Dual Mode Redox-Responsive MRI Contrast Agents

Abstract

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) contrast agents function by shortening the relaxation times of targeted nuclei, thereby better distinguishing regions with different local concentrations of the visualized nuclei. Drawbacks with responsive T1-weighted (T1w) MRI contrast agents, such as high background signal, has led to the investigation of dual-mode imaging. With paramagnetic contrast agents for both 1H and 19F MRI, the identity and oxidation state of the metal influence the relaxivities. Since the signals of both modes are connected to the oxidation state of the metal center, they can be used to detect biologically aberrant redox behavior, such as that associated with neurological disease. This project aimed to extend the laboratory’s prior successes in redox-responsive MRI contrast agents to bimodal sensors with 1H and 19F MRI outputs