Probing the mechanisms of infrared neural stimulation with stimulated Raman scattering microscopy (Conference Presentation)

Stimulated Raman scattering (SRS) offers a drastic speed advantage over conventional vibrational spectroscopic imaging techniques – making it ideal for studying fast biochemical dynamics. We developed an experimental paradigm that applies spectral stimulated Raman scattering (SRS) imaging to study the mechanisms of infrared (IR) photostimulation of neuronal cells. Infrared neural stimulation (INS) is a label-free optical neuromodulation technique with high spatial and temporal precision. Using SRS, changes in lipid and water vibrational signatures in live cells during INS were observed, suggesting that lipid membrane deformation accompanies IR exposure. The speeds afforded by SRS enables unprecedented observation of fast cellular biophysical dynamics.