in the sample thickness leads to the reduction of the nonlinear refractive index coefficient determination error, and this error is <2% when the ratio between the sample thickness and the pulse longitudinal spatial size is ≤1. This can relate to the fact that the nonlinear effects in such a thin sample occur faster than the dispersion ones.

High Kerr nonlinearity of water in THz spectral range

The values of the nonlinear refractive index coefficient for various materials in the terahertz frequency range exceed the ones in both visible and NIR ranges by several orders of magnitude. This allows to create nonlinear switches, modulators, systems requiring lower control energies in the terahertz frequency range. We report the direct measurement of the nonlinear refractive index coefficient of liquid water by using the Z-scan method with broadband pulsed THz beam. Our experimental result shows that nonlinear refractive index coefficient in water is positive and can be as large as 7×10^-10 cm²/W in the THz frequency range, which exceeds the values for the visible and NIR ranges by 6 orders of magnitude. To estimate n₂, we use the theoretical model that takes into account ionic vibrational contribution to the third-order susceptibility. We show that the origins of the nonlinearity observed are the anharmonicity of molecular vibrations.

THz Spectroscopy for a Rapid and Label-Free Cell Viability Assay in a Microfluidic Chip Based on an Optical Clearing Agent

Simple, rapid, and efficient cell viability assays play a fundamental role in much of biomedical research, including cell toxicology investigations and antitumor drug screening. Here, we demonstrate for the first time a rapid and label-free cell viability assay using THz spectroscopy in combination with a new optical clearing agent (OCA) and microfluidic technology. This strategy uses a considerably less absorptive OCA to replace the highly absorptive water molecules around the living cells and thus to decrease the background signal interference. Three low-viscosity oils were screened as potential OCA candidates, among which fluorinated oil was selected because of its lower absorption and lowest cytotoxicity. After the liquid medium was replaced with fluorinated oil in a microfluidic chip, an obvious THz spectral difference was observed between the fluorinated oils with and without living cells. This change in THz response was preliminarily attributed to the distinguishable signals between the cells and the fluorinated oil. In addition, we applied this method to cell viability assays of human breast cancer cells (MDA-MB-231) after treatment with different antitumor drugs. The results indicated that THz spectroscopy with the aid of the proposed water-replacement strategy presented excellent quantification of cell viability with the advantages of a rapid, label-free, nondestructive microassay, which offers significant potential to developing a convenient and practical cell analysis platform.