Fluorescein Sodium

Chemical properties

Orange-red powder; odorless. Hygroscopic, soluble in water; sparingly soluble in alcohol.

Description

The fluorescein sodium or sodium fluorescein is an organic dye substance that produces a fluorescent light when irradiated with ultraviolet light.Fluorescein itself is an insoluble salt, made soluble in water by the sodium salt added to its composition. It is a reddish powder, which must be handled with great care, as a few specks of powder can turn a large surface (provided it is moistened) into fluorescent.

The Uses of Fluorescein Sodium

Fluorescein sodium salt is a sodium salt of fluorescein. It can also be used in technical or engineered material use in-situ photochemical fabrication of transition metal-?promoted amorphous molybdenum sulfide catalysts for enhanced photosensitized hydrogen evolution. Dyes and metabolites, Environmental Testing

The Uses of Fluorescein Sodium

In examining subterranean waters. Serves to ascertain source of springs, connections between streams and sea, determining approx vol of water delivered by a spring, detecting source of contamination of drinking water, infiltration of soil with waste waters of factories. In externally applied drugs and cosmetics. Analytical reagent (protein label). Clinical reagent (immuno-histological stain, immuno-fluorescent label).

Characteristics

The color of fluorescein sodium's aqueous solutions is green by reflection and orange by transmission (its spectral properties are dependent on pH of the solution), as can be noticed in bubble levels, for example, in which fluorescein is added as a colorant to the alcohol filling the tube in order to increase the visibility of the air bubble contained within. More concentrated solutions of fluorescein can even appear red (because under these conditions nearly all incident emission is re-absorbed by the solution).

Side Effects

Oral and intravenous use of fluorescein sodium can cause adverse reactions, including nausea, vomiting, hives, acute hypotension, anaphylaxis and related anaphylactoid reaction, causing cardiac arrest and sudden death due to anaphylactic shock.

General Description

Fluorescein sodium is an orange-red to dark red powder. Water-soluble form of fluorescein. Odorless and almost tasteless. pH (5% solution) 7.8. May be sensitive to prolonged exposure to light and to heat.

Air & Water Reactions

Hygroscopic. Water soluble.

Reactivity Profile

Fluorescein disodium salt is incompatible with strong oxidizers. Also incompatible with acids, acid salts and salts of heavy metals .

Fire Hazard

Flash point data for Fluorescein disodium salt are not available; however, Fluorescein disodium salt is probably combustible.

Safety Profile

Moderately toxic by intraperitoneal route. Mildly toxic by ingestion. Human systemic effects by intravenous route: arrhythmias, eye hemorrhage, nausea or vomiting. Experimental reproductive effects. Questionable carcinogen with experimental tumorigenic data. Mutation data reported. When heated to decomposition it emits toxic fumes of Na2O.

Veterinary Drugs and Treatments

Fluorescein sodium is a yellow water-soluble dye that fluoresces under a Wood’s Lamp, but is plainly visible after binding to corneal stroma through an ophthalmic examination light source. It is used most commonly to delineate full thickness loss of corneal epithelium indicating the presence of a corneal ulceration. In this instance it will stain the corneal stroma. The epithelium is not stained because its outer lipid cell membrane repels the stain. Descemet’s membrane will not stain with fluorescein stain and this is used to indicate descemetocele formation, an ocular emergency.
Fluorescein stain is applied to the precorneal tear film in dogs and cats and the break-up of this stain with time, as observed through a slit lamp biomicroscope using a cobalt blue light source, is used to determine the tear film break-up time (normal 19 seconds), an indicator of tear film quality.
Fluorescein stain is applied to the tear film of dogs to determine patency of the nasolacrimal outflow system. The normal wait time is 2 – 5 minutes in dogs and up to 10 minutes in cats. A positive test indicates patency of the system. A negative test is not indicative of disease as the test is negative in a large percentage of normal animals. Fluorescein stain, then, can be added to irrigating solution to flush the nasolacrimal system, making detecting the irrigation solution at the nose more obvious during flushing of the system.

Properties and Applications

brilliant yellow. Soluble in water and ethanol (with strong green fluorescent), water-soluble good. In strong sulfuric acid with weak for fluorescence yellow, it will be diluted with yellow precipitation. Its water solution and sodium hydroxide with dark green fluorescence for brunet solution. Mainly used for sea of target that fluorescent, facilitate aerial reconnaissance search. And can use significantly for the exploration of fluorescent groundwater. Can also be used for medicine and cosmetics shading, rarely used for silk printing and dyeing things.