Hyaluronic acid-modified magnetic iron oxide nanoparticles for MR imaging of surgically induced endometriosis model in rats

Endometriosis is defined as the presence of endometrial tissue outside the uterine, which may affect nearly 60% of women in reproductive age. Deep infiltrating endometriosis (DIE) defined as an endometriotic lesion penetrating into the retroperitoneal space or the wall of the pelvic organs to a depth of at least 5 mm represents the most diagnostic challenge. Herein, we reported the use of hyaluronic acid (HA)-modified magnetic iron oxide nanoparticles (HA-Fe3O4 NPs) for magnetic resonance (MR) imaging of endometriotic lesions in the rodent model. Sixteen endometriotic lesions were surgically induced in eight rats by autologous transplantation. Four weeks after lesion induction, three rats were scanned via MR imaging after tail vein injection of the HA-Fe3O4 NPs. Accordingly, the remaining five mice were sacrificed in the corresponding time points. The ectopic uterine tissues (EUTs) were confirmed by histological analysis. Quantification of Fe in the EUT was also performed by inductively coupled plasma-optical emission spectroscopy. Our results showed that by using the HA-Fe3O4 NPs, the EUTs were able to be visualized via T2-weighted MR imaging at 2 hours post injection, corroborating the Prussian blue staining results. The developed HA-Fe3O4 NPs could be used as negative contrast agents for sensitively detecting endometriosis in a mouse model and may be applied for future hyperthermia treatment of endometriosis.