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Fluorescence Properties of Isolated Intact Normal Human Corneas
Author(s) -
Uma L.,
Sharma Yogendra,
Balasubramanian D.
Publication year - 1996
Publication title -
photochemistry and photobiology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.818
H-Index - 131
eISSN - 1751-1097
pISSN - 0031-8655
DOI - 10.1111/j.1751-1097.1996.tb03016.x
Subject(s) - fluorescence , chemistry , fluorophore , glycation , tryptophan , biophysics , photochemistry , endogeny , biochemistry , amino acid , biology , receptor , physics , quantum mechanics
Abstract— We have examined the fluorescence properties of excised intact normal human corneas from over a hundred donors, using synchronous excitation fluorescence spectroscopy. In some of the corneas from the donors, a fluoro‐phore with an excitation band centered at 330 nm was observed. This fluorophore does not seem to correspond to the dityrosine moiety or to any photoproducts of tryptophan. Isolated corneas irradiated with light of 295 nm wavelength do not produce any fluorescent photoproducts, suggesting that the intact tissue has endogenous quenchers, radical scavengers and antioxidants that inhibit its photodamage. The non‐tryptophan fluorophores that accumulate in some corneas thus appear to arise largely from the nonenzymatic glycosylation (glycation) of the constituent proteins as similar fluorophores are detected in the corneas of rats in which diabetes is induced.