Measuring microvascular and mitochondrial oxygen tension: novel techniques for studying tissue oxygenation

This thesis describes the implementation of novel approaches for measuring tissue oxygenation based on oxygen-dependent quenching of the triplet-state lifetime of porphyrins. Ultimately we created a tool for assessment of mitochondrial oxygen tension in vivo. The first measurements indicate much higher mitoPO2 values than generally expected. These findings come in an era of new insights in cellular oxygen sensing and oxygen-dependence of gene expression and metabolism. The described methods are expected to be a valuable addition to the arsenal of tools available to scientist for unraveling the mechanisms of oxygen delivery and consumption under various pathophysiological circumstances. Oxygen is again important, as it has always been