In vivo tomographic imaging of near-infrared fluorescent probes.
Fluorescence imaging is increasingly used to probe protein function and gene expression in live animals. This technology could enhance the study of pathogenesis, drug development, and therapeutic intervention. In this article, we focus on three-dimensional fluorescence observations using fluorescence-mediated molecular tomography (FMT), a novel imaging technique that can resolve molecular function in deep tissues by reconstructing fluorescent probe distributions in vivo. We have compared FMT findings with conventional fluorescence reflectance imaging (FRI) to study protease function in nude mice with subsurface implanted tumors. This validation of FMT with FRI demonstrated the spatial congruence of fluorochrome activation as determined by the two techniques.
Ntziachristos
Vasilis
V
Center for Molecular Imaging Research, Massachusetts General Hospital & Harvard Medical School, Bldg. 149 13th Street 5406, Charlestown, MA 02129-2060, USA. vasilis@helix.mgh.harvard.edu
Bremer
Christoph
C
Graves
Edward E
EE
Ripoll
Jorge
J
Weissleder
Ralph
R
D000818:Animals; D005354:Fibrosarcoma / Q000175:diagnosis*; D005456:Fluorescent Dyes; D006801:Humans; D007259:Infrared Rays; D051379:Mice; D008819:Mice, Nude; D013050:Spectrometry, Fluorescence / Q000379:methods; D014054:Tomography / Q000379:methods; D014183:Transplantation, Heterologous
D005456:Fluorescent Dyes