Summary

炎症性プラークの赤外蛍光(NIRF)血管内分子イメージング、マルチモーダルアプローチの近くin vivoでの動脈硬化のイメージングに

Published: August 04, 2011
doi:

Summary

プラークの生物学の2次元血管内分子イメージングのための我々は詳細に新しい近赤外蛍光(NIRF)カテーテルを<em> in vivoで</em>。 NIRFのカテーテルは、プラーク熱心な起動可能とターゲット近赤外蛍光色素の存在に報告することによって、炎症など主要な生物学的プロセスを可視化することができます。カテーテルは臨床工学と電力要件を利用し、ヒトの冠状動脈のアプリケーションを対象としています。以下の調査研究では、小説を利用したマルチモーダルイメージング戦略を説明<em> in vivoで</em>血管内NIRFイメージにカテーテルとタンパク質分解アクティブ炎症ウサギatheromataにおける炎症性プラークを定量化する。

Abstract

The vascular response to injury is a well-orchestrated inflammatory response triggered by the accumulation of macrophages within the vessel wall leading to an accumulation of lipid-laden intra-luminal plaque, smooth muscle cell proliferation and progressive narrowing of the vessel lumen. The formation of such vulnerable plaques prone to rupture underlies the majority of cases of acute myocardial infarction. The complex molecular and cellular inflammatory cascade is orchestrated by the recruitment of T lymphocytes and macrophages and their paracrine effects on endothelial and smooth muscle cells.1

Molecular imaging in atherosclerosis has evolved into an important clinical and research tool that allows in vivo visualization of inflammation and other biological processes. Several recent examples demonstrate the ability to detect high-risk plaques in patients, and assess the effects of pharmacotherapeutics in atherosclerosis.4 While a number of molecular imaging approaches (in particular MRI and PET) can image biological aspects of large vessels such as the carotid arteries, scant options exist for imaging of coronary arteries.2 The advent of high-resolution optical imaging strategies, in particular near-infrared fluorescence (NIRF), coupled with activatable fluorescent probes, have enhanced sensitivity and led to the development of new intravascular strategies to improve biological imaging of human coronary atherosclerosis.

Near infrared fluorescence (NIRF) molecular imaging utilizes excitation light with a defined band width (650-900 nm) as a source of photons that, when delivered to an optical contrast agent or fluorescent probe, emits fluorescence in the NIR window that can be detected using an appropriate emission filter and a high sensitivity charge-coupled camera. As opposed to visible light, NIR light penetrates deeply into tissue, is markedly less attenuated by endogenous photon absorbers such as hemoglobin, lipid and water, and enables high target-to-background ratios due to reduced autofluorescence in the NIR window. Imaging within the NIR ‘window’ can substantially improve the potential for in vivo imaging.2,5

Inflammatory cysteine proteases have been well studied using activatable NIRF probes10, and play important roles in atherogenesis. Via degradation of the extracellular matrix, cysteine proteases contribute importantly to the progression and complications of atherosclerosis8. In particular, the cysteine protease, cathepsin B, is highly expressed and colocalizes with macrophages in experimental murine, rabbit, and human atheromata.3,6,7 In addition, cathepsin B activity in plaques can be sensed in vivo utilizing a previously described 1-D intravascular near-infrared fluorescence technology6, in conjunction with an injectable nanosensor agent that consists of a poly-lysine polymer backbone derivatized with multiple NIR fluorochromes (VM110/Prosense750, ex/em 750/780nm, VisEn Medical, Woburn, MA) that results in strong intramolecular quenching at baseline.10 Following targeted enzymatic cleavage by cysteine proteases such as cathepsin B (known to colocalize with plaque macrophages), the fluorochromes separate, resulting in substantial amplification of the NIRF signal. Intravascular detection of NIR fluorescence signal by the utilized novel 2D intravascular NIRF catheter now enables high-resolution, geometrically accurate in vivo detection of cathepsin B activity in inflamed plaque.

In vivo molecular imaging of atherosclerosis using catheter-based 2D NIRF imaging, as opposed to a prior 1-D spectroscopic approach,6 is a novel and promising tool that utilizes augmented protease activity in macrophage-rich plaque to detect vascular inflammation.11,12 The following research protocol describes the use of an intravascular 2-dimensional NIRF catheter to image and characterize plaque structure utilizing key aspects of plaque biology. It is a translatable platform that when integrated with existing clinical imaging technologies including angiography and intravascular ultrasound (IVUS), offers a unique and novel integrated multimodal molecular imaging technique that distinguishes inflammatory atheromata, and allows detection of intravascular NIRF signals in human-sized coronary arteries.

Protocol

実験的大動脈腸骨動脈のアテローム性動脈硬化症の発生:in vivo動物モデルで 1)ベースライン血管造影およびバルーンの削剥ベースライン血管造影およびバルーンの削剥を取得する前に、ニュージーランドホワイトウサギは1週間のための高コレステロール血症(1%)食を供給されます。この動物は、ウサギの大動脈iliacs血管がヒト冠状動脈(2.5〜3.5?…

Discussion

炎症を起こして高リスクまたは脆弱なプラークは、心筋梗塞の大多数の可能性が高い責任があります。症状の発症に先立ってこのようなプラークの同定は、両方の結果を予測し、薬物療法を導く臨床的に重要な意味を持っています。このようなX線血管造影などの従来の冠状動脈の画像診断法は、通常、内腔の狭窄の特性評価ではなく、ハイリスク、通常は非狭窄病変の基礎となる生物学的プ…

Disclosures

The authors have nothing to disclose.

Acknowledgements

この作品のサポートは、健康補助金の国民の協会によって提供されていました#R01 HL 108229、米国心臓協会サイエンティスト開発グラント#0830352N、ハワードヒューズ医学研究所のキャリア開発賞、ブロードビューベンチャーズ、欧州共同体の第七次フレームワーク計画(助成金の下でFP7/2007-2013契約#235689)、およびMGHウィリアムシュライヤーフェローシップ。

Materials

Material Name Type Company Catalogue Number Comment
Prosense 750   Visen Medical VM110 500 nmol/kg IV injection
Heparin Sodium   APP Pharmaceuticals 401586D  
Cephazolin   NovaPlus 46015683  
Lidocaine HCL 2%   Hospira NDC 0409-4277-01  
Buprenorphine   Bedford Laboratories NDC 55390-100-10  
Ketamine   Hospira NDC 0409-2051-05  
High Cholesterol Diet 1%   Research Diets C30293  
HIgh Cholesterol Diet 0.3%   Research Diets C30255  

References

  1. Andersson, J., Libby, P. Adaptive immunity and atherosclerosis. Clin Immunol. 134, 33-46 (2010).
  2. Calfon, M. A., Vinegoni, C. Intravascular near-infrared fluorescence molecular imaging of atherosclerosis: toward coronary arterial visualization of biologically high-risk plaques. Journal of Biomedical Optics. 15, 011107-011107 (2010).
  3. Chen, J., Tung, C. -. H. In Vivo Imaging of Proteolytic Activity in Atherosclerosis. Circulation. 105, 2766-2771 (2002).
  4. Jaffer, F. A., Libby, P. Molecular Imaging of Cardiovascular Disease. Circulation. 116, 1052-1061 (2007).
  5. Jaffer, F. A., Libby, P. Optical and Multimodality Molecular Imaging: Insights Into Atherosclerosis. Arterioscler Thromb Vasc Biol. 29, 1017-1024 (2009).
  6. Jaffer, F. A., Vinegoni, C. Real-Time Catheter Molecular Sensing of Inflammation in Proteolytically Active Atherosclerosis. Circulation. 118, 1802-1809 (2008).
  7. Kim, D. -. E., Kim, J. -. Y. Protease Imaging of Human Atheromata Captures Molecular Information of Atherosclerosis, Complementing Anatomic Imaging. Arterioscler Thromb Vasc Biol. 30, 449-456 (2010).
  8. Libby, P. Inflammation in atherosclerosis. Nature. 420, 868-874 (2002).
  9. Naghavi, M., Libby, P. From Vulnerable Plaque to Vulnerable Patient: A Call for New Definitions and Risk Assessment Strategies: Part I. Circulation. 108, 1664-1672 (2003).
  10. Weissleder, R., Tung, C. -. H. In vivo imaging of tumors with protease-activated near-infrared fluorescent probes. Nat Biotech. 17, 375-375 (1999).
  11. Razansky, R. N., Rosenthal, A. Near-infrared fluorescence catheter system for two-dimensional intravascular imaging in vivo. Optics Express. 18, 11372-11381 (2010).
  12. Jaffer, F. A., Calfon, M. A. Two-Dimensional Intravascular Near-Infrared Fluorescence Molecular Imaging of Inflammation in Atherosclerosis and Stent-Induced Vascular Injury. Journal of the American College of Cardiology. 57, 2516-2526 (2011).

Play Video

Cite This Article
Calfon, M. A., Rosenthal, A., Mallas, G., Mauskapf, A., Nudelman, R. N., Ntziachristos, V., Jaffer, F. A. In vivo Near Infrared Fluorescence (NIRF) Intravascular Molecular Imaging of Inflammatory Plaque, a Multimodal Approach to Imaging of Atherosclerosis. J. Vis. Exp. (54), e2257, doi:10.3791/2257 (2011).

View Video