FLUORESCENCE LIFETIME IMAGING IN TURBID MEDIA

The lifetime of a fluorophore generally varies in different environmen ts, making the molecule a sensitive indicator of tissue oxygenation, p H, and glucose. However, Lifetime measurements are complicated when th e fluorophore is embedded in an optically thick, highly scattering med ium such as human tissue. We formulate the inverse problem for fluores cence lifetime tomography using diffuse photon density waves, and we d emonstrate the technique by deriving spatial images of heterogeneous f luorophore distribution and Lifetime, using simulated measurements in heterogeneous turbid media. (C) 1996 Optical Society of America