Fluorescence lifetime tomography of turbid media based on an oxygen-sensitive dye

We present for the first time experimental images of fluorescence lifetime distribution using model-based reconstruction. The lifetime distribution in our phantom experiments was realized through using an oxygen-sensitive dye [Sn(IV)Chlorin-e(6)-Cl-2-3Na (SCCN)] whose lifetime varied with the oxygen concentration provided in the target and background media. The fluorescence tomographic data was obtained using our multi-channel frequency-domain system. Spatial maps of fluorescence lifetime were achieved with a finite element based reconstruction algorithm. (C) 2002 Optical Society of America.