Cerenkov luminescence tomography of aminopeptidase N (APN/CD13) expression in mice bearing HT1080 tumors

Mol Imaging. 2013 May;12(3):173-81.

Abstract

In vivo imaging of aminopeptidase N (APN/CD13) expression is crucial for the early detection of cancer. This study attempted to show that APN/CD13 expression can be imaged and quantified with novel Cerenkov luminescence tomography (CLT). Na131I with various activities was placed at different depths in a tissue-mimicking phantom, and various porcine tissues and luminescent images were acquired. The binding of 131I-NGR with human fibrosarcoma HT1080 and human colon cancer HT-29 cells was detected with Cerenkov luminescence imaging (CLI). Nude mice bearing HT-1080 tumors were imaged after injection with 131I-NGR using both planar and tomographic CLI methods. The penetration depth increased with ascending activity of Na131I. There was a robust linear correlation between the optical signal intensity and the HT1080 cell numbers (r2 = .9691), as well as the activity (r2 = .9860). The three-dimensional visualization CLT results clearly showed that 131I-NGR uptake in tumor tissues represented a high expression of the APN/CD13 receptor. CLT also allowed quantifying 131I-NGR uptake in tumor tissues showing an average activity of 0.1388 ± 4.6788E-6 MBq in tumor tissues. Our study indicated that 131I-NGR combined with CLT allowed us to image and quantify tumor-associated APN/CD13 expression noninvasively. The promising CLT technique could be potentially used for sensitively evaluating tumor angiogenesis in vivo.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • CD13 Antigens / metabolism*
  • Cell Line, Tumor
  • Colonic Neoplasms / diagnosis
  • Colonic Neoplasms / metabolism
  • Fibrosarcoma / diagnosis*
  • Fibrosarcoma / metabolism
  • HT29 Cells
  • Humans
  • Iodine Radioisotopes
  • Luminescent Measurements / methods*
  • Mice
  • Mice, Nude

Substances

  • Iodine Radioisotopes
  • CD13 Antigens