Claims
- 1. A method of detecting a neurodegenerative disease in a mammal comprising:
activating brain tissue of the mammal by application of radiation under conditions effective to promote a simultaneous multiphoton excitation of the brain tissue and to emit a fluorescence characteristic; comparing the fluorescence characteristic to a standard fluorescence emitted by exciting healthy brain tissue of the mammal under the same conditions used to carryout said activating; and identifying the brain tissue where the fluorescence characteristic differs from the standard fluorescence as potentially having a neurodegenerative disease.
- 2. The method according to claim 1 further comprising:
treating the brain tissue with at least one photo-active agent prior to said activating.
- 3. The method according to claim 2, wherein the standard fluorescence is determined prior to said treating the brain tissue with at least one photo-active agent.
- 4. The method according to claim 2, wherein the photo-active agent fluoresces upon binding to lesions of neurodegenerative disease or other neuroanomalies.
- 5. The method according to claim 1, wherein the radiation is generated by a laser.
- 6. The method according to claim 1, wherein the radiation is pulsed.
- 7. The method according to claim 6, wherein the radiation is pulsed at a pulse width between about 10−9 to 10−15 second.
- 8. The method according to claim 5, wherein the laser is a mode-locked laser.
- 9. The method according to claim 1 further comprising:
collecting radiation applied to the brain tissue.
- 10. The method according to claim 1, wherein the neurodegenerative disease is selected from the group consisting of Alzheimer's Disease, Parkinson's Disease, Huntington's Disease, and Lou Gehrig's Disease.
- 11. The method according to claim 10, wherein the neurodegenerative disease is Alzheimer's Disease.
- 12. The method according to claim 11, wherein amyloid plaques are detected in the brain of the mammal.
- 13. The method according to claim 11, wherein neurofibrillary tangles are detected in the brain of the mammal.
- 14. The method according to claim 1, wherein the method is carried out in vivo.
- 15. The method according to claim 1, wherein said activating is carried out by passing the radiation through the skull of the mammal.
- 16. The method according to claim 15, wherein the radiation is passed through a portion of the skull of the mammal which has been thinned.
- 17. The method according to claim 1, wherein said activating is carried out by passing the radiation through the brain of the mammal with its skull opened.
- 18. The method according to claim 1, wherein the fluorescence characteristic is an autofluorescence characteristic.
- 19. A method of producing an image of brain tissue from a mammal comprising:
activating brain tissue of a mammal with radiation applied under conditions effective to promote a simultaneous multiphoton excitation of the brain tissue and to produce a fluorescence and collecting the fluorescence to produce an image of the brain tissue.
- 20. The method according to claim 19 further comprising:
treating the brain tissue with at least one photo-active agent prior to said activating.
- 21. The method according to claim 19, wherein the radiation is generated by a laser.
- 22. The method according to claim 19, wherein the radiation is pulsed.
- 23. The method according to claim 22, wherein the radiation is pulsed at a pulse width between about 10−9 to 10−15 second.
- 24. The method according to claim 21, wherein the laser is a mode-locked laser.
- 25. The method according to claim 19, wherein the brain tissue being imaged is affected with a neurodegenerative disease.
- 26. The method according to claim 25, wherein the neurodegenerative disease is selected from the group consisting of Alzheimer's Disease, Parkinson's Disease, Huntington's Disease, and Lou Gehrig's Disease.
- 27. The method according to claim 26, wherein the neurodegenerative disease is Alzheimer's Disease.
- 28. The method according to claim 27, wherein amyloid plaques are imaged in the brain of the mammal.
- 29. The method according to claim 27, wherein neurofibrillary tangles are detected in the brain of the mammal.
- 30. The method according to claim 19, wherein the method is carried out in vivo.
- 31. The method according to claim 19, wherein said activating is carried out by passing the radiation through the skull of the mammal.
- 32. The method according to claim 31, wherein the radiation is passed through a portion of the skull of the mammal which has been thinned.
- 33. The method according to claim 19, wherein said activating is carried out by passing the radiation through the brain of the mammal with its skull opened.
- 34. The method according to claim 19, wherein the fluorescence is autofluorescence.
Parent Case Info
[0001] This application claims benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application Serial No. 60/245,306, filed on Nov. 2, 2000.
Government Interests
[0002] This invention was developed with government funding under National Institutes of Health Grant Nos. AG08487 and RR04224. The U.S. Government may have certain rights.
Provisional Applications (1)
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Number |
Date |
Country |
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60245306 |
Nov 2000 |
US |