College of Pharmacy, Jiamusi University, Jiamusi 154000, China.
College of Pharmacy, Jiamusi University, Jiamusi 154000, China.
Colloids Surf B Biointerfaces. 2020 May;189:110861. doi: 10.1016/j.colsurfb.2020.110861. Epub 2020 Feb 11.
Molecularly-targeted nanobubbles (NBs) offer opportunities to improve the ability of ultrasound imaging to identify specific pathological tissue from healthy tissue. In this work, we aimed to design ligands-conjugated, nanosized, lipid ultrasound contrast agents (UCAs) and apply the agents in the ultrasound imaging of atherosclerotic plaque. Anti-VEGFR-2 ligands were conjugated to UCAs using the noncovalent biotin-avidin linker method. Several investigations were used to determine the morphology and performance of the targeted UCAs, including surface morphology, size distribution and ligands conjunction efficiency. The prepared targeted UCAs were utilized in vivo ultrasound imaging to detect rabbit abdominal aorta atherosclerotic plaque and to investigate the acoustic behavior in a rabbit kidney model. The results implied that the nanosized UCAs carrying anti-VEGFR-2 ligands would facilitate site-specific recognition of atherosclerosis and can provide unique advantages in targeted ultrasound molecular imaging.
靶向分子纳米气泡（NBs）为提高超声成像识别特定病理组织与健康组织的能力提供了机会。在这项工作中，我们旨在设计配体偶联的、纳米级的脂质超声对比剂（UCAs），并将这些试剂应用于动脉粥样硬化斑块的超声成像。采用非共价生物素-亲和素连接物方法将抗血管内皮生长因子受体 2（VEGFR-2）配体偶联到 UCAs 上。采用多种方法对靶向 UCAs 的形态和性能进行了研究，包括表面形态、粒径分布和配体偶联效率。将制备的靶向 UCAs 用于体内超声成像，以检测兔腹主动脉粥样硬化斑块，并研究兔肾模型中的声行为。结果表明，携带抗血管内皮生长因子受体 2 配体的纳米级 UCAs 有助于动脉粥样硬化的特异性识别，并可在靶向超声分子成像中提供独特优势。
