**3. Conclusions**

of the structure of the stratum corneum (SC) at the molecular level for the estimation of the penetration enhancers which grow the permeation of the drugs through the human SC and

Genistein (GEN; 4, 5, 7-trihydroxyisoflavone), which is also known as phytoestrogen because it has similar structure with the human hormone 17β-oestradiol, represents a powerful tyrosine kinase inhibitor that has been widely utilized in order to prevent and to cure many diseases and disorders such as cardiovascular disease, osteoporosis, and cancer [39, 40]. Recent results [40, 41] have shown that using FTIR-ATR technique helps to discover new ways for the improvement of the transdermal transport of a lyotropic liquid crystal genistein-based formulation (LLC-GEN). In order to increase the transdermal drug transport, LLC-GEN was coupled with electroporation (EP). So, in Ref. [40] the synergistic effect of EP in the case of the

The FTIR-ATR method is among characterization techniques of surfaces used to investigate new properties of the nanomaterials for various biomedical applications including the implant applications. In this sense, in order to investigate the interactions of nanomaterials with biological systems such as proteins, FTIR-ATR is used to provide information about the changes in the surface chemistry after certain nanotechnology-based chemical or physical after treatments are applied with the aim of the contribution to the regeneration of the differ-

The potential of the FTIR method combined with photoacoustic spectroscopy and diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (DRS) was exploited for the applications in the detection of the fungi and the mycotoxins which represent a severe cause of food poisoning in humans and animals. More exactly, there are some recent studies that show the usefulness of FTIR-PAS technique for the identification of corn kernels infected with fungi *Fusarium moniliforme* and *Aspergillus* 

FTIR-PAS also provides the possibility to obtain information about the drug mechanism and the barrier function of SC in order to implement them to the biomedical and cosmetic applica-

Recently, by coupling the FTIR techniques with imaging methods, a correlation of the biochemical information such as protein misfolding and metal homeostasis was reached, which has resulted in understanding of the mechanism of the neurodegenerative protein misfolding disease including Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, Huntington's disease, and mul-

Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometry (FTICR-MS) represents one of the most advanced and complex techniques of mass analysis and detection. FTICR-MS is a powerful tool which can be utilized to find masses with high accuracy. Many applications of FTICR-MS utilize the mass accuracy like a very important parameter in order to find the composition of the molecules based on accurate mass. FTICR-MS has been shown to provide important clues regarding the nontargeted metabolic profiling and functional characterization of novel genes [47, 48]. The compilation of the high mass accuracy and the ultra-highresolving power of FTICR-MS is ideal for the resolving of the analytical problems of the complex-mixtured analyses encountered in proteomics [49, 50] and petroleomics [50, 51].

ent tissues (such as those of bone, cartilage, vascular, and neural systems) [42, 43].

for the analysis of its lipids, proteins, and water content [36, 39].

246 Fourier Transforms - High-tech Application and Current Trends

hairless mouse skin with the help of FTIR-ATR has been proved.

*flavus* [44].

tions [36, 45].

tiple sclerosis [46, 38].

This chapter represents a reference review for Fourier transform methods as they are applied in spectroscopy. More exactly, the work concerns an overview of the current status, of the recent achievements in FTS spectroscopy, and some selected new applications of FTS in the medical, biological, and biomedical fields, with the emphasis on the own work done by the author of this chapter.

The confluence of Fourier transform spectroscopy methods with nanotechnology, biology, and medicine opens new opportunities for the detection and handling of the atoms and molecules using nanodevices, with potential for a large variety of biological and medical applications at the cellular level.
