Abstract #0670

In Vivo MRI Signal Features of Transgenic Grafts Overexpressing Ferritin in the Murine Myocardial Infarction Model

Anna Naumova^1,2, Vasily Yarnykh^1,2, Hans Reinecke^2,3, Charles Murry^2,3, Chun Yuan^1,2

¹Radiology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA; ²Center for Cardiovascular Biology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA; ³Pathology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA

This study showed possibility of non-invasive visualization and quantification of transgenic C2C12 grafts overexpressing MRI gene reporter ferritin in the infarcted mouse heart. T2*-weighted gradient echo sequence was most sensitive for imaging of ferritin-tagged grafts capturing about 30% change in MRI signal intensity. Unlabeled wild-type C2C12 cells transplanted to the mouse heart did not change MRI signal intensity in T2*-weighted images. The important advantage of this approach is that the gene reporter divides with each round of cell division retaining a desired MRI contrast over the entire volume of growing grafts.