CT Imaging of Enzymatic Activity in Cancer Using Covalent Probes Reveal a Size-Dependent Pattern.

ABSTRACT: X-ray CT instruments are among the most available, efficient, and cost-effective imaging modalities in hospitals. The field of CT molecular imaging is emerging which relies mainly on the detection of gold nanoparticles and iodine-containing compounds directed to tagging a variety of abundant biomolecules. Here for the first time we attempted to detect enzymatic activity, while the low sensitivity of CT scanners to contrast reagents made this a challenging task. Therefore, we developed a new class of nanosized cathepsin-targeted activity-based probes (ABPs) for functional CT imaging of cancer. ABPs are small molecules designed to covalently modify enzyme targets in an activity-dependent manner. Using a CT instrument, these novel probes enable detection of the elevated cathepsin activity wit

SUBMITTER: Tsvirkun D 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6192666 | biostudies-literature | 2018 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature