TY - JOUR T1 - Radiolabeled Monocyte Chemotactic Protein 1 for the Detection of Inflammation in Experimental Atherosclerosis JF - Journal of Nuclear Medicine JO - J Nucl Med SP - 1816 LP - 1821 DO - 10.2967/jnumed.107.043463 VL - 48 IS - 11 AU - Dagmar Hartung AU - Artiom Petrov AU - Nezam Haider AU - Shinichiro Fujimoto AU - Francis Blankenberg AU - Ai Fujimoto AU - Renu Virmani AU - Frank D. Kolodgie AU - H. William Strauss AU - Jagat Narula Y1 - 2007/11/01 UR - http://jnm.snmjournals.org/content/48/11/1816.abstract N2 - Chemotactic peptides, such as Monocyte Chemotactic Protein 1 (MCP-1), play a key role in transendothelial migration of mononuclear cells during the development and progression of atherosclerotic disease. Because atherosclerotic plaques that are precursors of acute coronary events harbor abundant macrophage infiltration, we hypothesized that the detection of a high concentration of MCP-1 receptors on inflammatory cells should noninvasively identify vulnerable plaques. Methods: Atherosclerotic lesions were induced by balloon deendothelialization of the abdominal aorta, which was followed by a 0.5% cholesterol diet for 16 wk in 7 New Zealand White rabbits; 5 unmanipulated rabbits, fed normal chow for 16 wk, were used as controls. Radionuclide imaging was performed immediately after intravenous 99mTc-labeled MCP-1 administration and 3 h later. At the end of imaging session, aortas were explanted and submitted for estimation of quantitative MCP-1 uptake (in percentage injected dose per gram, %ID/g) and pathologic characterization. Results: Atherosclerotic lesions were clearly visible in all hyperlipidemic animal γ-imaging. No tracer uptake was seen in the control rabbits. The mean quantitative MCP-1 uptake in atherosclerotic lesions was 4-fold higher than that of the aortic specimens from the control rabbits (0.065 ± 0.005 vs. 0.016 ± 0.006; P < 0.0001). Histology confirmed a strong correlation between MCP-1 uptake and the number of macrophages in American Heart Association type II−IV lesions (r = 0.87, P < 0.0001). Conclusion: Noninvasive radionuclide imaging of inflammation is feasible by MCP-1 in experimentally induced atherosclerosis. It is proposed that detection of the extent of inflammation in advanced atherosclerotic plaques may allow identification of unstable plaques. ER -