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Published in:

01-04-2010

Advances in Imaging of Cardiac Allograft Rejection

Authors: Thomas Christen, Koichi Shimizu, Peter Libby

Published in: Current Cardiovascular Imaging Reports | Issue 2/2010

Abstract

Endomyocardial biopsy with its inherent invasiveness and morbidity calls for the development of noninvasive imaging methods to evaluate heart transplant recipients. While conventional imaging technologies report on anatomical and metabolic changes in heart grafts, macrophage-targeted imaging could allow disease detection before gross anatomical and functional changes have occurred. One important approach in magnetic resonance–based molecular imaging exploits an increased T2/T2* relaxation effect, occurring when phagocytic cells localized in the heart graft take up iron-oxide nanoparticles. This methodology of nanoparticle reporting on immune cell accumulation in the graft combined with precise functional and morphological information of cardiac MRI has potential to supplant endomyocardial biopsy. The use of multifunctional nanoparticles fit for multiple imaging modalities (magnetic, optical, and nuclear) will help improve methods of ex vivo and in vitro imaging of allograft rejection and also further our knowledge of allograft rejection by providing a tool for nondestructive serial in vivo assessment.

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Title: Advances in Imaging of Cardiac Allograft Rejection
Authors: Thomas Christen
Koichi Shimizu
Peter Libby
Publication date: 01-04-2010
Publisher: Current Science Inc.
Published in: Current Cardiovascular Imaging Reports / Issue 2/2010
Print ISSN: 1941-9066
Electronic ISSN: 1941-9074
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12410-010-9011-2

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