Biological Imaging Using Nanoparticles of Small Organic Molecules with Fluorescence Emission at Wavelengths Longer than 1000 nm

摘要

Traditional near-infrared (NIR) imaging in the 750-800 nm region has been widely used for biological research and biomedical applications over the past decades. NIR imaging has advantages over imaging in the visible range because of reduced optical absorption and lower autofluorescence of biological substances. Nowadays, many fluorophores exist for imaging in the visible range, and an increasing number of NIR fluorophores have become commercially available as a result of decades of research on fluorophores; indo-cyanine green (ICG) was the first NIR fluorophore to be approved for use in humans by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA). ICG is a water-soluble tricarbocya-nine dye that emits at approximately 800 nm in the NIR region and can be safely intravenously administered to humans.