Modern Vibrational Spectroscopy and Micro-Spectroscopy: Theory, Instrumentation and Biomedical Applications unites the theory and background of conventional vibrational spectroscopy with the principles of microspectroscopy. It starts with basic theory as it applies to small molecules and then expands it to include the large biomolecules which are the main topic of the book with an emphasis on practical experiments, results analysis and medical and diagnostic applications. This book is unique in that it addresses both the parent spectroscopy and the microspectroscopic aspects in one volume. Part I covers the basic theory, principles and instrumentation of classical vibrational, infrared and Raman spectroscopy. It is aimed at researchers with a background in chemistry and physics, and is presented at the level suitable for first year graduate students. The latter half of Part I is devoted to more novel subjects in vibrational spectroscopy, such as resonance and non-linear Raman effects, vibrational optical activity, time resolved spectroscopy and computational methods. Thus, Part 1 represents a short course into modern vibrational spectroscopy. Part II is devoted in its entirety to applications of vibrational spectroscopic techniques to biophysical and bio-structural research, and the more recent extension of vibrational spectroscopy to microscopic data acquisition. Vibrational microscopy (or microspectroscopy) has opened entirely new avenues toward applications in the biomedical sciences, and has created new research fields collectively referred to as Spectral Cytopathology (SCP) and Spectral Histopathology (SHP). In order to fully exploit the information contained in the micro-spectral datasets, methods of multivariate analysis need to be employed. These methods, along with representative results of both SCP and SHP are presented and discussed in detail in Part II.

Cancer is the second largest cause of death (after heart disease) in North America and Europe. Statistics from many countries serve constantly to inform us of how prevalent cancer is worldwide, even though one particular variation may be more predominant is one geographical region than another. The Traumatic cost in human lives, the dramatic cost of treatment and the need for rapidly advancing diagnoses and improving diagnostic methods for cancer, are clear for all to see. Current histopathological techniques for the detection and classification of cancer often lead to ambiguous diagnoses. Infrared and Raman spectroscopy have the potential to provide fast, accurate complementary techniques for the detection of many different forms of cancer. This book contains ten state-of-the-art chapters on the application of these techniques to the detection and classification of prostate, lymphatic, cervical, head and neck, and esophageal cancers, as well as reports on the application of vibrational spectroscopy to the study of individual human cells, and the identification of micro-organisms and erythrocytes, which should be of importance to spectroscopists and medical professionals alike.

This book provides an up-to-date account of the practical means, applications and potential of mid-infrared and Raman spectroscopy for the medical diagnosis of diseased tissue and cells. It will be of significant interest both to vibrational spectroscopists involved in developing technique for medical diagnosis, and to clinicians, histopathologists, medical practitioners and students working in the field, with whom the spectroscopists must work closely in multi-disciplinary teams.