Molecular engineering of nonmetallic biosensors for CEST MRI.
Recent advancements in molecular and synthetic biology, combined with synthetic chemistry and biotechnology, have opened up new opportunities to engineer novel platforms that can monitor complex biological processes with various noninvasive imaging modalities. After decades of using gadolinium- or iron-based metallic sensors for MRI, the recently developed chemical exchange saturation transfer (CEST) contrast mechanism has created an opportunity for rational design, in silico, of nonmetallic biosensors for MRI. These biomolecules are either naturally occurring compounds (amino acids, sugars, nucleosides, native proteins) or can be artificially engineered (synthetic probes or recombinant proteins). They can be administered either as exogenous agents or can be genetically (over)expressed. Moreover, they can be precisely engineered to achieve the desired biochemical properties for fine tuning optimized imaging schemes. The availability of these agents marks the dawn of a new scientific era for molecular and cellular MRI.
†Russell H. Morgan Department of Radiology, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland 21287, United States.|‡Cellular Imaging Section and Vascular Biology Program, Institute for Cell Engineering, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland 21205, United States.
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†Russell H. Morgan Department of Radiology, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland 21287, United States.|‡Cellular Imaging Section and Vascular Biology Program, Institute for Cell Engineering, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland 21205, United States.|§F.M. Kirby Research Center for Functional Brain Imaging, Kennedy Krieger Institute, Baltimore, Maryland 21205, United States.|∥Department of Biomedical Engineering, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland 21205, United States.|#Department of Oncology, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland 21287, United States.
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†Russell H. Morgan Department of Radiology, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland 21287, United States.|‡Cellular Imaging Section and Vascular Biology Program, Institute for Cell Engineering, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland 21205, United States.|§F.M. Kirby Research Center for Functional Brain Imaging, Kennedy Krieger Institute, Baltimore, Maryland 21205, United States.
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D015374:Biosensing Techniques; D017930:Genes, Reporter; D005947:Glucose / Q000378:metabolism; D006801:Humans; D006863:Hydrogen-Ion Concentration; D008164:Luminescent Proteins / Q000235:genetics; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging / Q000379:methods*
D008164:Luminescent Proteins; D005947:Glucose