Final answer:
Fluorescence has many uses in biology and medicine, including labeling and studying molecules within a cell, identifying bacteria, and locating specific molecules and structures in a cell. It involves tagging molecules with fluorescent dyes or antibodies, illuminating them with UV light, and observing their emission of visible light. Fluorescent chromophores are used in fluorescence microscopy to detect specific molecules or structures based on the color of their fluorescence.
Step-by-step explanation:
Fluorescence has many uses in biology and medicine. It is commonly used to label and follow a molecule within a cell. Such tagging allows one to study the structure of DNA and proteins. Fluorescent dyes and antibodies are usually used to tag the molecules, which are then illuminated with UV light and their emission of visible light is observed. Since the fluorescence of each element is characteristic, identification of elements within a sample can be done this way.
Rapid visualization of bacteria from a clinical sample can also be achieved through fluorescent antibody (FA) techniques. By attaching a fluorescent marker to an antibody, specific bacteria can be quickly identified and observed with high specificity. Additionally, fluorescence microscopy is a powerful tool in clinical microbiology for identifying pathogens, finding particular species, and locating molecules and structures within a cell.
A fluorescence microscope uses fluorescent chromophores, or fluorochromes, which absorb energy and emit visible light. Fluorochromes can be naturally fluorescent substances or fluorescent stains added to the specimen. This allows for the detection of specific molecules or structures in a cell based on the visible color of their fluorescence.