Molecular imaging based on magnetic
resonance imaging (MRI) requires
a contrast agent with high relaxivity and specificity. Much effort
has been devoted to this goal over the past decades. In this work,
we continue this endeavor by synthesizing an MRI contrast agent that
can penetrate the cellular membrane and bind with specific proteins.
It was characterized with one- and two-dimensional NMR spectroscopy,
NMR micro-imaging, and mass spectroscopy. The target specificity has
been further confirmed by both molecular dynamics simulation and micro-imaging
on a living biological system. It is one of the largest of peptide-based
bioactivated MRI contrast agents, and its relaxivity enhancement factor
is among the highest of MRI contrast agents hitherto published. We
envision interesting applications and extension of this smart MRI
contrast agent with bio-specificity and high contrast for molecular
imaging.
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