Preparation and In Vitro Characterization of Dendrimer-based Contrast Agents for Magnetic Resonance Imaging

Summary

This protocol describes the preparation and characterization of a dendrimeric magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) contrast agent that carries cyclen-based macrocyclic chelates coordinating paramagnetic gadolinium ions. In a series of MRI experiments in vitro, this agent produced an amplified MRI signal when compared to the commercially available monomeric analogue.

Abstract

Paramagnetic complexes of gadolinium(III) with acyclic or macrocyclic chelates are the most commonly used contrast agents (CAs) for magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Their purpose is to enhance the relaxation rate of water protons in tissue, thus increasing the MR image contrast and the specificity of the MRI measurements. Current clinically approved contrast agents are low molecular weight molecules that are rapidly cleared from the body. The use of dendrimers as carriers of paramagnetic chelators can play an important role in the future development of more efficient MRI contrast agents. Specifically, the increase in local concentration of the paramagnetic species results in a higher signal contrast. Furthermore, this CA provides a longer tissue retention time due to its high molecular weight and size. Here, we demonstrate a convenient procedure for the preparation of macromolecular MRI contrast agents based on poly(amidoamine) (PAMAM) dendrimers with monomacrocyclic DOTA-type chelators (DOTA – 1,4,7,10-tetraazacyclododecane-1,4,7,10-tetraacetate). The chelating unit was appended by exploiting the reactivity of the isothiocyanate (NCS) group towards the amine surface groups of the PAMAM dendrimer to form thiourea bridges. Dendrimeric products were purified and analyzed by means of nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy, mass spectrometry, and elemental analysis. Finally, high resolution MR images were recorded and the signal contrasts obtained from the prepared dendrimeric and the commercially available monomeric agents were compared.

Introduction

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is a powerful and non-ionizing imaging technique widely used in biomedical research and clinical diagnostics due to its noninvasive nature and excellent intrinsic soft-tissue contrast. The most commonly used MRI methods utilize the signal obtained from water protons, providing high-resolution images and detailed information within the tissues based on differences in the density of the water signals. The signal intensity and the specificity of the MRI experiments can be further improved using contrast agents (CAs). These are paramagnetic or superparamagnetic species that affect the longitudinal (T₁) and transverse (<....

Protocol

1. Preparation of DCA

1. Synthesis of the monomeric unit 4⁶.
   1. Synthesis of 4-(4-nitrophenyl)-2-(4,7,10-tris-tert-butoxycarbonylmethyl-1,4,7,10-tetraazacyclododec-1-yl)butyric acid tert-butyl ester (2).
      1. Dissolve (4,7-bis-tert-butoxycarbonylmethyl-1,4,7,10-tetraaza-cyclododec-1-yl)-acetic acid tert-butyl ester 1 (1.00 g, 1.94 mmol) in N,N-dimethylformamide (DMF, 5 ml), add potassium carbonate (0.67 g, 4.86 mmol, 2.5 equiv.) and stir the mixture at room temperature for 45 min.
         NOTE: Macrocycle

Results

The preparation of DCA consisted of two stages: 1) synthesis of the monomeric DOTA-type chelator (Figure 1) and 2) coupling of the chelator with the G4 PAMAM dendrimer and subsequent preparation of the dendrimeric Gd(III) complex (Figure 2). In the first stage, a cyclen-based DOTA-type chelator containing four carboxylic acids and an orthogonal group suitable for further synthetic modifications was prepared. The preparation commenced from.......

Discussion

Preparation of the dendrimeric MRI contrast agent requires appropriate selection of the monomeric unit (i.e., the chelator for Gd(III)). They reduce the toxicity of this paramagnetic ion and, to date, a wide variety of acyclic and macrocyclic chelators serve this purpose^1-3. Among these, macrocyclic DOTA-type chelators possess the highest thermodynamic stability and kinetic inertness and, hence, are the most preferred choice for the preparation of inert MRI contrast agents^1,18. Furthermore,.......

Materials

List of materials used in this article

Name	Company	Catalog Number	Comments
Cyclen	CheMatech	C002
tert-Butyl bromoacetate	Alfa Aesar	A14917
N,N-Dimethylformamide	Fluka	40248
Potassium carbonate	Sigma-Aldrich	209619
4-(4-Nitrophenyl)butryic acid	Aldrich	335339
Thionyl chloride	Acros Organics	382662500	Note: Corrosive substance; toxic if inhaled
Bromine	Acros Organics	402841000	Note: causes severe skin burns, fatal if inhaled
Diethyl ether	any source
Sodium sulphate	Acros Organics	196640010
Chloroform	VWR Chemicals	22711.29
tert-Butyl 2,2,2-trichloroacetimidate	Aldrich	364789	Note: flammable substance; irritrant to skin and eyes
Boron trifluoride etherate	Acros Organics	174560250	48% BF3. Note: Flammable substance; causes skin burns, fatal if inhaled
Sodium bicarbonate	Acros Organics	424270010
Ethyl-acetate	any source		For column chromatography
n-Hexane	any source		For column chromatography
Bulb-to-bulb (Kugelrohr) distillation apparatus	Büchi		Model type: Glass oven B-585
Silicagel	Carl Roth GmbH	P090.2
Methanol	any source		For column chromatography
Dichloromethane	any source		For column chromatography
Ethanol	VWR Chemicals	20821.296
Ammonia	Acros Organics	428381000	7 N Solution in Methanol
Palladium	Aldrich	643181	15% wet
Hydrogenation apparatus PARR	PARR Instrument Company
Celite 503	Aldrich	22151
Sintered glass funnel	any source
Thiophosgen	Aldrich	115150	Note: irritrant to skin; toxic if inhaled
Triethylamine	Alfa Aesar	A12646
Dichloromethane	Acros Organics	348460010	Extra dry
Magnetic stirrer	any source
PAMAM G4 Dendrimer	Andrews ChemService	AuCS - 297	10% wt. solution in MeOH
Lipophylic Sephadex LH-20	Sigma	LH20100
Thin-layer chromatography plates	Merck Millipore	1.05554.0001
Formic acid	VWR Chemicals	20318.297
Lophylizer	any source
Gadollinium(III) chloride hexahydrate	Aldrich	G7532
Sodium hydroxide	Acros Organics	134070010
pH meter	any source
Ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid disodium salt dihydrate	Aldrich	E5134
Mass spectrometer (ESI)	Agilent		Ion trap SL 1100
Acetate buffer	any source		pH 5.8
Xylenol orange	Aldrich	52097	20 μM in acetate buffer
Hydrophylic Sephadex G-15	GE Healthcare	17-0020-01
Amicon Ultra-15 Centrifugal Filter Unit	Merck Millipore	UFC900324	Ultracel-3 membrane (MWCO 3000)
Centrifuge	any source
NMR spectrometer	Bruker		Avance III 300 MHz
Topspin	Bruker		Version 2.1
Combustion analysis instrument	EuroVector SpA		EuroEA 3000 Elemental Analyser
MALDI-ToF MS instrument	Applied Biosystems		Voyager-STR
Deuteriumoxid	Carl Roth GmbH	6672.3
tert-Butyl alcohol	Carl Roth GmbH	AE16.1
Vortex mixer	any source
Norell NMR tubes	Deutero GmbH	507-HP-7
NMR coaxial tube	Deutero GmbH	coaxialb-5-7
DLS instrument	Malvern		Zetasizer Nano ZS
0.20 μm PTFE filter	Carl Roth GmbH	KC94.1
HEPES	Fisher BioReagents	BP310
Plastic tube vials	any source
Dotarem	Guerbet		NDC 67684-2000-1
MRI scanner	Bruker		BioSpec 70/30 USR magnet (7 T). Note: potential hazards related to high magnetic fields
RF coil	Bruker		Dual frequency volume coil (RF RES 300 1H/19F 075/040 LIN/LIN TR)
Paravision (software)	Bruker		Version 5.1