Design principles for noninvasive, longitudinal and quantitative cell tracking with nanoparticle-based CT imaging

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

2-1-2017

Publication Title

Nanomedicine

Abstract

Contradictory results in clinical trials are preventing the advancement and implementation of cell-based therapy. To explain such results, there is a need to uncover the mystery regarding the fate of the transplanted cells. To answer this need, we developed a technique for noninvasive in vivo cell tracking, which uses gold nanoparticles as contrast agents for CT imaging. Herein, we investigate the design principles of this technique for intramuscular transplantation of therapeutic cells. Longitudinal studies were performed, displaying the ability to track cells over long periods of time. As few as 500 cells could be detected and a way to quantify the number of cells visualized by CT was demonstrated. Moreover, monitoring of cell functionality was demonstrated on a mouse model of Duchenne muscular dystrophy. This cell-tracking technology has the potential to become an essential tool in pre-clinical as well as clinical trials and to advance the future of cell therapy.

Medical Subject Headings

Animals; Cell Tracking; Contrast Media; Disease Models, Animal; Gold; Mice; Muscular Dystrophy, Duchenne; Nanoparticles; Tomography, X-Ray Computed

PubMed ID

27720990

Volume

13

Issue

2

First Page

421

Last Page

429

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