Organic Radical Contrast Agents Based on Polyacetylenes Containing 2,2,6,6-Tetramethylpiperidine 1-Oxyl (TEMPO): Targeted Magnetic Resonance (MR)/Optical Bimodal Imaging of Folate Receptor Expressing HeLa Tumors in Vitro and in Vivoa

Nitroxides have great potential as magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) contrast agents for tumor detection. Polyacetylenes(PAs) containing 2,2,6,6-tetramethyl-piperidine oxyl (TEMPO) and poly(ethylene glycol) were synthesized via metathesis polymerization of the corresponding substituted acetylenes to be used for targeted bimodal MRI /optical imaging of tumors. The poly(ethylene glycol) in the polyacetylenes enables covalent conjugation of carboxyl fluorescein and folic acid (FA) with hydroxyl groups to develop targeted multifunctional organic radical contrast agents (ORCAs). In vitro studies confirm the excellent binding specificity and subsequent enhanced cellular internalization of the targeted ORCAs (PA-TEMPO-FI-FA) without cytotoxicity. In vivo T1-weighted MRI demonstrates the active tumor targeting ability of PA-TEMPO-FI-FA to generate specific contrast enhancement in mice bearing HeLa tumors. Moreover, longitudinal optical imaging displays high tumor accumulation after 1h post-injection of PA-TEMPO-FI-FA. These results indicate that multifunctional ORCAs may provide a tumor-targeted delivery platform for further molecular imaging guided cancer therapy.