{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,18]],"date-time":"2026-09-18T05:07:53Z","timestamp":1789708073730,"version":"4.0.1"},"reference-count":32,"publisher":"Frontiers Media SA","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,18]],"date-time":"2026-09-18T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1789689600000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":["frontiersin.org"],"crossmark-restriction":true},"short-container-title":["Front. Bioeng. Biotechnol."],"abstract":"<jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Introduction<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>To investigate the value of terahertz (THz) spectroscopy combined with gold nanorods (GNRs) in the differential diagnosis of lung squamous cell carcinoma (LUSC) and lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD).<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Methods<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>\n                      Tumor-bearing nude mouse models were established using GNR-treated A549 (LUAD) and NCI-H520 (LUSC) cells. Reflective THz 3D imaging and transmission THz time-domain spectroscopy (THz-TDS) systems, together with CT imaging and pathological validation, were employed to analyze the THz spectral characteristics of\n                      <jats:italic>in vivo<\/jats:italic>\n                      tumors, paraffin-embedded tissues, and thin sections.\n                    <\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Results<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>\n                      CCK-8 and live\/dead staining supported the biocompatibility of 40 \u03bcg\/mL GNRs under the tested conditions.\n                      <jats:italic>In vivo<\/jats:italic>\n                      THz imaging showed higher tumor-region signals in the GNR-treated groups. At 0.5 THz, the model-specific tumor-to-adjacent skin\/subcutaneous ROI contrast ratio in the LUSC group was 36:1 after GNR treatment and 22:1 in the untreated control; The contrast ratio of the GNR-treated LUSC group is 25:1, while that of the untreated control group is 19:1. Among the tested frequency bands, 0.5 THz provided the clearest image contrast. Contrast decreased markedly in paraffin-embedded tissues (approximately 2:1), and spectral differences in routine 5 \u03bcm human sections were obscured by the glass substrate. These findings support proof-of-concept signal enhancement in a subcutaneous xenograft model but do not establish a clinical tumor-to-normal-lung contrast ratio.\n                    <\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Discussion<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>Under the tested conditions, GNR treatment was associated with higher THz signals in subcutaneous LUSC and LUAD xenografts. The mechanism and clinical performance remain unestablished; the approach should be regarded as proof-of-concept and as a potential complement to, rather than a replacement for, standard histopathology.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>","DOI":"10.3389\/fbioe.2026.1923227","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,18]],"date-time":"2026-09-18T04:33:44Z","timestamp":1789706024000},"update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3389\/crossmark-policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["The value of terahertz three-dimensional tomography for the differential diagnosis of tumor tissue and normal tissue in lung cancer nude mice"],"prefix":"10.3389","volume":"14","author":[{"given":"Jin","family":"Zhu","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Qingdao Medical College, Qingdao University","place":["Qingdao, Shandong, China"]},{"name":"Pingdingshan First People\u2019s Hospital, Pingdingshan","place":["Henan, China"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Yang","family":"Li","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Oncology Department, The First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University","place":["Zhengzhou, Henan, China"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Xiaoxue","family":"Zhang","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Oncology Department, Qingdao Haici Hospital","place":["Qingdao, Shandong, China"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Siqi","family":"Yin","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Qingdao Medical College, Qingdao University","place":["Qingdao, Shandong, China"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Juntai","family":"Xu","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Qingdao Medical College, Qingdao University","place":["Qingdao, Shandong, China"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Zhuang","family":"Yu","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Oncology Department, The Affiliated Hospital of Qingdao University","place":["Qingdao, Shandong, China"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Shengnan","family":"Ren","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Qingdao Medical College, Qingdao University","place":["Qingdao, Shandong, China"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Zhaoxin","family":"Guo","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"School of Physics Sciences, Qingdao University","place":["Qingdao, Shandong, China"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Dongwei","family":"Zhai","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"School of Physics Sciences, Qingdao University","place":["Qingdao, Shandong, China"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Chuan","family":"Li","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Thoracic Surgery Department, The Affiliated Hospital of Qingdao University","place":["Qingdao, Shandong, China"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1965","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,18]]},"reference":[{"key":"B1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"12444","DOI":"10.1364\/oe.17.012444","article-title":"Terahertz pulsed spectroscopy of freshly excised human breast cancer","volume":"17","author":"Ashworth","year":"2009","journal-title":"Opt. 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