Optical fiber fluoroprobes in clinical analysis

Area of Science:

• Biomedical Engineering
• Analytical Chemistry
• Optical Physics

Background:

• Accurate measurement of molecular fluorescence is crucial for diagnostics and drug monitoring.
• Minute volumes of body fluids present analytical challenges for traditional methods.
• Development of sensitive and specific probes is needed for in vivo applications.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and characterize novel single-fiber fluoroprobes for molecular fluorescence detection.
• To assess the analytical capabilities of these fluoroprobes, including limits of detection.
• To evaluate the in vivo applicability of the fluoroprobes for drug monitoring in tumors.

Main Methods:

• Utilized quartz optical fibers and laser excitation to construct single-fiber fluoroprobes.
• Employed conventional fluorescence and sequentially excited fluorescence detection modes.
• Performed preliminary in vivo measurements in mice bearing heterotransplanted human tumors.

Main Results:

• Demonstrated the analytical capabilities of the developed single-fiber fluoroprobes.
• Achieved limits of detection for doxorubicin around 10(-7) mol/L.
• Successfully conducted preliminary in vivo measurements of doxorubicin in tumor interstitial fluid.

Conclusions:

• Single-fiber fluoroprobes are effective tools for measuring molecular fluorescence in small biological fluid volumes.
• The developed fluoroprobes exhibit high sensitivity suitable for therapeutic drug monitoring.
• Preliminary in vivo results support the potential of these probes for real-time monitoring of anti-cancer drugs in tumors.