Angelika Nisalke

Master student

Encapsulation of CEST MRI contrast agents for macrophage labelling

 

Supervisors: Dr. Sofia Dembski (Fraunhofer Institute for Silicate Research ISC), Prof. Aldo R. Boccaccini

Exchange Saturation Transfer (CEST) is a relatively new medical imaging technique that requires the development of suitable contrast agents. This project aims to synthesize and characterize liposome-based contrast agent carriers that produce a highly visible CEST signal. One type of carrier that can be utilized for this is liposomes. They are biocompatible and allow the transport of both hydrophilic and hydrophobic substances due to their structure [1]. The first step will be the testing of encapsulated contrast agents which are already in medical use. The intention is to label macrophages by carrier phagocytosis to visualize an inflamed region or tumor [2].

[1] Bozzuto G, Molinari A (2015) Liposomes as nanomedical devices. Int J Nanomedicine 10:975–999. https://doi.org/10.2147/IJN.S68861

[2] Ahsan F, Rivas IP, Khan MA et al. (2002) Targeting to macrophages: role of physicochemical properties of particulate carriers–liposomes and microspheres–on the phagocytosis by macrophages. J Control Release 79:29–40. https://doi.org/10.1016/s0168-3659(01)00549-1

Website ISC – Bioactive Materials: https://www.isc.fraunhofer.de/en/fields-of-activity/materials/bioactive-materials.html