Quantitative fluorescence microscopy yields distributions of concentration and photobleaching rate in 5ALA-induced Protoporphyrin IX in cell population

The variation in photodynamic dose achieved with protoporphyrin Ix (PPIX) and laser radiation was assessed in a cancer cell culture. The distributions of initial PPIX concentration, photobleaching light dose, and photodynamic dose were measured on 124 individual cells (rat mammary cancer cell line, MTF7) using video fluorescence microscopy.