Spectral properties of fluorescence induced by glutaraldehyde fixation

JS Collins and TH Goldsmith

Following fixation with glutaraldehyde, tissues or gelatin films fluoresce. This fluorescence can be enhanced more than thirtyfold by several minutes exposure to near ultraviolet light. Longer wavelengths produce a smaller effect. The enhanced fluorescence is maximally excited at 540 nm (half-band width about 45 nm), and fluorescence emission peaks at 560 nm. The rate of photoenhancement is independent of temperature in the 12--30 degrees C range. Photoenhancement is greater at alkaline than acid pH; the pH dependence involves a single acid binding group with pK = 7.3. These effects are not observed following treatment with paraformaldehyde or prior reduction with boranedimethylamine. Schiff base linkages between the bifunctional cross-linking reagent and free amino groups therefore seem to be involved. The effects of pH and wavelength on the photoenhancement of fluorescence are best accounted for by a kinetic scheme that includes both photogeneration of fluorophore from an ultraviolet-absorbing precursor, and its subsequent photodestruction by visible light.
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