Transferrin receptor 1 targeted optical imaging for identifying glioma margin in mouse models.
OBJECTIVE
Optical molecular imaging technology that indiscriminately detects intracranial glioblastoma (GBM) can help neurosurgeons effectively remove tumor masses. Transferrin receptor 1 (TfR 1) is a diagnostic and therapeutic target in GBM. A TfR 1-targeted peptide, CRTIGPSVC (CRT), was shown to cross the blood brain barrier (BBB) and accumulate at high levels in GBM tissues. In this study, we synthesized a TfR 1-targeted near-infrared fluorescent (NIRF) probe, Cy5-CRT, for identifying the GBM tissue margin in mouse models.


METHODS
We initially confirmed the overexpression of TfR 1 in GBM and the tumor-specific homing ability of Cy5-CRT in subcutaneous and orthotopic GBM mouse models. We then examined the feasibility of Cy5-CRT for identifying the tumor margin in orthotopic GBM xenografts. Finally, we compared Cy5-CRT with the clinically used fluorescein sodium in identifying tumor margins.


RESULTS
Cy5-CRT specifically accumulated in GBM tissues and detected the tumor burden with exceptional contrast in mice with orthotopic GBM, enabling fluorescence-guided GBM resection under NIRF live imaging conditions. Importantly, Cy5-CRT recognized the GBM tissue margin more clearly than fluorescein sodium.


CONCLUSIONS
The TfR 1-targeted optical probe Cy5-CRT specifically differentiates tumor tissues from the surrounding normal brain with high sensitivity, indicating its potential application for the precise surgical removal of GBM.
['Ni|Xiang-Rong|XR|', 'Zhao|Yi-Ying|YY|', 'Cai|Hai-Ping|HP|', 'Yu|Zhi-Hui|ZH|', 'Wang|Jing|J|', 'Chen|Fu-Rong|FR|', 'Yu|Yan-Jiao|YJ|', 'Feng|Guo-Kai|GK|', 'Chen|Zhong-Ping|ZP|http://orcid.org/0000-0002-6226-5771']
D000818:Animals D001932:Brain Neoplasms D002232:Carbocyanines D045744:Cell Line, Tumor D004195:Disease Models, Animal D019793:Fluorescein D005456:Fluorescent Dyes D005910:Glioma D051379:Mice D008856:Microscopy, Fluorescence D061848:Optical Imaging D011990:Receptors, Transferrin D023041:Xenograft Model Antitumor Assays
Transferrin receptor 1 Molecular imaging Glioblastoma Fluorescence-guided surgery Near-infrared fluorescence imaging