In Vivo Photoacoustic Monitoring of Stem Cell Location and Apoptosis with Caspase-3-Responsive Nanosensors.

ABSTRACT: Stem cell therapy has immense potential in a variety of regenerative medicine applications. However, clinical stem cell therapy is severely limited by challenges in assessing the location and functional status of implanted cells in vivo. Thus, there is a great need for longitudinal, noninvasive stem cell monitoring. Here we introduce a multidisciplinary approach combining nanosensor-augmented stem cell labeling with ultrasound guided photoacoustic (US/PA) imaging for the spatial tracking and functional assessment of transplanted stem cell fate. Specifically, our nanosensor incorporates a peptide sequence that is selectively cleaved by caspase-3, the primary effector enzyme in mammalian cell apoptosis; this cleavage event causes labeled cells to show enhanced optical absorption in th

SUBMITTER: Jhunjhunwala A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10540261 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature