title: In vivo cellular imaging of lymphocyte trafficking by MRI: a tumor model approach to cell-based anticancer therapy.
abstract: The aim of this study was to demonstrate the feasibility of in vivo cell tracking to monitor anticancer cell therapy by means of a high-resolution noninvasive MRI method. Ovalbumin-specific splenocytes (OT-1) labeled with anionic gamma-Fe2O3 superparamagnetic iron oxide (SPIO) nanoparticles were adoptively transferred into C57BL/6 mice with growing ovalbumin-expressing tumors. OT-1 cells were tracked in vivo by 7 T MRI 24, 48, and 72 hr after they were injected. The results showed significant negative enhancement of the spleen at 24 hr, and of the tumor at 48 and 72 hr, after labeled cell injection. This suggests that the lymphocytes initially homed toward the spleen and were then recruited by the tumor. The presence of labeled cells was confirmed in ex vivo by 9.4 T microimaging of tumors and magnetic sorting of spleen cells. These results confirm that MR tracking of lymphocytes is feasible in vivo. This high-resolution imaging method could be used to improve the monitoring of immune cell therapy.
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire de Recherche en Imagerie, Faculté de Médecine Necker, Université Paris Descartes, Paris, France. pierre_smirnov@hotmail.com
authors.forename: Pierre
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Smirnov
authors.forename: Elise
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Lavergne
authors.forename: Florence
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Gazeau
authors.forename: Maïté
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Lewin
authors.forename: Alexandre
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Boissonnas
authors.forename: Bich-Thuy
authors.initials: BT
authors.lastname: Doan
authors.forename: Brigitte
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Gillet
authors.forename: Christophe
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Combadière
authors.forename: Béhazine
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Combadière
authors.forename: Olivier
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Clément
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D045744:Cell Line, Tumor; D003287:Contrast Media; D005240:Feasibility Studies; D005260:Female; D007089:Image Enhancement / Q000379:methods*; D007090:Image Interpretation, Computer-Assisted / Q000379:methods*; D016219:Immunotherapy, Adoptive / Q000379:methods*; D017710:Lymphocyte Transfusion / Q000379:methods*; D008214:Lymphocytes / Q000276:immunology / Q000473:pathology*; D008223:Lymphoma / Q000276:immunology / Q000473:pathology* / Q000628:therapy; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging / Q000379:methods*; D051379:Mice; D008810:Mice, Inbred C57BL
chemical_list: D003287:Contrast Media