IDENTIFICATION & DETECTION OF TSE-INFECTED TISSUES, FOOD PRODUCTS, & ANIMALS USING FLUORESCENT SPECTROSCOPY

Characterize the spectral properties of lipofuscins (age pigments) and prion proteins from normal & TSE-infected animals. Determine if accumulation of lipofuscin &/or prion fluorescence in ophthalmic tissues can be used as optical markers to identify TSE-infected animals or contaminated food. Determine the feasibility of using ophthalmological or other instruments for measuring characteristic fluorescent in the living eye or other central nervous system (CNS) tissues as an index of abnormal lipofuscin and or prion accumulation.