NIRF Optical/PET Dual-Modal Imaging of Hepatocellular Carcinoma Using Heptamethine Carbocyanine Dye

• Main Authors: Caiqin Zhang, Yong Zhao, Ningning Zhao, Dengxu Tan, He Zhang, Xue Chen, Hai Zhang, Jiaze An, Changhong Shi, Mengbin Li
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Hindawi-Wiley 2018-01-01
• Series: Contrast Media & Molecular Imaging
• Online Access: http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2018/4979746

Combining near-infrared fluorescence (NIRF) and nuclear imaging techniques provides a novel approach for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) diagnosis. Here, we report the synthesis and characteristics of a dual-modality NIRF optical/positron emission tomography (PET) imaging probe using heptamethine carbocyanine dye and verify its feasibility in both nude mice and rabbits with orthotopic xenograft liver cancer. This dye, MHI-148, is an effective cancer-specific NIRF imaging agent and shows preferential uptake and retention in liver cancer. The corresponding NIRF imaging intensity reaches 109/cm2 tumor area at 24 h after injection in mice with HCC subcutaneous tumors. The dye can be further conjugated with radionuclide 68Ga (68Ga-MHI-148) for PET tracing. We applied the dual-modality methodology toward the detection of HCC in both patient-derived orthotopic xenograft (PDX) models and rabbit orthotopic transplantation models. NIRF/PET images showed clear tumor delineation after probe injection (MHI-148 and 68Ga-MHI-148). The tumor-to-muscle (T/M) standardized uptake value (SUV) ratios were obtained from PET at 1 h after injection of 68Ga-MHI-148, which was helpful for effectively capturing small tumors in mice (0.5 cm × 0.3 cm) and rabbits (1.2 cm × 1.8 cm). This cancer-targeting NIRF/PET dual-modality imaging probe provides a proof of principle for noninvasive detection of deep-tissue tumors in mouse and rabbit and is a promising technique for more accurate and early detection of HCC.