Optical Imaging

Optical imaging has the advantages of mature instrumentation, high sensitivity, high contrast, high resolution, intuitive imaging, and fast imaging speed, which have important practical significance and application prospects in exploring physiological and pathological information such as the pathogenesis and clinical manifestations of diseases. Optical imaging images cells, tissues and even organisms to obtain biological information therein and analyze the characteristics, status, and even the expression and distribution of molecules in specific regions of cells or organisms. Specific labeling of bright and light-stable biomarkers is crucial in optical imaging. Dendrimers are three-dimensional macromolecules with monodisperse structure, precisely controlled structure, and composition, which are ideal carriers for delivery of imaging probes. Through size tuning and surface chemical modification, the dendrimers available for optical imaging have excellent brightness, photostability, good pharmacokinetics and multivalent tumor targeting ability.

What is Optical Imaging?

Optical imaging utilizes the special properties of light and photons to provide the least invasive method for looking inside the body, allowing detailed images of organs, tissues, cells, and even molecules to be obtained. Molecular fluorescence imaging of cancer by fluorophores can reveal the intrinsic state of the disease at the cellular and molecular levels, offering great promise for early detection, diagnosis, and surgical guidance of cancer. Fluorophores with desirable optical properties are essential for fluorescence imaging. Probes used for optical imaging include small molecular dyes (cyanine dye), quantum dots (CdSe), carbon dots, which have disadvantages such as low water solubility, toxicity, aggregation-induced bursts, and photobleaching. Therefore, the development of fluorescent nanoprobes with better optical properties and excellent pharmacokinetics is imminent.

Advantages of Optical Imaging

• Optical imaging uses non-ionizing radiation (including visible, ultraviolet, and infrared light) to significantly reduce patient exposure to harmful radiation and is safer than ionizing radiation techniques such as x-rays.
• Optical imaging allows for repeatable procedures to monitor disease progression or treatment outcomes.
• Optics is particularly suitable for measuring soft tissues. Different soft tissues absorb and scatter light in a variety of ways, and optical imaging can measure metabolic changes that are early markers of abnormal organ and tissue function.
• In addition, optical imaging can be combined with other imaging techniques (such as MRI and x-ray) to provide more detailed information to researchers or physicians.

Dendrimers for Optical Imaging in Cancer

As a nanomaterial, dendrimers have a variety of functional groups and their excellent water solubility, low viscosity, biocompatibility, and biodegradability give them great potential for biomedical applications, including but not limited to drug/gene delivery, cancer diagnostics, tissue regeneration, and therapeutics. In recent decades, dendrimers have developed rapidly in the biomedical field, particularly in cancer diagnostics, for providing imaging probes or as imaging reporters, and for capturing cancer markers. The inherent physicochemical properties of dendrimers give them a unique advantage in cancer diagnosis and are useful for early tumor diagnosis, tracking information on tumor characteristics, aggressiveness, metastasis, and prognosis. Encapsulation of photochemical agents in dendrimers (located in the inner chamber or as a core) can effectively address the shortcomings of probes. Dendrimer-based fluorophores not only exhibit superior brightness, but also can fully embed hydrophobic dyes to avoid aggregation-induced fluorescence bursts and improve pharmacokinetics by reducing non-specific interactions with proteins and cells. In addition, the nanoscale size of dendrimers helps to penetrate deep into the tumor and obtain comprehensive information about the tumor or tissue.

Dendritic nano-scale systems for optical imaging of cancer. (Cong H, et al., 2020)

How We Can Help

As a trusted CRO, CD BioSciences provides innovative dendrimer products and high quality services to passionate researchers around the world. Our dedicated scientists will meet each of your specific needs and help you solve all the problems in your dendrimer research program. If you are interested in our services or have any other questions, please feel free to contact us.

Reference

1. Cong H.; et al. Tuning the Brightness and Photostability of Organic Dots for Multivalent Targeted Cancer Imaging and Surgery. ACS Nano. 2020, 14: 5887-5900.