Endoscopic fluorescence imaging of tissue selective lanthanide chelates

Endoscopic probes have been incorporated into a fluorescent imaging system for the remote quantitation of tissue selective markers. Resolution at the level of 114 line pairs/mm allows visualization of regions that are approximately 6 mm wide. Tissue selective markers, based on polyazamacrocyclic chelates of terbium increase contrast and can be quantified in tissues at the sub-picomole level. Minimally invasive in vivo fluorescence imaging is demonstrated. The potential for application of the system to disease diagnosis and bone graft morphology quantitation is discussed.