Raman microspectroscopy of the brain tissues in the substantia nigra and MPTP-induced Parkinson's disease

The substantia nigra of the rostral mid-brain of a monkey was studied using Raman microspectroscopy. The white and grey matter could be clearly distinguished and their relative proportions evaluated from the Raman peaks in the 3000 cm−1 region. Raman spectra obtained from the substantia nigra for both treated and untreated samples showed that the process of staining the neuron nuclei affected the brain cells and the quality of the Raman spectra from the treated samples was poorer. The brain cells of a monkey suffering from Parkinson's disease was also studied. Raman spectra collected from the control cells and the diseased cells did not show a clear difference.