Date of Award
5-2026
Degree Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Honors Thesis
Department
Chemistry
First Advisor
Anne Wilson
Second Advisor
Michael Samide
Abstract
As biochemical, pharmaceutical, and medical sciences advance, the demand for technologies capable of probing multiple cellular targets simultaneously continues to increase. Super-multiplexed spectroscopic techniques offer a pathway toward comprehensive cellular fingerprinting by overcoming the spectral limitations of conventional fluorescence labeling. By circumventing the traditional “color barrier,” cyanine-based Raman tags enable the simultaneous discrimination of numerous cellular morphologies, allowing spectroscopy and imaging to be integrated for high-dimensional cellular analysis. Technologies developed in Goda Lab—including high-throughput flow cytometry, virtual freezing fluorescence imaging (VIFFI), Fourier-transform coherent anti-Stokes Raman spectroscopy (FT-CARS), and MERdot nanoparticles—address longstanding trade-offs between throughput, resolution, sensitivity, and multiplexing capacity. Central to these advances are cyanine dyes, whose structural tunability enables the creation of expansive, spectrally distinct color palettes required for super-multiplexed applications. Beyond their role in Raman-based cellular fingerprinting, cyanine dyes exhibit favorable photostability, biocompatibility, and photophysical adaptability, supporting applications in surgical imaging, live-cell analysis, cancer diagnostics, and dye-sensitized solar technologies. Collectively, these properties position cyanines as strong candidates for next-generation fluorophores in multiplexed spectroscopy and biomedical imaging.
Recommended Citation
Davis, Lucas Allen, "Cyanine Dyes as Next-Generation Fluorophores: Applications in Cell Sorting and Fingerprinting Technologies, Super-Multiplexed Spectroscopy, Biomedical Imaging, and Beyond" (2026). Undergraduate Honors Thesis Collection. 816.
https://digitalcommons.butler.edu/ugtheses/816