title: Noninvasive cell-tracking methods.
abstract: Cell-based therapies, such as adoptive immunotherapy and stem-cell therapy, have received considerable attention as novel therapeutics in oncological research and clinical practice. The development of effective therapeutic strategies using tumor-targeted cells requires the ability to determine in vivo the location, distribution, and long-term viability of the therapeutic cell populations as well as their biological fate with respect to cell activation and differentiation. In conjunction with various noninvasive imaging modalities, cell-labeling methods, such as exogenous labeling or transfection with a reporter gene, allow visualization of labeled cells in vivo in real time, as well as monitoring and quantifying cell accumulation and function. Such cell-tracking methods also have an important role in basic cancer research, where they serve to elucidate novel biological mechanisms. In this Review, we describe the basic principles of cell-tracking methods, explain various approaches to cell tracking, and highlight recent examples for the application of such methods in animals and humans.
authors.affiliation: Department of Radiology, Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, New York, NY 10065, USA.
authors.forename: Moritz F
authors.initials: MF
authors.lastname: Kircher
authors.forename: Sanjiv S
authors.initials: SS
authors.lastname: Gambhir
authors.forename: Jan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Grimm
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002465:Cell Movement; D058948:Cell Tracking / Q000379:methods*; D003287:Contrast Media; D003713:Dendritic Cells / Q000637:transplantation; D005682:Gadolinium; D017930:Genes, Reporter; D006801:Humans; D016219:Immunotherapy, Adoptive; D008163:Luminescent Measurements; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D051379:Mice; D008822:Mice, Transgenic; D008856:Microscopy, Fluorescence; D023421:Models, Animal; D053758:Nanoparticles; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000628:therapy; D049268:Positron-Emission Tomography; D019275:Radiopharmaceuticals
chemical_list: D003287:Contrast Media; D019275:Radiopharmaceuticals; D005682:Gadolinium