Spectroscopic analysis of autofluorescence distribution in digestive organ for unstained metabolism-based tumor detection

Auto fluorescence distribution of coenzymes NADH and FAD is investigated for the unstained tumor detection using an [?] originally designed confocal spectroscope. The tumor region in digestive organ can be determined by evaluating the redox index which is defined as the raio of NADH and FAD concentration. However, the redox index is largely influenced by the presence of collagen in the submucosal layer because its auto fluorescence spectrum overlaps considerably with that of NADH. Therefore, it is necessary to know in advance the distribution of NADH, FAD, and collagen in the mucosal layer. The purpose of our study is to investigate the vertical distribution of the redox index in tissue using depth-sensitive auto fluorescence spectroscopy. The experimental procedure and the results are presented.