Philips Research NorthAmerica, BriarcliffManor, NY10510, USA.
IEEE Trans Biomed Eng. 2010 Jan;57(1):61-70. doi: 10.1109/TBME.2009.2028874. Epub 2009 Aug 18.
Ultrasound-mediated delivery (USMD) is an active research topic, as researchers develop applications for therapeutic ultrasound in addition to thermal ablation. In USMD, ultrasound is used in conjunction with microbubbles and drugs, nanoparticles, siRNA, pDNA, stem cells, etc., to facilitate their cellular delivery and uptake using pressure and temperature-mediated mechanisms to bring about a desired therapeutic effect. To investigate the potential of targeted USMD of nanoparticles, pDNA, and stem cells for cardiovascular and other applications, a general-purpose preclinical research tool, therapy imaging probe system (TIPS) was designed. It consists of a wideband annular array, a small-animal acoustic coupler, a motorized positioning system, integrated control software for ultrasound image-guided treatment planning and execution, and triggering electronics that allow ECG and respiration-gated ultrasound exposures. TIPS was then used to enhance delivery of nanoparticles into the murine myocardium and heart vessel walls to demonstrate the feasibility of the technology, pave the way for additional basic research in cardiovascular USMD, and begin to explore the requirements that USMD devices will have to meet to be useful in a clinical setting.
超声介导传递（USMD）是一个活跃的研究课题，因为研究人员除了热消融之外，还在开发治疗性超声的应用。在 USMD 中，超声与微泡和药物、纳米颗粒、siRNA、pDNA、干细胞等一起使用，利用压力和温度介导的机制促进它们的细胞传递和摄取，从而带来所需的治疗效果。为了研究靶向 USMD 的纳米颗粒、pDNA 和干细胞在心血管和其他应用中的潜力，设计了一种通用的临床前研究工具，即治疗成像探头系统（TIPS）。它由宽带环形阵列、小动物声耦合器、电动定位系统、用于超声图像引导治疗计划和执行的集成控制软件以及允许心电图和呼吸门控超声曝光的触发电子设备组成。然后，TIPS 被用于增强纳米颗粒进入小鼠心肌和心脏血管壁的传递，以证明该技术的可行性，为心血管 USMD 的进一步基础研究铺平道路，并开始探索 USMD 设备在临床环境中有用所需满足的要求。
