Engineering the Echogenic Properties of Microfluidic Microbubbles Using Mixtures of Recombinant Protein and Amphiphilic Copolymers.

ABSTRACT: Microbubbles are used as ultrasound contrast agents in medical diagnosis and also have shown great promise in ultrasound-mediated therapy. However, short lifetime and broad size distribution of microbubbles limit their applications in therapy and imaging. Moreover, it is challenging to tailor the echogenic response of microbubbles to make them suitable for specific applications. To overcome these challenges, we use microfluidic flow-focusing to prepare monodisperse microbubbles with a mixture of a recombinant amphiphilic protein, oleosin, and a synthetic amphiphilic copolymer, Pluronic. We show that these microbubbles have superior uniformity and stability under ultrasonic stimulation compared to commercial agents. We also demonstrate that by using different Pluronics, the echogenic respon

SUBMITTER: Chen Z 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6698903 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature