Multispectral Imaging of Metabolic Fluorophores: Comparing In Vivo and Fresh Ex Vivo Tissue

Abstract

The enhanced uptake of glucose by cancer cells via aerobic glycolysis occurs when the lactic acid pathway is favored over the citric acid cycle. The lactic acid cycle in cancer cells influences the cytosolic concentration of metabolic fluorophores including NADH (the reduced form of nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide) and flavin adenine dinucleotide (FAD). In particular, the literature has shown that breast cancer influences the relative magnitude of fluorescence from NADH and FAD. A multispectral imaging system has been developed for rapid non-destructive imaging of intrinsic fluorescence in tissue. This paper compares <i>in vivo</i> data to fresh <i>ex vivo </i>data gathered as a function of time in mouse models. The data indicate that, if measured within 30 min of excision, a cancer diagnosis in fresh <i>ex vivo</i> tissue correlates with a cancer diagnosis in <i>in vivo</i> tissue. These results justify a plan to evaluate fresh <i>ex vivo</i> human tissue to quantify the sensitivity and specificity of the multispectral system.