title: Nanomedicine: perspective and promises with ligand-directed molecular imaging.
abstract: Molecular imaging and targeted drug delivery play an important role toward personalized medicine, which is the future of patient management. Of late, nanoparticle-based molecular imaging has emerged as an interdisciplinary area, which shows promises to understand the components, processes, dynamics and therapies of a disease at a molecular level. The unprecedented potential of nanoplatforms for early detection, diagnosis and personalized treatment of diseases, have found application in every biomedical imaging modality. Biological and biophysical barriers are overcome by the integration of targeting ligands, imaging agents and therapeutics into the nanoplatform which allow for theranostic applications. In this article, we have discussed the opportunities and potential of targeted molecular imaging with various modalities putting a particular emphasis on perfluorocarbon nanoemulsion-based platform technology.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medicine, Washington University Medical School, St Louis, MO, USA. dipanjan@wustl.edu
authors.forename: Dipanjan
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Pan
authors.forename: Gregory M
authors.initials: GM
authors.lastname: Lanza
authors.forename: Samuel A
authors.initials: SA
authors.lastname: Wickline
authors.forename: Shelton D
authors.initials: SD
authors.lastname: Caruthers
mesh_terms: D003287:Contrast Media; D003952:Diagnostic Imaging / Q000639:trends*; D008024:Ligands; D015336:Molecular Probe Techniques / Q000639:trends*; D050997:Nanomedicine / Q000639:trends*; D053758:Nanoparticles / Q000648:ultrastructure*
chemical_list: D003287:Contrast Media; D008024:Ligands