Optical Clearing for Deep Skin Imaging with Optical Methods

Skin imaging with optical methods is always limited in depth mainly due to the strong scattering of the excitation and emission light, which significantly reduces the contrast of the images and the probing depth. One of the reasons for the scattering is the mismatch in refractive indices between the skin components, which can be minimized using an optical clearing procedure – the topical application of immersion liquid on the skin. Professor Valery V. Tuchin is a well-known scientist who plays a major role in the field of determination and maintenance of the optical properties of biological objects, including skin, and was a driving force in the development of the optical clearing method. In addition, Professor Valery V. Tuchin can be considered the “Father of Biophotonics in Russia” due to his long-standing, highly effective and globally recognized work in the field of biophotonics, biomedical optics and laser medicine. The following article provides an overview of the work carried out at the Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Department of Dermatology, Center of Experimental and Applied Cutaneous Physiology, in cooperation with Professor Valery V. Tuchin, on the improvement of image contrast and the increase of probing depth in the skin using exemplary optical methods in combination with optical clearing.