Many thousands of contrast ultrasound studies have been conducted in clinics around the world. In addition, the microbubbles employed in these examinations are being widely investigated to deliver drugs and genes. Here, for the first time, the oscillation of these microbubbles in small vessels is directly observed and shown to be substantially different than that predicted by previous models and imaged within large fluid volumes. Using pulsed ultrasound with a center frequency of 1 MHz and peak rarefactional pressure of 0.8 or 2.0 MPa, microbubble expansion was significantly reduced when microbubbles were constrained within small vessels in the rat cecum (p<0.05). A model for microbubble oscillation within compliant vessels is presented that accurately predicts oscillation and vessel displacement within small vessels. As a result of the decreased oscillation in small vessels, a large resting microbubble diameter resulting from agent fusion or a high mechanical index was required to bring the agent shell into contact with the endothelium. Also, contact with the endothelium was observed during asymmetrical collapse, not during expansion. These results will be used to improve the design of drug delivery techniques using microbubbles.

Low-frequency contrast-enhanced ultrasound can increase vascular permeability and result in convective extravasation of an 8.5-nm-diameter model drug.

No abstract

Localized radiation is an effective treatment modality for carcinomas, yet the associated reduction of the host vasculature significantly inhibits the tissue's regenerative capacity. Low concentrations of bioactive glass (BG) possess angiogenic potential, and we hypothesized that localized BG presentation would increase neovascularization and promote healing in an irradiated bone defect. An isolated calvarial region of Sprague-Dawley rats was irradiated 2 weeks before surgery. Bilateral critical-sized defects were created and immediately filled with a BG-loaded collagen sponge or an empty sponge as an internal control. Histological analysis of calvaria collected after 2 weeks demonstrated greater neovascularization within the defect in the presence of BG than with collagen alone. Noninvasive ultrasound imaging at 4 weeks detected less contrast agent in the brain below BG-treated defects than in the nearby untreated defects and images of treated defects acquired at 2 weeks. The reduced ability to detect contrast agent in BG-treated defects suggested greater attenuation of ultrasound signal due to early bone formation. Micro-computed tomography imaging at 12 weeks demonstrated significantly greater bone volume fraction within BG-treated defects than in controls. These results suggest that neovascularization induced by localized BG delivery promotes bone regeneration in this highly compromised model of bone healing and may offer an alternative approach to costly growth factors and their potential side-effects.

Radiation force produced by low-amplitude ultrasound at clinically relevant frequencies remotely translates freely flowing microbubble ultrasound contrast agents over distances up to centimeters from the luminal space to the vessel wall in order to enhance ligand-receptor contact in targeting applications. The question arises as to how the microbubble shell might be designed at the molecular level to fully take advantage of such physical forces in targeted adhesion for molecular imaging and controlled therapeutic release. Herein, we report on a novel surface architecture in which the tethered ligand is buried in a polymeric overbrush. Our results, with biotin-avidin as the model ligand-receptor pair, show that the overbrush conceals the ligand, thereby reducing immune cell binding and increasing circulation persistence. Targeted adhesion is achieved through application of ultrasound radiation force to instantly reveal the ligand within a well-defined focal zone and simultaneously bind the ligand and receptor. Our data illustrate how the adhesive properties of the contrast agent surface can be reversibly changed, from stealth to sticky, through the physical effects of ultrasound. This technique can be combined with any ligand-receptor pair to optimize targeted adhesion for ultrasonic molecular imaging.