Optics and the Brain

07 April 2024 – 10 April 2024 | Ft. Lauderdale, FL, USA

Brings together researchers working in all aspects of optics in the brain and serves as a forum for discussion of existing and emerging techniques as well as future directions capable of shedding new light on the healthy and diseased brain.

The USA BRAIN Initiative and the European Human Brain Project have identified the urgent need for new technologies that can probe the working brain across all levels from single neurons to entire behaving organisms. Optics offers a unique toolkit for multiscale imaging of the living and intact brain, while new genetic labeling strategies provide optical contrast to neural function and optogenetics permits the control of cellular function with light.

By bringing together an international group of leading engineers, optical and medical scientists, biologists, chemists and physicians, the meeting reflects this topic’s highly interdisciplinary area of research.

Topic Categories
 

Optics and the Brain

1. Optics in the Human Brain 

• Functional near infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) and diffuse optical tomography (DOT)
• Diffuse Correlation Spectroscopy.
• Wearable systems
• Brain computer interfaces
• Intrasurgical brain optical imaging
• Fiber-optic probes, spectroscopy, and endoscopic imaging
• Optical modulation of the human central nervous system
• Retinal neuroscience
• Speckle contrast
• Vascular and metabolic modelling
• Clinical applications
• Translational optical agents (optogenetics, calcium indicators, molecular probes)

2. Rethinking Scan Patterns and Shaping Light 

• Light sheet microscopy
• Wavefront engineering
• Adaptive optics
• Structured illumination
• Temporal focusing
• Non-gaussian beam shaping (Bessel, Doughnut, Airy, etc...)

3. Structural and super-resolution techniques 

• Resolution improvement techniques
• Fluorophores design and optimization
• Use of super-resolution
• Particle tracking
• Molecular and biophysical processes

4. Analyzing Circuitry, Network Function and Information Processing 

• Model systems for network studies
• Hybrid theoretical-experimental approaches to network analysis
• Models of network inference
• Imaging strategies optimized for network analysis
• Deciphering functions from activity data
• Multiscale imaging of brain activity
• Functional microscopy
• Wearable microscopes
• Hybrid electrical/optical microscopy.

5. Optogenetics, Genetic Encoding, and novel probes 

• Optode and electrode hardware for excitation and/or recording
• Use of miniature microscopes with optogenetics
• Genetically encoded calcium and voltage indicators
• Novel forms of functional contrast
• New genetic strategies for optogenetics
• Modeling and overcoming scatter in optogenetics
• Challenges of scaling up optogenetics to non-human primates

6. Scattering, clearing, and wavefront engineering 

• Advances in Light sheet microscopy
• Novel techniques for in-vivo and in-vitro whole-brain imaging and actuation
• Zebrafish, Drosophila and similar small organisms
• Clearing techniques and structural imaging, animal to human
• Optical data management and analysis strategies
• Multiphoton strategies for deeper imaging
• Adaptive optics strategies

7. Physiology and Brain Disease 

• Application of optical spectroscopy and imaging systems to the study of the brain in both health and disease (i.e., Alzheimer’s, stroke, epilepsy, etc.)
• Models of brain disease and optical tools
• Photothrombosis
• Optical therapeutics
• Photodynamic therapy

8. Big Data Tools (Collection, Management, Reduction, Analysis) 

• Rapid imaging strategies
• Serial slices imaging
• Large field-of-view and space-bandwidth microscopes
• Compression strategies
• Data management tools
• Machine learning
• Software tools and data formats

9. Optical hybrids 

• Photoacoustics / optoacoustics
• Acousto-optic approaches
• Acoustic modulation of neural activity
• Combined optical / PET / CT / MRI
• Combined electrical/optical

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Committee Members

• Valentina Emiliani, Institut de la Vision, France, Chair
• Jennifer Lynch, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, United States, Chair
• Ashwin Parthasarathy, University of South Florida, United States, Program Chair
• Cristina Rodriguez, Yale University, United States, Program Cha

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Plenary Speakers

Dr. Irina Larina

Baylor College of Medicine, USA
Dynamic OCT for In Vivo Investigation of the Fallopian Tube Physiology: Eggs, Sperm and Cilia

Sarah Bohndiek

University of Cambridge, UK
Harnessing the Power of Spectroscopy in Early Cancer Detection

Gerwin Puppels

Erasmus University Rotterdam, Netherlands
Raman Spectroscopy: Translation to the Clinic

Samuel Achilefu

University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center (UTSW), USA

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Invited Speakers

• Erin Buckley, Georgia Institute of Technology, United States
  Illuminating Biomarkers of Stroke with Diffuse Optical Spectroscopies  
   
• Martin Caldarola, Single Quantum B.V., Netherlands
  Deep Two-Photon Imaging of the Live Mouse Brain Using an Array of Quantum Detectors  
   
• Nicole Chernavsky, Cornell University, United States
  Label-Free Tracking of Myelin Dynamics in Subcortical White Matter of a Mouse Model of Multiple Sclerosis using Third Harmonic Generation Microscopy  
   
• Adam Cohen, Harvard University, United States
  Voltage Imaging  
   
• Rob Cooper, CoMind, United Kingdom
  CoMind One: Interferometric Optical Sensing for Multi-Parameter Clinical Neuromonitoring  
   
• Adam Eggebrecht, Washington University in St Louis, United States
  From Proofs-of-Principle to Multi-Site Studies: Tools for Collaborative Optical Human Brain Mapping  
   
• Yannick Goulam Houssen, Hearing Institute, France
  Towards two-Photon all-Optical Electrophysiology With Acousto-Optic Scanning  
   
• Luke Lavis, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, United States
  Designing Brighter Dyes for Advanced Fluorescence Microscopy and Beyond  
   
• Jennifer Lynch, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, United States
  Clinical Translation, Disease States  
   
• Tobias Noebauer, Rockefeller University, United States
  Multiscale Computational Neuronal Imaging  
   
• Eirini Papagiakoumou, Institut De La Vision Paris, France
  Scanless Two-Photon Voltage Imaging  
   
• Eric Schreiter, Janelia Research Campus, United States
  Chemigenetic Fluorescent Biosensors  
   
• Spencer Smith, University of California Santa Barbara, United States
  Rapid Large-Scale Multiphoton Measurement and Manipulation of Neuronal Activity  
   
• Lin Tian, Max Planck Florida Inst for Neuroscience, United States
  Imaging Dynamics of Neurotransmitters with Genetically Encoded Indicators  
   
• Damian Wallace, MPI Neurobiologie des Verhaltens -CAESAR, Germany
  Naturalistic Brain Imaging  
   
• Jimin Wu, Rice University, United States
  Bio-FlatScopeNHP: a Miniaturized Lensless Microscope for Mesoscopic Calcium Imaging in Head-Unrestrained Non-Human Primates  
   
• Chris Xu, Cornell University, United States
  Pushing the Limits of Multiphoton Imaging in Living Brains  

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 Industry Sessions
 

Biophotonics Industry Keynote Speaker: Julia Eng

Photonics in Like Sciences: Connecting Laboratories, Instruments and Consumers with Innovative Solutions

Julie Sheridan Eng was named Chief Technology Officer (CTO) of Coherent in 2022.  Prior to becoming CTO, Dr. Eng served as Senior Vice President and General Manager of Coherent/II-VI’s Optoelectronic Devices and Modules Business Unit. Prior to joining II-VI through the II-VI acquisition of Finisar, Dr. Eng worked at Finisar, serving most recently as Executive Vice President and General Manager of Finisar’s 3D Sensing Business Unit, and prior to that, as Executive Vice President of Datacom Engineering.  Prior to joining Finisar, Dr. Eng was part of AT&T/Lucent/Agere, where she managed datacom transceivers.

Dr. Eng is a Past Chair of the IEEE Committee on Women in Engineering and presently serves on the Board of Directors of Optica. She holds a BA degree in Physics from Bryn Mawr College and a BS degree in Electrical Engineering from the California Institute of Technology (Caltech).  She earned MS and PhD degrees in Electrical Engineering from Stanford University. In 2022, she was elected Fellow of Optica for distinguished contributions to the advancement of optics and photonics.
 

Exploring the Landscape of Biophotonics: Trends, Challenges, Collaborations and Future Prospects
 

Moderator
Caroline Boudoux, CEO, Castor Optics; Professor, Polytechnique Montreal and Author

Panelists

• Michael Choma, Yale University
• Jessie Weber, Medical and Mid-infrared at Coractive
• Yasaman Soudagar, Co-Founder Neurescence Inc., Bruker Corp.
• Graham Dempsey, Quiver Bioscience
• Adam Wax, Duke University
   

Industry Networking Event

Presenters: 

• Caroline Boudoux, CEO, Castor Optics, Professor, Polytechnique Montreal, Author
  It Goes without Saying: Taking the Guesswork Out of Your PhD in Engineering
   
• Ty Olmstead, Florida Photonics Cluster, USA
  Exploring Florida's Biophotonics Ecosystem: Insights from the Florida Photonics Cluster
   

Optical Sensing and Imaging in Healthcare: Perspectives and Future Directions
 

Moderator: Kathy Beaudette, Industry Co-Chair, Castor Optics

Panelists:  

• Michael Choma, Professor, Yale University of Medicine, Theranova

• Jessie Weber, Coractive
   

Optical Imaging in Drug Development
 

Moderator: Ewa Zarnowska, Industry Co-Chair, Coherent Corp.

Panelists:

• Graham Dempsey, Founder and CSO, Quiver Bioscience
• Yasaman Soudagar, Co-Founder Neurescence Inc., Bruker Corp.

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 Industry Events

 

Women in Optics Reception

Saturday, 06 April 19:00 - 20:00

Lona Cocina

This informal networking event brings together women in biomedical optics — to meet other women in the field and discuss challenges and opportunities. All are welcome, regardless of gender. Please join Chairs Christine Hendon, Jonathan Liu and members of the Optica Biophotonics Congress committee, and meet others attending this cutting-edge congress. Share your ideas to help ensure our community and this meeting is as welcoming and inclusive as possible.
 

The Role of Standardization in Biophotonics

Sunday, 07 April 12:15 - 13:15

You’re invited to join the Optica Technical Groups for a panel discussion that will raise awareness and emphasize standardization’s role in accelerating biophotonics technology development. You will have the chance to hear thoughts from diverse stakeholders in academia, industry, standardization, and funding bodies on ways we can further standardize the field and push forward the development of biophotonics technologies.

RSVP here for this technical group event to let us know you will attend.

Moderator

• Katarzyna Komolibus, Senior Researcher in Biophotonics, Tyndall National Institute
• Sanathana Konugolu Venkata Sekar, Senior Staff Researcher, Team Leader, Tyndall National Institute

Speakers

• Sarah Bohndiek, Professor of Biomedical Physics at the University of Cambridge, UK
• Turgut Durduran, Professor and Group Leader of Medical Optics Groups at ICFO, Spain 
• Caroline Boudoux, Professor of Engineering Physics at Polytechnique Monéal, CEO, Co-Founder of Castor Optics, Canada 
• Jennifer Lynch, Assistant Professor of Anesthesiology and Critical Care at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, USA 
• Tim Quang, Staff Scientist at the Section on Biomedical Optics at the National Institutes of Health, USA

Candid Conversations: Machine Learning for Biophotonic Applications with Kivanc Kose

Monday, 08 April 12:00 - 12:45

You are invited to join the Microscopy and OCT Technical Group for an informal discussion exploring the application of machine learning in biophotonics. The technical group has invited Dr. Kivanc Kose from the Optical Imaging Laboratory at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, an expert in image processing, image analysis, computer vision, computational methods, and machine learning, to chat with attendees. Dr. Kose will briefly introduce the topic, and then we will open the floor to questions.

RSVP here to join us for this candid conversation.

Moderator:  Aditi Sahu, Senior Research Scientist, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, USA;NewYork

Speaker" Kivanc Kose, Senior Research Scientist, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, USA;NewYork
 

Congress Reception

Monday, 08 April 18:30 - 20:00

Join your peers for the congress reception. Due to high winds, the Congress Reception has moved to the Atlantic Ballroom Foyer.

Maternal Health Panel

Tuesday, 09 April 16:00 - 17:00

The panel will tackle the complex challenges in maternal health, with a primary focus on implementing technical strategies to decrease maternal mortality rates. It will scrutinize various factors influencing maternal health outcomes, such as socioeconomic status, race, ethnicity, and geography. Additionally, the panel will delve into how technology and innovation can improve access to maternal health services, especially for marginalized or remote communities. Our objective is to pinpoint effective strategies and champion actionable solutions to expedite progress in maternal health, thus safeguarding the well-being of mothers and their infants across diverse regions and populations.

Moderator
Jessica Ramella-Roman, Florida International University

Speakers

• Christine O’Brien, Washington University in St Louis
• Latisha Barfield, Florida International University

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