title: Effect of surfactant and budesonide on the pulmonary distribution of fluorescent dye in mice.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Surfactant is a useful vehicle for the intratracheal delivery of medicine to the distal lung. The aim of this study was to analyze the effect of intratracheal surfactant and budesonide instillation on the pulmonary distribution of fluorescent dye in mice.
  
  
  METHODS
  Male athymic nude mice were assigned randomly as controls, fluorescent dye, fluorescent dye + surfactant (50 mg/kg), fluorescent dye + budesonide (0.25 mg/kg), and fluorescent dye + surfactant + budesonide groups. A total volume of 60 μL fluorescent solutions was intratracheally injected and followed by 60 μL of air. We photographed and measured fluorescence in the lungs, from the back, 15 minutes after intratracheal administration using an IVIS Xenogen imaging instrument.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The fluorescent dye (1,1'-dioctadecyltetramethyl indotricarbocyanine iodide) was most strongly detected near the trachea and weakly detected in the lungs in mice administered with fluorescent solutions. Almost no fluorescence was seen in the lung region of control mice. Intratracheal administration of surfactant or budesonide increased fluorescent intensity compared with control mice. Combined administration of surfactant and budesonide further increased fluorescent intensity compared with mice given surfactant or budesonide alone.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Surfactant and budesonide enhance the pulmonary distribution of fluorescent dye in mice.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatrics, Wan Fang Hospital, Taipei Medical University, Taipei, Taiwan.
authors.forename: Liang-Ti
authors.initials: LT
authors.lastname: Huang
authors.affiliation: Maternal and Child Health Research Center, College of Medicine, Taipei Medical University, Taipei, Taiwan.
authors.forename: Tsu-Fu
authors.initials: TF
authors.lastname: Yeh
authors.affiliation: Department of Mechanical Engineering, National Taiwan University of Science and Technology, Taipei, Taiwan.
authors.forename: Yu-Lin
authors.initials: YL
authors.lastname: Kuo
authors.affiliation: Department of Mechanical Engineering, National Taiwan University of Science and Technology, Taipei, Taiwan.
authors.forename: Pin-Chuan
authors.initials: PC
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.affiliation: Maternal and Child Health Research Center, College of Medicine, Taipei Medical University, Taipei, Taiwan; Department of Pediatrics, Taipei Medical University Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan; Department of Pediatrics, School of Medicine, College of Medicine, Taipei Medical University, Taipei, Taiwan. Electronic address: cmchen@tmu.edu.tw.
authors.forename: Chung-Ming
authors.initials: CM
authors.lastname: Chen
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D019819:Budesonide / Q000494:pharmacology*; D005456:Fluorescent Dyes / Q000493:pharmacokinetics*; D005938:Glucocorticoids / Q000494:pharmacology*; D008168:Lung / Q000737:chemistry*; D008297:Male; D008819:Mice, Nude; D013501:Surface-Active Agents / Q000494:pharmacology*; D014132:Trachea / Q000737:chemistry
chemical_list: D005456:Fluorescent Dyes; D005938:Glucocorticoids; D013501:Surface-Active Agents; D019819:Budesonide
keywords: budesonide; fluorescence; in vivo imaging system; surfactant