Ultrahigh-Speed Optical Coherence Tomography and its Biomedical Applications

Abstract: Optical coherence tomography (OCT) is a powerful tool for assessing tissue architectural morphology. It enables three-dimensional (3D) imaging with micron-scale resolutions and can be performed in vivo and in real-time without the need to remove and process specimens. OCT has become the standard of care to evaluate retinal pathology in ophthalmology clinics non-invasively.  Improving imaging speed has been a major driving force for OCT development. In this talk, recent technical advances to achieve ultrahigh imaging speed, e.g., space-division multiplexing OCT and photonic integrated circuit-based OCT (PIC-OCT), and functionality will be presented. Furthermore, applications of OCT have started to grow in other clinical and research areas. Novel applications using OCT for label-free imaging of developing organoids and embryos, and optogenetic pacing in Drosophila and mice will be discussed.

Biography: Dr. Chao Zhou is a professor in the Biomedical Engineering Department at Washington University in St. Louis with experience spans over two decades in biophotonics. He obtained his B.S. degree in physics from Peking University and his Ph.D. degree also in physics from the University of Pennsylvania under the guidance of Prof. Arjun G. Yodh.  After graduation, he joined Professor James G. Fujimoto's Laser Medicine and Medical Imaging Group at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) as a postdoctoral associate. Before joining WashU in 2019, he was an assistant/associate professor in Electrical Engineering and Bioengineering at Lehigh University. Dr. Zhou is an elected fellow of Optica (formerly the Optical Society of America, OSA), the International Society for Optical Engineering (SPIE) and American Heart Association (AHA), and a senior member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE). He has published over 85 peer-reviewed journal articles in top journals, including Science Advances, Nature Medicine, Nature Communications, Cancer Research, Theranostics, Medical Image Analysis, Communications Biology, Cell Stem Cells, etc., with a total citation of ~8,000 times and an h-index of 46 according to Google Scholar.  He is a recipient of numerous honors and awards, including the National Institute of Health (NIH) K99/R00 Pathway to Independence Award (2011), the Libsch Early Career Research Award (2016), and the Alfred Noble Robinson Faculty Award (2018) from Lehigh University, the National Innovation Award (2017) from TechConnect World Innovation Conference and National Innovation Summit, RPB Stein Innovation Award (2020) from the Research to Prevent Blindness (RPB) Foundation, the Innovative Research Award (2021) from the Clayco Foundation and the ASRM/Jones Foundation Investigative Scientist Award (2024). For more information, visit https://zlab.wustl.edu/.

Ultrahigh-Speed Optical Coherence Tomography and its Biomedical Applications

Abstract: Optical coherence tomography (OCT) is a powerful tool for assessing tissue architectural morphology. It enables three-dimensional (3D) imaging with micron-scale resolutions and can be performed in vivo and in real-time without the need to remove and process specimens. OCT has become the standard of care to evaluate retinal pathology in ophthalmology clinics non-invasively.  Improving imaging speed has been a major driving force for OCT development. In this talk, recent technical advances to achieve ultrahigh imaging speed, e.g., space-division multiplexing OCT and photonic integrated circuit-based OCT (PIC-OCT), and functionality will be presented. Furthermore, applications of OCT have started to grow in other clinical and research areas. Novel applications using OCT for label-free imaging of developing organoids and embryos, and optogenetic pacing in Drosophila and mice will be discussed.

Biography: Dr. Chao Zhou is a professor in the Biomedical Engineering Department at Washington University in St. Louis with experience spans over two decades in biophotonics. He obtained his B.S. degree in physics from Peking University and his Ph.D. degree also in physics from the University of Pennsylvania under the guidance of Prof. Arjun G. Yodh.  After graduation, he joined Professor James G. Fujimoto's Laser Medicine and Medical Imaging Group at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) as a postdoctoral associate. Before joining WashU in 2019, he was an assistant/associate professor in Electrical Engineering and Bioengineering at Lehigh University. Dr. Zhou is an elected fellow of Optica (formerly the Optical Society of America, OSA), the International Society for Optical Engineering (SPIE) and American Heart Association (AHA), and a senior member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE). He has published over 85 peer-reviewed journal articles in top journals, including Science Advances, Nature Medicine, Nature Communications, Cancer Research, Theranostics, Medical Image Analysis, Communications Biology, Cell Stem Cells, etc., with a total citation of ~8,000 times and an h-index of 46 according to Google Scholar.  He is a recipient of numerous honors and awards, including the National Institute of Health (NIH) K99/R00 Pathway to Independence Award (2011), the Libsch Early Career Research Award (2016), and the Alfred Noble Robinson Faculty Award (2018) from Lehigh University, the National Innovation Award (2017) from TechConnect World Innovation Conference and National Innovation Summit, RPB Stein Innovation Award (2020) from the Research to Prevent Blindness (RPB) Foundation, the Innovative Research Award (2021) from the Clayco Foundation and the ASRM/Jones Foundation Investigative Scientist Award (2024). For more information, visit https://zlab.wustl.edu/.