Tracking immune cells in vivo using magnetic resonance imaging

• Published in: Nature reviews. Immunology Vol. 13; no. 10; pp. 755 - 763
• Main Authors: Ahrens, Eric T., Bulte, Jeff W. M.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: London Nature Publishing Group UK 01.10.2013; Nature Publishing Group
• Subjects: 631/1647/245/1628; 631/250/2503; Animals; Biomedicine; Cell migration; Cell Movement; Cell Tracking - methods; Cells; Cellular therapy; Contrast agents; Contrast Media - chemistry; Ferric Compounds - chemistry; Fluorine - chemistry; Fluorocarbons - chemistry; Humans; Image Interpretation, Computer-Assisted - instrumentation; Image Interpretation, Computer-Assisted - methods; Immunology; Immunotherapy; Inflammation; innovation; Iron; Iron oxides; Isotopes; Magnetic fields; Magnetic resonance imaging; Magnetic Resonance Imaging - instrumentation; Magnetic Resonance Imaging - methods; Magnetics - instrumentation; Magnetics - methods; Methods; NMR; Nuclear magnetic resonance; Physiology; Probes; Protons; Radiation; Regulatory approval; Staining and Labeling - methods; Technology application; Visualization
• ISSN: 1474-1733; 1474-1741
• DOI: 10.1038/nri3531

This Innovation article describes the development of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) methods for image-guided immune cell delivery and for the visualization of immune cell homing and engraftment, inflammation, cell physiology and gene expression. The increasing complexity of in vivo imaging technologies, coupled with the development of cell therapies, has fuelled a revolution in immune cell tracking in vivo . Powerful magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) methods are now being developed that use iron oxide- and 19 F-based probes. These MRI technologies can be used for image-guided immune cell delivery and for the visualization of immune cell homing and engraftment, inflammation, cell physiology and gene expression. MRI-based cell tracking is now also being applied to evaluate therapeutics that modulate endogenous immune cell recruitment and to monitor emerging cellular immunotherapies. These recent uses show that MRI has the potential to be developed in many applications to follow the fate of immune cells in vivo .