Reconstruction of the Fluorescence Spectra of Bisretinoids and the Products of Their Photooxidation and Photodegradation from the Retinal Pigment Epithelium of the Human Eye

A global analysis of the fluorescence decay kinetics of a chloroform extract of lipofuscin granules from the retinal pigment epithelium cells of human cadaver eyes is performed. The analysis makes it possible to reconstruct the individual fluorescence properties of four groups of fluorophores belonging to bisretinoids and the products of their photooxidation and photodegradation. The characteristic fluorescence lifetimes are correlated with the spectral characteristics of the indicated fluorophore groups using the averaged spectral and kinetic characteristics of the chloroform extract.