Richard Matthew Ramirez1, 2, Krishnan K. Palaniappan1, David E. Wemmer1, 3, Matthew B. Francis1, 2, Alex Pines1, 2
1Department of Chemistry, University of California, Berkeley, CA, United States; 2Materials Science Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA, United States; 3Physical Biosciences Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA, United States
A hyperpolarized Xe molecular sensor capable of targeting specific cell types is presented. The sensor agent is composed of multiple cage-like cryptophane molecules attached to a bacteriophage which can then be targeted. This particular agent incorporated an anti-EGFR moiety and was successfully bound by EGFR-positive MDA-MB-231 cells, but not by Jurkat cells which do not express the EGF receptor. Presence of the agent is detected using a hyperCEST scheme.