Erik M. Shapiro1,
Ronen Globinsky2, Xenios Papademetris2, Margaret F.
Bennewitz3
1Department
of Radiology, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, United States; 2Department
of Radiology, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT, United
States; 3Department of Biomedical Engineering, Yale University,
New Haven, CT, United States
In this work, MPIO labeled single MSCs were robustly detected in vitro and in vivo with 3D T2* MRI and quantified using automated image processing techniques. The effect of TE and resolution on spot size and intensity was evaluated within in vitro agarose samples, containing dispersed MPIO labeled single MSCs. MPIO labeled MSCs were injected intracardially to create an in vivo magnetically labeled single cell model in the rat brain, which was again optimized using TE and also TR imaging parameters. The presence of magnetically labeled single cells in the brain was confirmed with histology. For the first time, image processing techniques were used to generate automated counts of MPIO labeled MSCs in the rat brain of live animals from MRI scans.