Optical clearing agents (OCAs) and many chemicals are widely used in functional diagnosis of skin tissues. Numerous studies are associated with the transcutaneous diffusion of OCA in epidermal, dermal, and hypodermal tissues, which results in changing their optical properties. In addition, an objective approach that is suitable for screening the influence of utilized OCA, as well as various chemical agents, synthetics, and nanomaterials, on blood and lymph flows is highly desirable. In our study, a highly sensitive laser speckle imaging (LSI) system and fluorescent intravital microscopy (FIM) were used team-wise to inspect the acute skin vascular permeability reaction in mouse ear during the local application of OCA on the skin surface. Fluorescent contrast material administrated intravenously was used for quantitatively assessing the intensity of vascular permeability reaction and the strength of skin irritation. The obtained results suggest that a combined use of LSI and FIM is highly effective for monitoring the cutaneous vascular permeability reaction, with great potential for assessment of allergic reactions of skin in response to interactions with chemical substances.
Keywords: acute vascular reaction; allergens; contact irritant; fluorescence; laser speckle imaging; optical clearing; skin; vascular permeability.