Highly charged cyanine fluorophores for trafficking scaffold degradation.
Biodegradable scaffolds have been extensively used in the field of tissue engineering and regenerative medicine. However, noninvasive monitoring of in vivo scaffold degradation is still lacking. In order to develop a real-time trafficking technique, a series of meso-brominated near-infrared (NIR) fluorophores were synthesized and conjugated to biodegradable gelatin scaffolds. Since the pentamethine cyanine core is highly lipophilic, the side chain of each fluorophore was modified with either quaternary ammonium salts or sulfonate groups. The physicochemical properties such as lipophilicity and net charge of fluorophores played a key role in the fate of NIR-conjugated scaffolds in vivo after biodegradation. The positively charged fluorophore-conjugated scaffold fragments were found in salivary glands, lymph nodes, and most of the hepatobiliary excretion route. However, halogenated fluorophores intensively accumulated into lymph nodes and the liver. Interestingly, balanced-charged gelatin scaffolds were degraded into urine in a short period of time. These results demonstrate that the noninvasive optical imaging using NIR fluorophores can be useful for the translation of biodegradable scaffolds into the clinic.
Department of Chemistry, Georgia State University, Atlanta, GA 30303, USA.
Eric A
EA
Owens
Hoon
H
Hyun
Soon Hee
SH
Kim
Jeong Heon
JH
Lee
Gwangli
G
Park
Yoshitomo
Y
Ashitate
Jungmun
J
Choi
Gloria H
GH
Hong
Sergey
S
Alyabyev
Sang Jin
SJ
Lee
Gilson
G
Khang
Maged
M
Henary
Hak Soo
HS
Choi
D020341:Absorbable Implants; D000818:Animals; D008725:Bis-Trimethylammonium Compounds / Q000737:chemistry / Q000493:pharmacokinetics; D002232:Carbocyanines / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000493:pharmacokinetics; D005456:Fluorescent Dyes / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000493:pharmacokinetics; D005780:Gelatin / Q000737:chemistry; D008422:Materials Testing; D051379:Mice; D008819:Mice, Nude; D061848:Optical Imaging; D019265:Spectroscopy, Near-Infrared; D014018:Tissue Distribution; D023822:Tissue Engineering; D054457:Tissue Scaffolds / Q000737:chemistry
D008725:Bis-Trimethylammonium Compounds; D002232:Carbocyanines; D005456:Fluorescent Dyes; D005780:Gelatin