The ability to image cell- or viral-based therapeutics is critical for optimizing therapeutic strategies and assessing efficacy. A lysine rich protein (LRP) chemical exchange saturation transfer (CEST) MRI reporter gene has previously been developed and successfully used to image oncolytic viruses and tumor cells. However, the highly repetitive nature of the LRP reporter gene sequence lead to DNA recombination events and the expression of a range of truncated LRP protein fragments, thereby greatly limiting the CEST sensitivity. Here we report the use of a redesigned LRP reporter (rdLRP), which demonstrated excellent stability and CEST sensitivity.
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