Combined SHG signal information with AFM imaging to assess conformational changes in collagen

Collagen is the most abundant protein in mammals and is important for a variety of functions and its concentration, structure and function is associated with different pathological states. In this research we correlate structural changes with those changes in the Second Harmonic Generation (SHG) signal. The combination of Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM) imaging with information included in SHG signal can significantly contribute to further understanding of the nonlinear optical properties of collagen.