Magnetic particle imaging of vascular inflammation in abdominal aortic aneurysm in murine model

Abstract

Abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAAs) is a vascular disease, currently one of the leading causes of death in developed countries. Vascular inflammation plays a crucial role in the disease progression and substantially impacts many determinants in AAAs advancement. Superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles (SPION)  have been shown to be suitable agents for molecular targeting of vascular inflammation. The quantitative ability of MPI in mapping of SPION makes MPI a valid tool for monitoring of AAA progression. In this study, we examined the feasibility of MPI for imaging vascular inflammation in AAA in Angiotensin II-infused ApoE-/- mice with MPI suitable SPION, ferucarbotran (Resovist ®). The results were validated by histological analysis and magnetic particle spectroscopy (MPS).