Integrin αvβ3 receptor targeting PET/MRI dual-modal imaging probe based on the 64Cu labeled manganese ferrite nanoparticles

With the advent of positron emission tomography/magnetic resonance imaging (PET/MRI) scanner, PET/MRI dual-modal imaging will play more and more important role in the diagnosis of cancers and other diseases. Until now, there is no an approved PET/MRI dual-modal imaging probe. The goal of this work is to design and synthesize potential PET/MRI dual-modal imaging probe based on superparamagnetic manganese ferrite nanoparticles. We have developed superparamagnetic nanoparticles that have uniform size with 5 nm and can be further functionalized through surface coating with dopamine and polyethylene glycol derivatives, which provide functional groups for conjugating tumor-targeting biomolecules and bifunctional chelators. The nanoparticles conjugated with integrin αvβ3 over-expressed targeting cyclic arginine-glycine-aspartic acid (RGD)-peptide and labeled with positron radionuclide copper-64 were intravenously injected into glioblastoma xenograft nude mice. In vivo MRI and PET imaging of mice implied that the PET/MRI dual-modal imaging probe can precisely locate the tumor site with αvβ3 over expression. A novel positron emission tomography/magnetic resonance imaging (PET/MRI) dual-modal imaging probe based on 64Cu labeled manganese ferrite nanoparticles was developed. Small animal non-invasive imaging revealed that the probe precisely located tumor site due to the targeting arginine-glycine-aspartic acid (RGD)-peptide binding to the tumor expressing integrin αvβ3. [Display omitted] •Dual-modal imaging probe was based on 64Cu labeled manganese ferrite nanoparticles.•The arginine-glycine-aspartic acid (RGD)-peptide was used as a targeting vector.•Superparamagnetic nanoparticles have uniform sizes with 5 nm and high r2 relaxivity.•The “anchor-linker” agent prevents the aggregation of nanoparticles.•Probe showed good specificity to ανβ3 expressed in nude mice bearing glioblastoma.