Multifunctional and water-soluble superparamagnetic iron oxide (SPIO) nanocarriers were developed for targeted drug delivery and positron emission tomography/magnetic resonance imaging (PET/MRI) dual-modality imaging of tumors with integrin αvβ3 expression. An anticancer drug was conjugated onto the PEGylated SPIO nanocarriers via pH-sensitive bonds. Tumor targeting ligands, cyclo(Arg-Gly-Asp-D-Phe-Cys) (c(RGDfC)) peptides, and PET 64Cu chelators, macrocyclic 1,4,7-triazacyclononane-N, N′, N″-triacetic acid (NOTA), were conjugated onto the distal ends of the PEG arms. The effectiveness of the SPIO nanocarriers as an MRI contrast agent was evaluated via an in vitro r2 MRI relaxivity measurement. cRGD-conjugated SPIO nanocarriers exhibited a higher level of cellular uptake than cRGD-free ones in vitro. Moreover, cRGD-conjugated SPIO nanocarriers showed a much higher level of tumor accumulation than cRGD-free ones according to noninvasive and quantitative PET imaging, and ex vivo biodistribution studies. Thus, these SPIO nanocarriers demonstrated promising properties for combined targeted anticancer drug delivery and PET/MRI dual-modality imaging of tumors. Keywords: superparamagnetic iron oxide; drug delivery; Positron Emission Tomography (PET); Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI); nanomedicine

Herein we demonstrate that intrinsically fluorescent zinc oxide (ZnO) nanowires (NWs) can be adopted for molecularly targeted imaging of cancer cells, after they are functionalized to render water solubility, biocompatibility, and low cellular toxicity. Optical imaging of integrin αvβ3 on U87MG human glioblastoma cells was achieved with RGD peptide-conjugated green fluorescent ZnO NWs, which opened up new avenues of research for investigating ZnO NW-based agents in tumor vasculature-targeted molecular imaging and drug delivery.

Intrinsically germanium‐69‐labeled super‐paramagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles are synthesized via a newly developed, fast and highly specific chelator‐free approach. The biodistribution pattern and the feasibility of 69Ge‐SPION@PEG for in vivo dual‐modality positron emission tomography/magnetic resonance (PET/MR) imaging and lymph‐node mapping are investigated, which represents the first example of the successful utilization of a 69Ge‐based agent for PET/MR imaging.

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Carvedilol treatment in patients with heart failure results in a 57% decrease in myocardial FFA use without a significant change in glucose use. These metabolic changes could contribute to the observed improvements in energy efficiency seen in patients with heart failure.