Possible biomedical-oriented applications of this technique are related to the study of the myelin and myelopathies. Myelin is a highly ordered structure, in which many lipid-
enriched, densely compacted phospholipid bilayers are spirally rolled up around the
cylindrical axons. The linear acyl chains of the phospholipid molecules present a
perpendicular orientation with respect to the myelin surface. Therefore, in a myelinated nerve
fiber, a large number of molecular bonds are ordered around a radial axis of symmetry. Such a
strong molecular anisotropy and azimuthal symmetry make RP-CARS a suitable tool to investigate
neural white matter.