Intrinsic Fluorescence Correction

Spectroscopic Advanced Glycation Endproduct (SAGE) Detection

Until recently, skin AGEs had no practical value as a commercial test because their measurement involved a punch biopsy (typically large enough to require a stitch) of the skin, and a complicated assay that could only be performed by a few academic laboratories. AGEs have a robust optical signature that can be detected and measured via spectroscopic analysis. But prior to the development of proprietary Spectroscopic Advanced Glycation Endproduct (SAGE) detection technology by VeraLight, no one had determined how to normalize this signature for variations in skin color, blood content and structure, which prevented its practical use as an accurate, reproducible screening test.

Collagen, the main protein of skin and connective tissue, readily undergoes glycation resulting in AGE formation. VeraLight’s SAGE technology employs quantitative fluorescence spectroscopy to non-invasively measure collagen cross-links and other fluorescent AGE that can be correlated to a quantitative risk score for pre-diabetes or type 2 diabetes. VeraLight’s technology uses various wavelengths of near ultraviolet and blue light that are shined on the subject’s skin. The light excites electrons in the collagen linked AGE and causes them to emit light of a lower energy that is subsequently measured by the diabetes screening system.