Rice University, Bioengineering Department, 6100 Main Street, Bioengineering, MS 142, Houston, TX 77005-1892, USA.
Nanomedicine (Lond). 2012 Mar;7(3):429-45. doi: 10.2217/nnm.12.12.
Over the last three decades, our understanding of the molecular changes associated with cancer development and progression has advanced greatly. This has led to new cancer therapeutics targeted against specific molecular pathways; such therapies show great promise to reduce mortality, in part by enabling physicians to tailor therapy for patients based on a molecular profile of their tumor. Unfortunately, the tools for definitive cancer diagnosis - light microscopic examination of biopsied tissue stained with nonspecific dyes - remain focused on the analysis of tissue ex vivo. There is an important need for new clinical tools to support the molecular diagnosis of cancer. Optical molecular imaging is emerging as a technique to help meet this need. Targeted, optically active contrast agents can specifically label extra- and intracellular biomarkers of cancer. Optical images can be acquired in real time with high spatial resolution to image-specific molecular targets, while still providing morphologic context. This article reviews recent advances in optical molecular imaging, highlighting the advances in technology required to improve early cancer detection, guide selection of targeted therapy and rapidly evaluate therapeutic efficacy.
在过去的三十年中，我们对与癌症发展和进展相关的分子变化的理解有了很大的提高。这导致了针对特定分子途径的新的癌症治疗方法；这些疗法有望降低死亡率，部分原因是使医生能够根据肿瘤的分子特征为患者量身定制治疗方案。不幸的是，用于明确癌症诊断的工具——用非特异性染料染色的活检组织的光学显微镜检查——仍然集中在对离体组织的分析上。非常需要新的临床工具来支持癌症的分子诊断。光学分子成像是一种新兴的技术，可以帮助满足这一需求。靶向、光学活性的对比剂可以特异性地标记癌症的细胞外和细胞内生物标志物。可以实时获得光学图像，具有高空间分辨率，以对特定的分子靶标进行成像，同时仍然提供形态学背景。本文综述了光学分子成像的最新进展，重点介绍了提高早期癌症检测、指导靶向治疗选择和快速评估治疗效果所需的技术进展。
