High-frequency ultrasound imaging of targeted, acoustically activated high-contrast Perfluorocarbon Nanodroplets (Conference Presentation)

Current molecular imaging modalities face barriers to clinical implementation, providing a need for an improved clinical molecular imaging approach. We hypothesize that EGFR-targeted perfluorocarbon nanodroplets can label metastatic cells; they can then be activated (i.e., converted to a microbubble) and imaged using ultrasound in order to provide a molecular contrast agent that can inform treatment. Pulse sequences were developed for the Verasonics Vantage 128 system to activate and image dodecafluoropentane and dodecafluorohexane nanodroplets. Dodecafluoropentane nanodroplets provided 28-dB enhancement when imaged with pulse-inversion US in a tissue-mimicking environment, while dodecafluorohexane nanodroplets showed activation and subsequent recondensation, allowing for super-resolution imaging.