Abstract: Limited regions of human stratum corneum were removed by laser ablation using an Er:YAG laser. Immediately after this procedure, an ointment containing 5-aminolevulinic acid (ALA) was applied topically to the laser-treated and surrounding skin. The time-dependent ALA- induced biosynthesis of protoporphyrin IX was measured by fluorescence detection. Fluorescence in the red spectral region was found to occur in the ablated skin regions only. Time-resolved measurements showed the formation of long-lived fluorophores (16 ns) indicating the presence of ALA-induced monomeric porphyrin. Naturally occurring fluorophores (NAD(P)H, flavins, collagen, elastin) possess shorter fluorescence decay times. Therefore, time-gated measurements in the nanosecond region enable the specific detection of ALA-stimulated porphyrin fluorescence by choosing an appropriate time-window. In addition, detection of backscattered excitation light can be avoided. High-contrast video images of ALA-incubated fluorescent areas were obtained using this novel imaging technique. !15
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