Michael Valdez1, Eriko Yoshimaru1, Pier Ingram2, John Totenhagen1, Aaron Forbes3, Stephen Moore1, Paul Helquist3, Terry Matsunaga2, Russel Witte2, Lars Furenlid, 24, Zhonglin Liu2, Robert Erickson5, 6, Theodore Trouard1, 2
1Biomedical Engineering, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, United States; 2Radiology, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, United States; 3Chemistry, University of Notre Dame; 4Optical Sciences, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, United States; 5Pediatrics, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, United States; 6Molecular and Cellular Biology, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, United States
Treatment of neurological disorders is often hampered by the inability of drugs to get across the blood-brain barrier (BBB). Novel techniques have been developed that use ultrasound in combination with microbubble contrast agents to reversibly open up the BBB for drug delivery. We have combined these techniques with high-resolution -ray imaging to directly image the crossing of radiolabeled beta-cyclodextrin, a promising new therapy for Niemann-Pick type C disease, into the brains of mice in vivo.