A new way of diagnosing and treating disease -- without cutting skin

一种无需切割皮肤的疾病诊断和治疗新方法

译锐翻译   2019-5-29            9:36

© ivanovevgeniy 

Researchers develop new laser microscope that could be 'revolutionary' for treatment of diseases such as skin cancer

研究人员所研发的激光显微镜技术对于皮肤癌等疾病的治疗可能具有革命性的意义

University of British Columbia researchers have developed a specialized microscope that has the potential ability to both diagnose diseases that include skin cancer and perform incredibly precise surgery -- all without cutting skin.

英国哥伦比亚大学的研究人员研发出一种专用显微镜。这种显微镜可以在无需切割皮肤的情况下诊断包括皮肤癌在内的疾病并进行异常精确的外科手术。

The researchers describe the technology in a study published today in Science Advances.

在今日发表于“Science Advances”的一篇研究报告中，研究人员介绍了该技术。

"Our technology allows us to scan tissue quickly, and when we see a suspicious or abnormal cell structure, we can perform ultra-precise surgery and selectively treat the unwanted or diseased structure within the tissue -- without cutting into the skin," said Yimei Huang, co-lead author of the study and a former postdoctoral fellow at the department of dermatology and skin science at UBC and BC Cancer.

英属哥伦比亚大学和BC Cancer皮肤病学与皮肤科学系的前博士后及本研究的并列第一作者Yimei Huang表示：“通过这一技术，我们可以快速扫描组织。当发现可疑或不正常的细胞结构时，我们可以在不切割皮肤的前提下，采取超精确的外科手术并有选择性地在组织内治疗那些我们不希望出现或有问题的结构。”

Huang co-led the study with Zhenguo Wu, a UBC PhD student.

黄和Zhenguo Wu--英属哥伦比亚大学的博士生共同负责这项研究。

The device is a specialized type of multiphoton excitation microscope that allows imaging of living tissue up to about one millimeter in depth using an ultrafast infrared laser beam. What sets the researchers' microscope apart from previous technology is that it's capable of not only digitally scanning living tissue, but also treating the tissue by intensifying the heat produced by the laser.

该设备是一种专门的多光子激发类显微镜。该显微镜通过利用超速红外激光波对大约深度在1毫米的活体组织进行成像。研究人员的显微镜与之前技术的区别在于，该显微镜不仅可以数字化扫描活体组织，还可以通过增强激光所产生的热能来治疗组织。

When applied to treating diseases of the skin, the microscope allows medical professionals to pinpoint the exact location of the abnormality, diagnose it and treat it instantly. It could be used to treat any structure of the body that is reached by light and that requires extremely precise treatment, including nerves or blood vessels in the skin, eye, brain or other vital structures.

当应用于治疗皮肤疾病时，显微镜可以让医学人员对异常细胞的准确位置进行精确定位，对其进行诊断并立刻进行治疗。该技术可以用于治疗身体中任何光可以到达以及需要非常精确治疗的部位，比如神经、皮肤、眼部、大脑或其他重要结构中的血管。

"We can alter the pathway of blood vessels without impacting any of the surrounding vessels or tissues," said study co-author Harvey Lui, professor at the department of dermatology and skin science at UBC and the Vancouver Coastal Health Research Institute, and a dermatologist at BC Cancer. "For diagnosing and scanning diseases like skin cancer, this could be revolutionary."

Harvey Lui，研究的共同作者，英属哥伦比亚大学和温哥华海岸健康研究院皮肤病学和皮肤科学系教授及BC Cancer皮肤科医生表示：“我们可以在不影响任何周边血管和组织的前提下改变血管的路径。对于皮肤癌这类疾病的诊断和扫描，这一技术可能具有革命性。”

The researchers wanted to make multiphoton microscope technology more versatile while also increasing its precision.

研究人员希望在增加多光子显微镜技术精确性的同时，使其用途更加广泛。

"We wanted to be able to identify what was happening under the skin from many different angles and to have the capability of imaging different body sites," said senior author Haishan Zeng, professor of dermatology, pathology and physics at UBC and distinguished scientist with BC Cancer.

英属哥伦比亚大学皮肤科学、病理学和物理学教授，BC Cancer知名科学家、本研究的高级作者Zeng Haishan表示：“我们希望能够从多个不同的角度来发现皮肤下面的情况并且对不同的身体部位进行成像。”

"Once we achieved that, we wondered whether we could transform this diagnostic device into a treatment device by simply turning up the power of the laser."

“一旦我们实现了这一目标，我们就会考虑我们是否能够通过加大激光的功率，使这一诊断设备转变为一个治疗设备。”

The results were incredibly exciting.

结果非常让人兴奋。

"We are not only the first to achieve fast video-rate imaging that enables clinical applications, but also the first to develop this technology for therapeutic uses," said Zeng.

Zeng表示：“我们不仅是实现快速视频播放成像并将其应用于临床的第一人，同时我们也是将这一技术应用于治疗的第一人。”

The researchers have partnered with several UBC departments, including mechanical engineering, electrical engineering and ophthalmology, to develop different versions of the technology. Exploration includes research into the development of a miniature version that could be used to perform microscopic examinations and treatment during endoscopy -- a non-surgical procedure used to examine a person's digestive tract using an endoscope, a flexible tube with a light and camera attached to it.

研究人员已与英属哥伦比亚大学包括机械工程系、电气工程系以及眼科学系在内的几个系展开合作，一同在此技术上开发不同类型的技术。研究包括开发可以用来在内窥镜检查期间进行显微检查和治疗的微型技术-一种用内窥镜（一根带有光源和摄像头的灵活管子）来检查患者消化道的非外科方法。

This work was supported by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research, the National Key Basic Research Program of China, the National Natural Science Foundation of China, the Canadian Dermatology Foundation, the VGH & UBC Hospital Foundation and the BC Hydro Employees Community Services Fund.

这项研究得到了加拿大健康研究院、中国国家核心基础研究项目、中国国家自然科学基金会、加拿大皮肤科学科基金会、VGH&UBC医院基金会以及BC Hydro员工社区服务基金会的支持。

需要了解的词汇：

Treatment: 治疗；

Specialized： 专用的；

Set apart：区别；

Pinpoint：准确地找出〔某物的位置〕

Turn up: 调高、调大

文章来源：科学日报，编辑：质控部Susan