Mary Ann Mycek

Quantitative fluorescence lifetime spectroscopy in turbid media: comparison of theoretical, experimental and computational methods

A Monte Carlo model developed to simulate time-resolved fluorescence propagation in a semi-infinite turbid medium was validated against previously reported theoretical and computational results. Model simulations were compared to experimental measurements of fluorescence spectra and lifetimes on tissue-simulating phantoms for single and dual fibre-optic probe geometries. Experiments and simulations using a single probe revealed that scattering-induced artefacts appeared in fluorescence emission spectra, while fluorescence lifetimes were unchanged. Although fluorescence lifetime measurements are generally more robust to scattering artefacts than are measurements of fluorescence spectra, in the dual-probe geometry scattering-induced changes in apparent lifetime were predicted both from diffusion theory and via Monte Carlo simulation, as well as measured experimentally. In all cases, the recovered apparent lifetime increased with increasing scattering and increasing source-detector separation. Diffusion theory consistently underestimated the magnitude of these increases in apparent lifetime (predicting a maximum increase of approximately 15%), while Monte Carlo simulations and experiment were closely matched (showing increases as large as 30%). These results indicate that quantitative simulations of time-resolved fluorescence propagation in turbid media will be important for accurate recovery of fluorophore lifetimes in biological spectroscopy and imaging applications.

Autofluorescence characteristics of immortalized and carcinogen-transformed human bronchial epithelial cells

Tissue autofluorescence has been explored as a potential method of noninvasive pre-neoplasia (pre-malignancy) detection in the lung. Here, we report the first studies of intrinsic cellular autofluorescence from SV40 immortalized and distinct tobacco-carcinogen-transformed (malignant) human bronchial epithelial cells. These cell lines are useful models for studies seeking to distinguish between normal and pre-neoplastic human bronchial epithelial cells. The cells were characterized via spectrofluorimetry and confocal fluorescence microscopy. Spectrofluorimetry revealed that tryptophan was the dominant fluorophore. No change in tryptophan emission intensity was observed between immortalized and carcinogen-transformed cells. Confocal autofluorescence microscopy was performed using a highly sensitive, spectrometer-coupled instrument capable of limiting emission detection to specific wavelength ranges. These studies revealed two additional endogenous fluorophores, whose excitation and emission characteristics were consistent with nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NADH) and flavins. In immortalized human bronchial epithelial cells, the fluorescence of these species was localized to cytoplasmic granules. In contrast, the carcinogen-transformed cells showed an appreciable decrease in the fluorescence intensity of both NADH and flavins and the punctate, spatial localization of the autofluorescence was lost. The observed autofluorescence decrease was potentially the result of changes in the redox state of the fluorophores. The random cytoplasmic fluorescence pattern found in carcinogen-transformed cells may be attributed to changes in the mitochondrial morphology. The implications of these results to pre-neoplasia detection in the lung are discussed.

Design and development of a rapid acquisition laser-based fluorometer with simultaneous spectral and temporal resolution

We report the design, development, and characterization of a sensitive, time-resolved fluorescence spectrometer capable of measuring fluorescence spectra and transient decays simultaneously, with data acquisition times less than 1 s. The spectrometer, a portable fluorescence lifetime spectrometer (FLS), was designed to be compatible with both laboratory and clinical research studies on biological systems, and was applied to the study of several biological fluorophores in vitro and human tissue in vivo. The instrument consisted of a nitrogen laser pumping a dye laser for excitation from 337.1 nm through the near infrared, a quartz fiber-optic probe for remote light delivery and collection, and amplified detectors for rapid spectral and temporal detection from 350 to 800 nm. The spectral resolution of the FLS was determined to be 3 nm, which is sufficient for accurately detecting the broad spectral bands associated with biological fluorophores. The FLS was able to detect 5×10−7 M fluorescein dye concentrati...

In Vivo NADH fluorescence monitoring as an assay for cellular damage in photodynamic therapy

Abstract In this study the endogenous fluorescence signal attributed to reduced nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NADH) has been measured in response to photodynamic therapy (PDT)–induced damage. Measurements on cells in vitro have shown that NADH fluorescence decreased relative to that of controls after treatment with a toxic dose of PDT, as measured within 30 min after treatment. Similarly, assays of cell viability indicated that mitochondrial function was reduced immediately after treatment in proportion to the dose delivered, and the proportion of this dose response did not degrade further over 24 h. Measurements in vivo were used to monitor the fluorescence emission spectrum and the excited state lifetime of NADH in PDT-treated tissue. The NADH signal was defined as the ratio of the integrated fluorescence intensity of the 450 ± 25 nm emission band relative to the fluorescence intensity integrated over the entire 400–600 nm range of collection. Measurements in murine muscle tissue indicated a 22% reduction in the fluorescence signal immediately after treatment with verteporfin-based PDT, using a dose of 2 mg/kg injected 15 min before a 48 J/cm2 light dose at 690 nm. Control animals without photosensitizer injection had no significant change in the fluorescence signal from laser irradiation at the same doses. This signal was monotonically correlated to the deposited dose used here and could provide a direct dosimetric measure of PDT-induced cellular death in the tissue being treated.

Image analysis for discrimination of cervical neoplasia

Colposcopy involves visual imaging of the cervix for patients who have exhibited some prior indication of abnormality, and the major goals are to visually inspect for any malignancies and to guide biopsy sampling. Currently colposcopy equipment is being upgraded in many health care centers to incorporate digital image acquisition and archiving. These permanent images can be analyzed for characteristic features and color patterns which may enhance the specificity and objectivity of the routine exam. In this study a series of images from patients with biopsy confirmed cervical intraepithelia neoplasia stage 2/3 are compared with images from patients with biopsy confirmed immature squamous metaplasia, with the goal of determining optimal criteria for automated discrimination between them. All images were separated into their red, green, and blue channels, and comparisons were made between relative intensity, intensity variation, spatial frequencies, fractal dimension, and Euler number. This study indicates that computer-based processing of cervical images can provide some discrimination of the type of tissue features which are important for clinical evaluation, with the Euler number being the most clinically useful feature to discriminate metaplasia from neoplasia. Also there was a strong indication that morphology observed in the blue channel of the image provided more information about epithelial cell changes. Further research in this field can lead to advances in computer-aided diagnosis as well as the potential for online image enhancement in digital colposcopy.

A UV fluorescence lifetime imaging microscope to probe endogenous cellular fluorescence

Summary form only given. Fluorescence lifetimes are sensitive to local physical conditions and insensitive to artifacts affecting intensity based measurements, providing a complementary source of contrast for fluorescence microscopy. While lifetime microscopy is well-developed at visible wavelengths (e.g. fluorescence resonance energy transfer between exogenous fluorophores), FLIM of endogenous fluorophores is less developed with many potential uses (e.g. biomedical diagnostics). Near UV wavelengths may become important in clinical applications because structural proteins and metabolic co-factors have excitation maxima in this wavelength region. This paper presents the construction of a FLIM system with the sensitivity to detect cellular autofluorescence.

Polystyrene Microspheres in Tissue-Simulating Phantoms Can Collisionally Quench Fluorescence

Tissue-simulating phantoms that replicate intrinsic optical properties in a controlled manner are useful for quantitative studies of photon transport in turbid biological media. In such phantoms, polystyrene microspheres are often used to simulate tissue optical scattering. Here, we report that using polystyrene microspheres in fluorescent tissue-simulating phantoms can reduce fluorophore quantum yield via collisional quenching. Fluorescence lifetime spectroscopy was employed to characterize quenching in phantoms consisting of a fluorescein dye and polystyrene microspheres (scattering coefficients μs ∼100-600cm−1). For this range of tissue-simulating phantoms, analysis using the Stern-Volmer equation revealed that collisional quenching by polystyrene microspheres accounted for a decrease in fluorescence intensity of 6-17% relative to the intrinsic intensity value when no microspheres (quenchers) were present. The intensity decrease from quenching is independent of additional, anticipated losses arising from optical scattering associated with the microspheres. These results suggest that quantitative fluorescence measurements in studies employing such phantoms may be influenced by collisional quenching.

Effects of tissue optical properties on time-resolved fluorescence measurements from brain tumors: an experimental and computational study

Time-Resolved Laser-Induced Fluorescence Spectroscopy (tr-LIFS) offers the potential for intra-operative diagnosis of primary brain tumors. However, both the intrinsic properties of endogenous fluorophores and the optical properties of brain tissue could affect the fluorescence measurements from brain. Scattering has been demonstrated to increase, for instance, detected lifetimes by 10-20% in media less scattering than the brain. The overall goal of this study is to investigate experimentally and computationally how optical properties of distinct types of brain tissue (normal porcine white and gray matter) affect the propagation of the excitation pulse and fluorescent transients and the detected fluorescence lifetime. A time-domain tr-LIFS apparatus (fast digitizer and gated detection) was employed to measure the propagation of ultra-short pulsed light through brain specimens (1-2.5-mm source-detector separation; 0.100-mm increment). A Monte Carlo model for semi-infinite turbid media was used to simulate time-resolved light propagation for arbitrary source-detector fiber geometries and optical fiber specifications; and to record spatially- and temporally resolved information. We determined a good correlation between experimental and computational results. Our findings provide means for quantification of time-resolved fluorescence spectra from healthy and diseased brain tissue.

Probing endogenous fluorophores in cellular cancer models using temporally and spectrally resolved laser induced fluorescence

Summary from only given. Illustrates a non-invasive optical method to monitor cellular NADH and probe metabolic activity. Because the human bronchial epithelial (HBE) cells model various cancer stages, methods used here provide an understanding of the cellular contribution to tissue autofluorescence, leading possibly to optically-based methods for detecting and monitoring cancer progression and treatment.

Experimental and computational studies of fluorescence lifetimes and spectra from scattering tissue phantoms

Summary form only given. Steady-state fluorescence spectroscopy has been investigated for disease detection and therapy, although absorption and scattering properties of tissue are known to affect intrinsic fluorescence intensity spectra. Time-resolved fluorescence studies indicate the potential use of intensity-independent lifetime spectroscopy for early cancer detection. For single fiber-optic probe geometries, we found distortions in measured fluorescence spectra from phantom media with varying optical scattering properties, while experimental and computational time-resolved studies showed invariant fluorescence lifetimes.