title: Noninvasive detection of macrophages in atherosclerotic lesions by computed tomography enhanced with PEGylated gold nanoparticles.
abstract: Macrophages are becoming increasingly significant in the progression of atherosclerosis (AS). Molecular imaging of macrophages may improve the detection and characterization of AS. In this study, dendrimer-entrapped gold nanoparticles (Au DENPs) with polyethylene glycol (PEG) and fluorescein isothiocyanate (FI) coatings were designed, tested, and applied as contrast agents for the enhanced computed tomography (CT) imaging of macrophages in atherosclerotic lesions. Cell counting kit-8 assay, fluorescence microscopy, silver staining, and transmission electron microscopy revealed that the FI-functionalized Au DENPs are noncytotoxic at high concentrations (3.0 μM) and can be efficiently taken up by murine macrophages in vitro. These nanoparticles were administered to apolipoprotein E knockout mice as AS models, which demonstrated that the macrophage burden in atherosclerotic areas can be tracked noninvasively and dynamically three-dimensionally in live animals using micro-CT. Our findings suggest that the designed PEGylated gold nanoparticles are promising biocompatible nanoprobes for the CT imaging of macrophages in atherosclerotic lesions and will provide new insights into the pathophysiology of AS and other concerned inflammatory diseases.
authors.affiliation: Department of Vascular Surgery, Shanghai Ninth People's Hospital Affiliated to Shanghai JiaoTong University, School of Medicine, Shanghai, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Jinbao
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Qin
authors.affiliation: Department of Radiology, Shanghai Tenth People's Hospital Affiliated to Tongji University, School of Medicine, Shanghai, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Chen
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Peng
authors.affiliation: Department of Radiology, Shanghai Tenth People's Hospital Affiliated to Tongji University, School of Medicine, Shanghai, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Binghui
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Zhao
authors.affiliation: Department of Vascular Surgery, Shanghai Ninth People's Hospital Affiliated to Shanghai JiaoTong University, School of Medicine, Shanghai, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Kaichuang
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Ye
authors.affiliation: Department of Vascular Surgery, Shanghai Ninth People's Hospital Affiliated to Shanghai JiaoTong University, School of Medicine, Shanghai, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Fukang
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Yuan
authors.affiliation: Department of Vascular Surgery, Shanghai Ninth People's Hospital Affiliated to Shanghai JiaoTong University, School of Medicine, Shanghai, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Zhiyou
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Peng
authors.affiliation: Department of Vascular Surgery, Shanghai Ninth People's Hospital Affiliated to Shanghai JiaoTong University, School of Medicine, Shanghai, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Xinrui
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.affiliation: Department of Vascular Surgery, Shanghai Ninth People's Hospital Affiliated to Shanghai JiaoTong University, School of Medicine, Shanghai, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Lijia
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Huang
authors.affiliation: Department of Vascular Surgery, Shanghai Ninth People's Hospital Affiliated to Shanghai JiaoTong University, School of Medicine, Shanghai, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Mier
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Jiang
authors.affiliation: Department of Orthopaedics, Shanghai First People's Hospital, School of Medicine, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Qinghua
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Zhao
authors.affiliation: Department of Radiology, Shanghai Tenth People's Hospital Affiliated to Tongji University, School of Medicine, Shanghai, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Guangyu
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Tang
authors.affiliation: Department of Vascular Surgery, Shanghai Ninth People's Hospital Affiliated to Shanghai JiaoTong University, School of Medicine, Shanghai, People's Republic of China ; Vascular Center of Shanghai JiaoTong University, Shanghai, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Xinwu
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Lu
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D050197:Atherosclerosis / Q000473:pathology*; D002460:Cell Line; D004912:Erythrocytes / Q000187:drug effects; D016650:Fluorescein-5-isothiocyanate / Q000737:chemistry / Q000493:pharmacokinetics / Q000633:toxicity; D006046:Gold / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000493:pharmacokinetics / Q000633:toxicity; D006461:Hemolysis / Q000187:drug effects; D006801:Humans; D008264:Macrophages / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000166:cytology; D053768:Metal Nanoparticles / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000633:toxicity; D051379:Mice; D057054:Molecular Imaging / Q000379:methods*; D011092:Polyethylene Glycols / Q000737:chemistry; D014018:Tissue Distribution; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed / Q000379:methods*
chemical_list: D011092:Polyethylene Glycols; D006046:Gold; D016650:Fluorescein-5-isothiocyanate
keywords: CT; atherosclerosis; in vivo imaging