Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2011 Apr;13(2):232-8.
doi: 10.1007/s11307-010-0356-3.

Molecular imaging using light-absorbing imaging agents and a clinical optical breast imaging system--a phantom study

Stephanie M W Y van de Ven  1 , Niculae Mincu, Jean Brunette, Guobin Ma, Mario Khayat, Debra M Ikeda, Sanjiv S Gambhir
Affiliations

Molecular imaging using light-absorbing imaging agents and a clinical optical breast imaging system--a phantom study

Stephanie M W Y van de Ven et al. Mol Imaging Biol. 2011 Apr.

Abstract

Purpose: The aim of the study was to determine the feasibility of using a clinical optical breast scanner with molecular imaging strategies based on modulating light transmission.

Procedures: Different concentrations of single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNT; 0.8-20.0 nM) and black hole quencher-3 (BHQ-3; 2.0-32.0 µM) were studied in specifically designed phantoms (200-1,570 mm(3)) with a clinical optical breast scanner using four wavelengths. Each phantom was placed in the scanner tank filled with optical matching medium. Background scans were compared to absorption scans, and reproducibility was assessed.

Results: All SWNT phantoms were detected at four wavelengths, with best results at 684 nm. Higher concentrations (≥8.0 µM) were needed for BHQ-3 detection, with the largest contrast at 684 nm. The optical absorption signal was dependent on phantom size and concentration. Reproducibility was excellent (intraclass correlation 0.93-0.98).

Conclusion: Nanomolar concentrations of SWNT and micromolar concentrations of BHQ-3 in phantoms were reproducibly detected, showing the potential of light absorbers, with appropriate targeting ligands, as molecular imaging agents for clinical optical breast imaging.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
a The clinical optical breast imaging system (SoftScan, ART Advanced Research Technologies Inc.). b Positioning of the SWNT phantom (arrow) in the scanner tank hanging on a thin wire between the two stabilization plates (stars) with a weight at the bottom (double arrow) to keep the phantom in place, and c filling the tank completely with optical matching medium (OMM). d Examples of phantoms of three different sizes (200, 780, and 1,570 mm3).
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Average absorption measurements at 684 nm of phantoms of three sizes (200, 780, and 1,570 mm3) containing six concentrations of SWNTs (0.8, 1.6, 2.4, 4, 6.4, and 20 nM). Error bars represent the standard deviation of duplicate measurements.
Fig. 3
Fig. 3
Average absorption measurements at 684 nm of phantoms of two sizes (200 and 780 mm3) containing five concentrations of BHQ-3 (2.0, 4.0, 8.0, 16, and 32 μM). Error bars represent the standard deviation of duplicate measurements.
Fig. 4
Fig. 4
Optical absorption measurements at 684 nm: a optical matching medium only; b–f 200 mm3 phantom with different SWNT concentrations, i.e., 0.8 (b), 1.6 (c), 2.4 (d), 6.4 (e), and 20 nM (f). The rectangle drawn in c represents the to-scale inclusion for reference.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

References

    1. Gibson AP, Hebden JC, Arridge SR. Recent advances in diffuse optical imaging. Phys Med Biol. 2005;50:R1–R43. - PubMed
    1. Ntziachristos V, Chance B. Probing physiology and molecular function using optical imaging: applications to breast cancer. Breast Cancer Res. 2001;3:41–46. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Tromberg BJ, Shah N, Lanning R, et al. Non-invasive in vivo characterization of breast tumors using photon migration spectroscopy. Neoplasia. 2000;2:26–40. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Peters NH, Borel RI, Zuithoff NP, Mali WP, Moons KG, Peeters PH. Meta-analysis of MR imaging in the diagnosis of breast lesions. Radiology. 2008;246:116–124. - PubMed
    1. Raza S, Chikarmane SA, Neilsen SS, Zorn LM, Birdwell RL. BI-RADS 3, 4, and 5 lesions: value of US in management—follow-up and outcome. Radiology. 2008;248:773–781. - PubMed

Publication types

Substances

LinkOut - more resources