Autofluorescence of the Intestinal Mucosa in a Mouse Colorectal Cancer Model

Abstract

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is a malignant tumor that may develops in the large intestine, the last portion of the digestive tube. It is the third most common cause of death in Argentina after the breast and prostate cancer. The purpose of this study was to analyze the autofluorescence quantification of mucosal epithelia as a new method for early detection of the disease. In this experience were used freshly prepared normal and cancerous adult male BALB/c mice distal colon, the CRC was chemically induced using Azoxymethane. Samples were analyzed, recorded and quantified with an epifluorescence microscope under green and blue light excitation. Preliminary quantitative analysis reveals that the CRC mucosa exhibits strong autofluorescence in early stages of the disease compar-ing to normal mucosa.