Читать книгу Vestibular Disorders - Группа авторов - Страница 34

Contrast agents to enhance or darken fluid or tissue signals help to visualize regions of interest, and efforts are now being made to create biological tags using these agents for molecular imaging at the level of cellular processes. Aimed to visualize liposome NPs in the inner ear, GdC-encapsulated liposomes were developed and distribution of the NPs in the cochlea was detected in vivo using MRI after either intracochlear injection or intratympanic injection [129–131]. These studies open a window in specific visualization of inner ear pathology using MRI. GdC-encapsulated liposomes pass through both the oval and round windows and were not toxic in in vivo experiments. Potential molecular imaging in the inner ear using the novel CAN-γ-Fe₂O₃ NPs was also demonstrated in an animal study [132]. The novel NPs are especially useful for molecular imaging of the inner ear to detect molecular changes in pathological conditions.