PLGA-PEG-Mal, PLGA-PEG from PolySciTech used in development of cancer diagnosing nanobubbles

 

Ultrasound is a widely applicable and robust imaging technique that can determine internal features of humans in a non-invasive manner. One way to assist clinicians in treating cancer is to render the tumors visible by ultrasound so that they can be readily diagnosed and identified. Researchers at University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign Used PLGA (cat# AP154) as well as PLGA-PEG, and PLGA-PEG-Mal from PolySciTech division of Akina, Inc. (www.polyscitech.com) to create targeted nanoparticles loaded with fluorescent dye and ultrasound contrast agent which attach to prostate cancer by ligand binding. This research holds promise to improve diagnostic techniques for treatment of cancer. Read More: Zhao, Shensheng, Leanne Lee, Yang Zhao, N. Liang, and Y. Chen. "Photoacoustic signal enhancement in dual-contrast gastrin-releasing peptide receptor-targeted nanobubbles." Frontiers in Bioengineering and Biotechnology 11 (2023). https://europepmc.org/article/pmc/pmc9887164

“Translatable imaging agents are a crucial element of successful molecular imaging. Photoacoustic molecular imaging relies on optical absorbing materials to generate a sufficient signal. However, few materials approved for human use can generate adequate photoacoustic responses. Here we report a new nanoengineering approach to further improve photoacoustic response from biocompatible materials. Our study shows that when optical absorbers are incorporated into the shell of a gaseous nanobubble, their photoacoustic signal can be significantly enhanced compared to the original form. As an example, we constructed nanobubbles using biocompatible indocyanine green (ICG) and biodegradable poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA). We demonstrated that these ICG nanobubbles generate a strong ultrasound signal and almost four-fold photoacoustic signal compared to the same concentration of ICG solution; our theoretical calculations corroborate this effect and elucidate the origin of the photoacoustic enhancement. To demonstrate their molecular imaging performance, we conjugated gastrin-releasing peptide receptor (GRPR) targeting ligands with the ICG nanobubbles. Our dual photoacoustic/ultrasound molecular imaging shows a more than three-fold enhancement in targeting specificity of the GRPR-targeted ICG nanobubbles, compared to untargeted nanobubbles or prostate cancer cells not expressing GRPR, in a prostate cancer xenograft mouse model in vivo. Keywords: cancer diagnosis, photoacoustic, ultrasound, molecular imaging, multimodal imaging, nanobubbles, GRPR, ICG”

Video: https://youtu.be/nXRUeyuLsoI