Xiamen Cardiovascular Hospital, Xiamen University, 2999 Jinshan Road, Huli District, Xiamen, 361006, China.
School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Tsinghua University, 30 Shuangqing Road, Haiding District, Beijing, 100084, China.
Small. 2022 Feb;18(5):e2104471. doi: 10.1002/smll.202104471. Epub 2021 Nov 27.
The surgical removal of lesions is among the most common and effective treatments for atherosclerosis. It is often the only curative treatment option, and the ability to visualize the full extent of atherosclerotic plaque during the operation has major implications for the therapeutic outcome. Fluorescence imaging is a promising approach for the inspection of atherosclerotic plaques during surgery. However, there is no systematic strategy for intraoperative fluorescent imaging in atherosclerosis. In this study, the in situ attachment of a lipid-activatable fluorescent probe (CN-N2)-soaked patch to the outer arterial surface is reported for rapid and precise localization of the atherosclerotic plaque in ApoE-deficient mouse during surgery. Stable imaging of the plaque is conducted within 5 min via rapid recognition of abnormally accumulated lipid droplets (LDs) in foam cells. Furthermore, the plaque/normal ratio (P/N) is significantly enhanced to facilitate surgical delineation of carotid atherosclerotic plaques. Visible fluorescence bioimaging using lipid-activatable probes can accurately delineate plaque sizes down to diameters of <0.5 mm, and the images can be swiftly captured within the stable plaque imaging time window. These findings on intraoperative fluorescent imaging of plaques via the in situ attachment of the CN-N2 patch hold promise for effective clinical applications.
病变的外科切除是治疗动脉粥样硬化最常用和最有效的方法之一。它通常是唯一的治愈性治疗选择，而在手术过程中能够可视化动脉粥样硬化斑块的全部范围对治疗结果有重大影响。荧光成像是手术中检查动脉粥样硬化斑块的一种很有前途的方法。然而，目前还没有针对动脉粥样硬化术中荧光成像的系统策略。在这项研究中，报告了一种在动脉外表面原位附着脂激活型荧光探针（CN-N2）浸泡贴片的方法，以便在手术过程中快速、准确地定位 ApoE 缺陷小鼠中的动脉粥样硬化斑块。通过快速识别泡沫细胞中异常积累的脂滴（LDs），可在 5 分钟内对斑块进行稳定的成像。此外，斑块/正常比值（P/N）显著增强，有助于手术描绘颈动脉粥样硬化斑块。使用脂激活型探针进行可见荧光生物成像可以准确描绘直径小于 0.5mm 的斑块大小，并且可以在稳定斑块成像时间窗口内迅速捕获图像。通过原位附着 CN-N2 贴片进行斑块术中荧光成像的这些发现为有效临床应用提供了希望。
