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Ultrasound Molecular Imaging of Cancer: Design and Formulation Strategies of Targeted Contrast Agents

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Molecular Imaging in Oncology

Part of the book series: Recent Results in Cancer Research ((RECENTCANCER,volume 216))

Abstract

Gas-filled particles (microbubbles) can be prepared and stabilized for intravascular use as contrast agents in ultrasound imaging. Microbubbles are used in clinics as blood pool contrast materials for the past two decades. Shell of these bubbles is made of biocompatible and biodegradable lipids, proteins, and/or polymers. Gas core is air, or, lately, a perfluorinated gas, poorly soluble in water and blood. Making them useful for molecular targeting and molecular imaging in oncology is accomplished by decorating the shell of these particles with targeting ligands, that will selectively bind to the specific markers of tumor vasculature. In this review we discuss the formulation strategy for microbubble preparation, the logic of bubble shell selection, coupling tools that are used for the attachment of targeting ligands, and examples of the application of gas-filled bubbles for molecular imaging in oncology.

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Acknowledgments

A.L. Klibanov is supported in part via NIH R01 EB023055, awarded by the National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering of the National Institutes of Health. The content of this publication is solely the responsibility of the author and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institutes of Health.

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  1. Cardiovascular Division (Department of Medicine), Robert M Berne Cardiovascular Research Center, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA, 22908, USA

    Alexander L. Klibanov

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Correspondence to Alexander L. Klibanov .

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  1. Department of Nuclear Medicine, University of Münster, Münster, Germany

    Otmar Schober

  2. Institute for Experimental Molecular Imaging, University Hospital, RWTH Aachen University, Aachen, Germany

    Fabian Kiessling

  3. Department of Radiation Oncology, Ruprecht Karl University, Heidelberg, Germany

    Jürgen Debus

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Klibanov, A.L. (2020). Ultrasound Molecular Imaging of Cancer: Design and Formulation Strategies of Targeted Contrast Agents. In: Schober, O., Kiessling, F., Debus, J. (eds) Molecular Imaging in Oncology. Recent Results in Cancer Research, vol 216. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-42618-7_9

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