MRI Tracking of Macrophages Labeled with Glucan Particles Entrapping a Water Insoluble Paramagnetic Gd-Based Agent

This study is aimed at demonstrating the in vivo potential of Gd(III)-loaded glucan particles (Gd-GPs) as magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)-positive agents for labeling and tracking phagocytic cells. GPs were obtained from Saccharomyces cerevisae and loaded with the water-insoluble complex Gd-DOTAMA(C-18)(2). The uptake kinetics of Gd-GPs by murine macrophages was studied in vitro and the internalization mechanism was assessed by competition assays. The in vivo performance of Gd-GPs was tested at 7.05 T on a mouse model of acute liver inflammation. The minimum number of Gd-GPs-labeled J774.A1 macrophages detected in vitro by MRI was ca. 300 cells/mu l of agar, which is the lowest number ever reported for cells labeled with a positive T-1 agent. Intravenous injection of macrophages labeled with Gd-GPs in a mouse model of liver inflammation enabled the MRI visualization of the cellular infiltration in the diseased area. Gd-GPs represent a promising platform for tracking macrophages by MRI as a T-1 alternative to the golden standard T-2-based iron oxide particles.