Fluorescence - an enabling phenomenon for understanding the cause, diagnosis, therapy and management of disease

Within the wide range of spectroscopic techniques facilitated by photonics, fluorescence sits alongside the likes of spectrophotometry, Raman, FTIR, circular dichroism and ultrafast in providing complementary and unique information. Although fluorescence can hardly be called a new phenomenon there can be little doubt it continues to facilitate many important new observations and techniques across a whole range of disciplines. Just as photonics has become an enabling technology so too fluorescence has become an enabling phenomenon [1].

Most importantly, the distances and timescales associated with fluorescence can reflect changes in human physiology and for this reason it has become one of the leading analytical techniques for improving healthcare, spanning both fundamental understanding into biomolecular interactions and turnkey diagnostics. Sequencing the human genome and biomarkers for disease are but two recent examples of the impact of fluorescence on healthcare. In this presentation I will provide an overview of some of the multidisciplinary research into biomolecular fluorescence that might underpin improved healthcare in the future. This includes diabetes [2], melanoma [3] and Alzheimer’s [4].