Spectrochemical analysis of slippery loach skin and kelp using FTIR imaging

Abstract

FTIR imaging was used to examine marine plant and fish skin cross-sections in detail, particularly in kelp and loach samples. Based on the spectral information obtained for kelp and loach skin, FTIR imaging allowed us to identify the spatial distributions of specific functional groups in the kelp and loach skin cross-sections. FTIR imaging of kelp cross-sections showed the chemical distributions of two major components in the cell walls and was used to identify the spectral intensity differences in the meristoderm and cortex regions. In addition, FTIR imaging of loach skin cross-sections revealed the chemical distribution of the proteins in the complex loach skin cross-sections. In particular, the FTIR imaging results for loach skin cross-sections demonstrated the capability of visualizing the loach skin cells without a staining process.