Hypoxia-sensitive NMR contrast agents.

The rate of reduction of nitroxides is shown to be more rapid in hypoxic cells. The rate of reduction and the effect of hypoxia on the reduction rate vary for different nitroxides. These findings indicate that it may be feasible to develop in vivo NMR contrast agents that selectively will indicate areas of hypoxia and thereby aid in the detection of disease processes such as neoplasia, ischemia, and inflammation.