Veggie juice that illumites the gut

Veggie juice that illumites the gut

New York: The pigment that gives spich and other plants their green colour may improve doctors’ ability to examine the inner workings of the human body to eble them examine more closely for gastrointestil illnesses, a study has revealed. The study describes how chlorophyll-based no-particles suspended in liquid are an effective imaging agent for the gut. The medical imaging drink, developed to diagnose and treat gastrointestil illnesses, is made of concentrated chlorophyll — the pigment that gives spich and other plants their green colour, said the study.

“Our work suggests that this spich-like noparticle juice can help doctors get a better look at what is happening inside the stomach, intestines and other areas of the GI tract,” said Jothan Lovell, Assistant Professor in the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences at State University of New York (SUNY) at Buffalo, New York.

To examine the gastrointestil tract, the researchers used X-rays, magnetic resonce imaging or ultrasounds. The researchers also performed endoscopies in which a tiny camera attached to a thin tube is inserted into the patient’s body.

The study focuses on Chlorophyll — a pigment found in spich and other green vegetables that is essential to photosynthesis.

The researchers removed magnesium from Chlorophyll in a process which alters the pigment’s chemical structure to form another edible compound called pheophytin. Pheophytin plays an important role in photosynthesis, acting as a gatekeeper that allows electrons from sunlight to enter plants.

Next, they dissolved pheophytin in a solution of soapy substances known as surfactants. The researchers were then able to remove nearly all of the surfactants, leaving nearly pure pheophytin noparticles.

The drink, when tested in mice, provided imaging of the gut in three modes: photoacoustic imaging, fluorescence imaging and positron emission tomography (PET).

“The veggie juice allows for techniques that are not commonly used today by doctors for imaging the gut like photoacoustic, PET, and fluorescence,” said Lovell.(IANS)