title: Methylene blue microbubbles as a model dual-modality contrast agent for ultrasound and activatable photoacoustic imaging.
abstract: Ultrasound and photoacoustic imaging are highly complementary modalities since both use ultrasonic detection for operation. Increasingly, photoacoustic and ultrasound have been integrated in terms of hardware instrumentation. To generate a broadly accessible dual-modality contrast agent, we generated microbubbles (a standard ultrasound contrast agent) in a solution of methylene blue (a standard photoacoustic dye). This MB2 solution was formed effectively and was optimized as a dual-modality contrast solution. As microbubble concentration increased (with methylene blue concentration constant), photoacoustic signal was attenuated in the MB2 solution. When methylene blue concentration increased (with microbubble concentration held constant), no ultrasonic interference was observed. Using an MB2 solution that strongly attenuated all photoacoustic signal, high powered ultrasound could be used to burst the microbubbles and dramatically enhance photoacoustic contrast (>800-fold increase), providing a new method for spatiotemporal control of photoacoustic signal generation.
authors.affiliation: Pohang University of Science and Technology, Departments of Electrical Engineering and Creative IT Engineering, 77 Cheongam-Ro, Nam-Gu, Pohang, Gyeongbuk, 790-784, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Mansik
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Jeon
authors.affiliation: State University of New York, The University at Buffalo, Department of Biomedical Engineering, Buffalo, New York 14260.
authors.forename: Wentao
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Song
authors.affiliation: University of Toronto, Department of Medical Biophysics, Toronto M5S 1A1, Canada.
authors.forename: Elizabeth
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Huynh
authors.affiliation: Samsung Medison, Seoul, 135-851, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Jungho
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.affiliation: Pohang University of Science and Technology, Departments of Electrical Engineering and Creative IT Engineering, 77 Cheongam-Ro, Nam-Gu, Pohang, Gyeongbuk, 790-784, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Jeesu
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.affiliation: University of Toronto, Department of Medical Biophysics, Toronto M5S 1A1, Canada.
authors.forename: Brandon L
authors.initials: BL
authors.lastname: Helfield
authors.affiliation: Sunnybrook Health Sciences Center, Toronto M5S 1A1, Canada.
authors.forename: Ben Y C
authors.initials: BY
authors.lastname: Leung
authors.affiliation: University of Toronto, Department of Medical Biophysics, Toronto M5S 1A1, CanadaeSunnybrook Health Sciences Center, Toronto M5S 1A1, Canada.
authors.forename: David E
authors.initials: DE
authors.lastname: Goertz
authors.affiliation: University of Toronto, Department of Medical Biophysics, Toronto M5S 1A1, Canada.
authors.forename: Gang
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Zheng
authors.affiliation: Samsung Medison, Seoul, 135-851, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Jungtaek
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Oh
authors.affiliation: State University of New York, The University at Buffalo, Department of Biomedical Engineering, Buffalo, New York 14260.
authors.forename: Jonathan F
authors.initials: JF
authors.lastname: Lovell
authors.affiliation: Pohang University of Science and Technology, Departments of Electrical Engineering and Creative IT Engineering, 77 Cheongam-Ro, Nam-Gu, Pohang, Gyeongbuk, 790-784, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Chulhong
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Kim
mesh_terms: D003287:Contrast Media / Q000737:chemistry*; D007091:Image Processing, Computer-Assisted; D008751:Methylene Blue / Q000737:chemistry*; D045423:Microbubbles; D008853:Microscopy / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods*; D055095:Optics and Photonics; D061088:Photoacoustic Techniques; D014465:Ultrasonics; D014463:Ultrasonography / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods
chemical_list: D003287:Contrast Media; D008751:Methylene Blue