An increasing trend in aesthetic laser systems--for skin rejuvenation, hair removal, skin tightening, tattoo removal, and so on--is multifunctionality. A related trend is promotion of the devices in terms of cost savings and increase of revenue streams for practitioners. Two examples of this are announcements made this month by Candela and Sciton.
An increasing trend in aesthetic laser systems--for skin rejuvenation, hair removal, skin tightening, tattoo removal, and so on--is multifunctionality. A related trend is promotion of the devices in terms of cost savings and increase of revenue streams for practitioners. Two examples of this are announcements made this month by Candela and Sciton.
I suppose this trend is simply evolutionary, but in light of current economic conditions, especially in the aesthetics realm, it seems especially fitting.
Sciton noted that its new Joule product would enable "revenue stimulus for the current economic environment that will easily translate to solid, long-term practice-building and growth." Perhaps the translation will be easy, but I doubt it will be quick. I hope I’m wrong, though.
Monday, February 16, 2009
Monday, February 9, 2009
Biosensors advancing
“Optical biosensors have begun to move from the laboratory to the point of use,” wrote Frances S. Ligler of the Naval Research Laboratory’s Center for Bio/Molecular Science and Engineering, in a paper titled “Perspective on optical biosensors and integreated sensor systems” (published in December 2008 by the American Chemical Society).
“Optical biosensors have begun to move from the laboratory to the point of use,” wrote Frances S. Ligler of the Naval Research Laboratory’s Center for Bio/Molecular Science and Engineering, in a paper titled “Perspective on optical biosensors and integreated sensor systems” (published in December 2008 by the American Chemical Society). Ligler adds that movement from lab to application will be hastened by “new concepts for molecular recognition, integration of microfluidics and optics, simplified fabrication technologies, improved approaches to biosensor system integration, and dramatically increased awareness of the applicability of sensor technology to improve public health and environmental monitoring.”
Here are a couple of interesting stories we’ve reported recently on biosensors. Stay tuned for more:
Spanish researchers propose low-cost method of developing label-free optical biosensor chip
Euro researchers' wearable fiber-optic biosensors monitor patients during MRI scans
“Optical biosensors have begun to move from the laboratory to the point of use,” wrote Frances S. Ligler of the Naval Research Laboratory’s Center for Bio/Molecular Science and Engineering, in a paper titled “Perspective on optical biosensors and integreated sensor systems” (published in December 2008 by the American Chemical Society). Ligler adds that movement from lab to application will be hastened by “new concepts for molecular recognition, integration of microfluidics and optics, simplified fabrication technologies, improved approaches to biosensor system integration, and dramatically increased awareness of the applicability of sensor technology to improve public health and environmental monitoring.”
Here are a couple of interesting stories we’ve reported recently on biosensors. Stay tuned for more:
Spanish researchers propose low-cost method of developing label-free optical biosensor chip
Euro researchers' wearable fiber-optic biosensors monitor patients during MRI scans
Monday, January 26, 2009
Second dispatch from BiOS/PW ’09
This is a long week for those of us “all in” at BiOS and Photonics West, but though it’s not even halfway over, I can already tell it won’t be long enough for me to see all that I want to.
This is a long week for those of us “all in” at BiOS and Photonics West, but though it’s not even halfway over, I can already tell it won’t be long enough for me to see all that I want to.
I spent much of today in the Lasers and Photonics Marketplace seminar, wherein leaders of the greater optics and photonics industry reported and forecasted market outcomes, and discussed important developments. Laser Focus World chief editor Steve Anderson predicted that when all the 2008 numbers are in, the biomedical therapy market will reveal a decline of ~5% from 2007 levels, and 2009 figures will decline a bit further to $477 million in sales.
I also got to talk a bit with Claude Boccara of LLTech (Paris, France) following his presentation on an imaging approach his company calls “full field OCT.” It is unusual in that instead of imaging vertical “slices” of tissue (perpendicular to the probe) as do other optical coherence tomography scanners, LLTech’s “en face” approach images horizontally (parallel to the probe). While this inherently involves a limited depth of field, the approach is able to image a larger area and promises better penetration. The system combines the layers to produce the same kind of image cube that traditional OCT systems do—and lets you step through the cube by peeling away vertical slices. LLTech plans to launch its system commercially in 2010.
Oh, and I reported only one of the presentations at Saturday night’s Hot Topics session—so let me fill you in on another: Kishan Dholakia of the University of St. Andrews (U.K.) discussed photoporation (also called optical injection or transfection) of exogenous DNA into a cell, saying it is “set to become a mainstay in microscopy,” thanks especially to “novel light beams and optical technology and control.” Thanks, that is, to beam shaping.
This is a long week for those of us “all in” at BiOS and Photonics West, but though it’s not even halfway over, I can already tell it won’t be long enough for me to see all that I want to.
I spent much of today in the Lasers and Photonics Marketplace seminar, wherein leaders of the greater optics and photonics industry reported and forecasted market outcomes, and discussed important developments. Laser Focus World chief editor Steve Anderson predicted that when all the 2008 numbers are in, the biomedical therapy market will reveal a decline of ~5% from 2007 levels, and 2009 figures will decline a bit further to $477 million in sales.
I also got to talk a bit with Claude Boccara of LLTech (Paris, France) following his presentation on an imaging approach his company calls “full field OCT.” It is unusual in that instead of imaging vertical “slices” of tissue (perpendicular to the probe) as do other optical coherence tomography scanners, LLTech’s “en face” approach images horizontally (parallel to the probe). While this inherently involves a limited depth of field, the approach is able to image a larger area and promises better penetration. The system combines the layers to produce the same kind of image cube that traditional OCT systems do—and lets you step through the cube by peeling away vertical slices. LLTech plans to launch its system commercially in 2010.
Oh, and I reported only one of the presentations at Saturday night’s Hot Topics session—so let me fill you in on another: Kishan Dholakia of the University of St. Andrews (U.K.) discussed photoporation (also called optical injection or transfection) of exogenous DNA into a cell, saying it is “set to become a mainstay in microscopy,” thanks especially to “novel light beams and optical technology and control.” Thanks, that is, to beam shaping.
Saturday, January 24, 2009
First dispatch from BiOS/PW '09
Introducing the “hot topics” session tonight at SPIE’s BiOS event, Dr. Rox Anderson noted that the BiOS conference is now nearing half the size of Photonics West!
Introducing the “hot topics” session tonight at SPIE’s BiOS event, Dr. Rox Anderson noted that the BiOS conference is now nearing half the size of Photonics West!
The session itself began with Dr. Stefan Hell demonstrating how his Stimulated Emission Depletion (STED) microscope breaks the diffraction barrier to achieve super-resolution imaging (28X greater than confocal, down to 8 nm) within living neurons, for instance—and record at 28 frames per second. Wow.
In the exhibit hall I found a couple of vendors claiming unique capabilities. For instance, Innolume says its quantum dot technology exploits wavelengths that nobody else touches--in the 1120 - 1210 nm range (actually Innolume covers a wider spread--1064 - 1320 nm--but other companies have offerings at either end of that range). Another, Translume, is using lasers to produce glass waveguides and other microstructures such as microfluidic channels.
Michelson Diagnostics demonstrated its handheld OCT probe for imaging skin. The company is targeting non-opthalmic applications, and in fact plans to attend or exhibit at dermatology events in 2009.
Kapteyn Murnane Laboratories (KMLabs for short), which develops low-cost ultrafast amplifier systems to compete with some of the larger developers, said it shortly plans to introduce a new device about half the size of its current systems.
More soon--stay tuned!
Introducing the “hot topics” session tonight at SPIE’s BiOS event, Dr. Rox Anderson noted that the BiOS conference is now nearing half the size of Photonics West!
The session itself began with Dr. Stefan Hell demonstrating how his Stimulated Emission Depletion (STED) microscope breaks the diffraction barrier to achieve super-resolution imaging (28X greater than confocal, down to 8 nm) within living neurons, for instance—and record at 28 frames per second. Wow.
In the exhibit hall I found a couple of vendors claiming unique capabilities. For instance, Innolume says its quantum dot technology exploits wavelengths that nobody else touches--in the 1120 - 1210 nm range (actually Innolume covers a wider spread--1064 - 1320 nm--but other companies have offerings at either end of that range). Another, Translume, is using lasers to produce glass waveguides and other microstructures such as microfluidic channels.
Michelson Diagnostics demonstrated its handheld OCT probe for imaging skin. The company is targeting non-opthalmic applications, and in fact plans to attend or exhibit at dermatology events in 2009.
Kapteyn Murnane Laboratories (KMLabs for short), which develops low-cost ultrafast amplifier systems to compete with some of the larger developers, said it shortly plans to introduce a new device about half the size of its current systems.
More soon--stay tuned!
Wednesday, January 21, 2009
My BiOS/PW jogging route includes…
The SPIE, producer of Photonics West (January 24-29) and BiOS (the largest of its four symposia), says that the 2009 BiOS event, starting on Saturday, will be ~15% larger than it was in 2008. I’ve packed my jogging shoes because the exhibits run only 9 hours and feature 150 companies. (The hall opens Saturday at 1 pm till 5 pm, and Sunday from 10 am till 4 pm). Here are a few stops I’m looking forward to:
The SPIE, producer of Photonics West (January 24-29) and BiOS (the largest of its four symposia), says that the 2009 BiOS event, starting on Saturday, will be ~15% larger than it was in 2008. I’ve packed my jogging shoes because the exhibits run only 9 hours and feature 150 companies. (The hall opens Saturday at 1 pm till 5 pm, and Sunday from 10 am till 4 pm). Here are a few stops I’m looking forward to:
Fianium (booth 8132) will demonstrate its recently announced supercontinuum fiber lasers, the first to use the company's new proprietary high performance photonic crystal fiber (PCF) design, developed in partnership with the University of Bath (Bath, England). The technology promises key advantages over traditional supercontinuum techniques.
Michelson Diagnostics’ (booth 8731) will demo its prototype hand-held OCT probe, based on multi-beam technology. The company plans to launch “more than one variant” of the new probe later in 2009, including a dermal version (with X-Y scanning, to enable 3D mapping of skin lesions) and a version equipped with a rigid endoscope, suitable for oral applications. The company will apply for a CE mark for the product this spring, and then file an FDA 510(k) application.
Of course the larger Photonics West event (exhibits open Tuesday, January 27) will feature plenty of companies targeting bio-optics applications, too. For instance Cal Sensors (booth 6234) will introduce LIRA-5S, a lead selenide thermal imaging array that combines sensitivity in a wider wavelength range with integrated electronics. The device can be programmed for use in a wide variety of high-speed thermal imaging applications.
And Inno-Spec GmbH (booth 1801) will introduce a mid-infrared (MIR) compact line-array spectrometer with sensitivity in the 1-3 micron wavelength region that is less expensive than competing technologies.
The SPIE, producer of Photonics West (January 24-29) and BiOS (the largest of its four symposia), says that the 2009 BiOS event, starting on Saturday, will be ~15% larger than it was in 2008. I’ve packed my jogging shoes because the exhibits run only 9 hours and feature 150 companies. (The hall opens Saturday at 1 pm till 5 pm, and Sunday from 10 am till 4 pm). Here are a few stops I’m looking forward to:
Fianium (booth 8132) will demonstrate its recently announced supercontinuum fiber lasers, the first to use the company's new proprietary high performance photonic crystal fiber (PCF) design, developed in partnership with the University of Bath (Bath, England). The technology promises key advantages over traditional supercontinuum techniques.
Michelson Diagnostics’ (booth 8731) will demo its prototype hand-held OCT probe, based on multi-beam technology. The company plans to launch “more than one variant” of the new probe later in 2009, including a dermal version (with X-Y scanning, to enable 3D mapping of skin lesions) and a version equipped with a rigid endoscope, suitable for oral applications. The company will apply for a CE mark for the product this spring, and then file an FDA 510(k) application.
Of course the larger Photonics West event (exhibits open Tuesday, January 27) will feature plenty of companies targeting bio-optics applications, too. For instance Cal Sensors (booth 6234) will introduce LIRA-5S, a lead selenide thermal imaging array that combines sensitivity in a wider wavelength range with integrated electronics. The device can be programmed for use in a wide variety of high-speed thermal imaging applications.
And Inno-Spec GmbH (booth 1801) will introduce a mid-infrared (MIR) compact line-array spectrometer with sensitivity in the 1-3 micron wavelength region that is less expensive than competing technologies.
Wednesday, January 7, 2009
It's bad, but not all bad
Yes, it's bad out there. But it's not all bad.
Laser vision correction doesn't yet show signs of recovery; the eye-surgery market research firm Market Scope predicts the segment will finish 2008 with a 17% drop. And the aesthetics sector is similarly struggling: Candela reported revenues down 24.2% in its first fiscal quarter from $35.5 million in the comparable prior-year period; Cutera’s Q3 2008 results were well below management's guidance and the consensus estimates, and Syneron reported revenues for Q3 2008 of $28.5 million, down from $33.1 million in Q3 2007 (even though the company’s international sales rose 17% year over year).
Yes, it's bad out there. But it's not all bad.
Laser vision correction doesn't yet show signs of recovery; the eye-surgery market research firm Market Scope predicts the segment will finish 2008 with a 17% drop. And the aesthetics sector is similarly struggling: Candela reported revenues down 24.2% in its first fiscal quarter from $35.5 million in the comparable prior-year period; Cutera’s Q3 2008 results were well below management's guidance and the consensus estimates, and Syneron reported revenues for Q3 2008 of $28.5 million, down from $33.1 million in Q3 2007 (even though the company’s international sales rose 17% year over year).
But on the up side, aesthetic laser company Cynosure bucked the trend with 21% growth in Q3 revenues. More good news: Strategic Directions International notes that handheld and portable molecular spectroscopy should see “very strong growth for the foreseeable future." This week, cardiovascular OCT systems developer LightLab discussed a similarly positive outlook, while AngioDynamics, Inc., which this summer acquired Diomed, reported net sales for its fiscal second quarter were up 17% over the $41.5 million reported in Q2 a year ago.
The January issue of Laser Focus World quotes Phil Crowley of MarketTech, a laser distribution, sales, and service company, as saying, “With a vast majority of our laser business in biotech, we haven’t seen a slowdown yet.” He said he is “encouraged that higher power levels, broader wavelength range offerings, smaller packages, and price reductions can result in further penetration of lasers into many biomedical instruments for DNA sequencing and disease analysis, flow cytometry, and microscopy.”
Laser vision correction doesn't yet show signs of recovery; the eye-surgery market research firm Market Scope predicts the segment will finish 2008 with a 17% drop. And the aesthetics sector is similarly struggling: Candela reported revenues down 24.2% in its first fiscal quarter from $35.5 million in the comparable prior-year period; Cutera’s Q3 2008 results were well below management's guidance and the consensus estimates, and Syneron reported revenues for Q3 2008 of $28.5 million, down from $33.1 million in Q3 2007 (even though the company’s international sales rose 17% year over year).
Yes, it's bad out there. But it's not all bad.
Laser vision correction doesn't yet show signs of recovery; the eye-surgery market research firm Market Scope predicts the segment will finish 2008 with a 17% drop. And the aesthetics sector is similarly struggling: Candela reported revenues down 24.2% in its first fiscal quarter from $35.5 million in the comparable prior-year period; Cutera’s Q3 2008 results were well below management's guidance and the consensus estimates, and Syneron reported revenues for Q3 2008 of $28.5 million, down from $33.1 million in Q3 2007 (even though the company’s international sales rose 17% year over year).
But on the up side, aesthetic laser company Cynosure bucked the trend with 21% growth in Q3 revenues. More good news: Strategic Directions International notes that handheld and portable molecular spectroscopy should see “very strong growth for the foreseeable future." This week, cardiovascular OCT systems developer LightLab discussed a similarly positive outlook, while AngioDynamics, Inc., which this summer acquired Diomed, reported net sales for its fiscal second quarter were up 17% over the $41.5 million reported in Q2 a year ago.
The January issue of Laser Focus World quotes Phil Crowley of MarketTech, a laser distribution, sales, and service company, as saying, “With a vast majority of our laser business in biotech, we haven’t seen a slowdown yet.” He said he is “encouraged that higher power levels, broader wavelength range offerings, smaller packages, and price reductions can result in further penetration of lasers into many biomedical instruments for DNA sequencing and disease analysis, flow cytometry, and microscopy.”
Friday, December 12, 2008
Neuroscience loves biooptics!
Normally, perusing the conference program is a good way to tell whether a trade show is a good match for your interests. If your interests are in biooptics and biophotonics, though, looking at the Neuroscience 2008 (Washington, DC, November 15-19) program would not have been a reliable indicator of relevance. There was nary a mention of technologies in the session descriptions—but the show floor was positively bursting with photonics and optics companies, both component suppliers and instrumentation vendors. That’s certainly not true of all biomedical industry events, so I was pleasantly surprised.
Normally, perusing the conference program is a good way to tell whether a trade show is a good match for your interests. If your interests are in biooptics, though, looking at the Neuroscience 2008 (Washington, DC, November 15-19) program would not have been a reliable indicator of relevance. There was nary a mention of technologies in the session descriptions—but the show floor was positively bursting with photonics and optics companies, both component suppliers and instrumentation vendors. That’s certainly not true of all biomedical industry events, so I was pleasantly surprised.
My picks for show highlights:
Lockheed Martin Aculight, which promoted its Capella infrared nerve stimulator.
Olympus showcased its FSX100 Bio Imaging Navigator all-in-one microscope system among other products that address both ends of the microscopy spectrum and cater to either the high-end user or novice microscopists.
Carl Zeiss MicroImaging made a splash by announcing four new fluorescence imaging systems, saying these additions make its family of optical sectioning microscopes the largest on the market. Zeiss also used Neuroscience 2008 to launch an educational website in collaboration with Florida State University, which intends to be a "comprehensive and independent resource to learn about the latest techniques in fluorescence imaging."
Both Zeiss and Visage Imaging showcased software working on autostereoscopic (meaning no need for red-and-blue glasses or other eyewear/headgear!) interactive 3D displays by Tridelity, which uses a parallax barrier to produce a two-view, head-tracked display for single-viewer systems or a multiview display that supports multiple viewers.
And Nikon and Thorlabs announced their collaboration to bring optical coherence tomography (OCT) to Nikon's FN1 "PhysioStation" microscope system for neurophysiology and in vivo, small-animal studies.
More information:
Tridelity
Normally, perusing the conference program is a good way to tell whether a trade show is a good match for your interests. If your interests are in biooptics, though, looking at the Neuroscience 2008 (Washington, DC, November 15-19) program would not have been a reliable indicator of relevance. There was nary a mention of technologies in the session descriptions—but the show floor was positively bursting with photonics and optics companies, both component suppliers and instrumentation vendors. That’s certainly not true of all biomedical industry events, so I was pleasantly surprised.
My picks for show highlights:
Lockheed Martin Aculight, which promoted its Capella infrared nerve stimulator.
Olympus showcased its FSX100 Bio Imaging Navigator all-in-one microscope system among other products that address both ends of the microscopy spectrum and cater to either the high-end user or novice microscopists.
Carl Zeiss MicroImaging made a splash by announcing four new fluorescence imaging systems, saying these additions make its family of optical sectioning microscopes the largest on the market. Zeiss also used Neuroscience 2008 to launch an educational website in collaboration with Florida State University, which intends to be a "comprehensive and independent resource to learn about the latest techniques in fluorescence imaging."
Both Zeiss and Visage Imaging showcased software working on autostereoscopic (meaning no need for red-and-blue glasses or other eyewear/headgear!) interactive 3D displays by Tridelity, which uses a parallax barrier to produce a two-view, head-tracked display for single-viewer systems or a multiview display that supports multiple viewers.
And Nikon and Thorlabs announced their collaboration to bring optical coherence tomography (OCT) to Nikon's FN1 "PhysioStation" microscope system for neurophysiology and in vivo, small-animal studies.
More information:
Tridelity
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