We have used Monte Carlo simulation of autofluorescence in the retina to determine that noninvasive detection of
nutritional iron deficiency is possible. Nutritional iron deficiency (which leads to iron deficiency anemia) affects more
than 2 billion people worldwide, and there is an urgent need for a simple, noninvasive diagnostic test. Zinc
protoporphyrin (ZPP) is a fluorescent compound that accumulates in red blood cells and is used as a biomarker for
nutritional iron deficiency. We developed a computational model of the eye, using parameters that were identified either
by literature search, or by direct experimental measurement to test the possibility of detecting ZPP non-invasively in
retina. By incorporating fluorescence into Steven Jacques' original code for multi-layered tissue, we performed Monte
Carlo simulation of fluorescence in the retina and determined that if the beam is not focused on a blood vessel in a neural
retina layer or if part of light is hitting the vessel, ZPP fluorescence will be 10-200 times higher than background
lipofuscin fluorescence coming from the retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) layer directly below. In addition we found
that if the light can be focused entirely onto a blood vessel in the neural retina layer, the fluorescence signal comes only
from ZPP. The fluorescence from layers below in this second situation does not contribute to the signal. Therefore, the
possibility that a device could potentially be built and detect ZPP fluorescence in retina looks very promising.
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