A transferrin-target magnetic/fluorescent dual-mode probe significantly enhances the diagnosis of non-small cell lung cancer

To enhance the diagnosis of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), we prepared a dual-modal probe Cy5.5-Tf-Gd-DTPA. Gd-DTPA and near-infrared (NIR) dyes were conjugated to holo-Transferrin (Tf) sequentially, the result of ICP-AES and UV showed 25 Gd ions and 1 Cy5.5 could be loaded per protein, respectively. The calculated longitudinal relaxivity R1 of Cy5.5-Tf-DTPA-Gd was 4.21 mM(-1)S(-1) per Gd while that of Magnevist (Gd-DTPA) was only 4.02 mM(-1)S(-1). Confocal laser scanning microscopy and immunohistochemical analyses revealed that the Cy5.5-Tf-DTPA-Gd was localized and accumulated in cytoplasmic vesicles; the cell toxicity assay showed no apparent toxicity. MR and NIR imaging of mice with subcutaneous H1299 xenografte tumors following intravenous injection of Cy5.5-Tf-DTPA-Gd revealed a strong positive contrast of the tumors, which caused a longer lasting enhancement of the MRI signal and fluorescence signal. Taken together, these studies indicate that Cy5.5-Tf-DTPA-Gd could be a good agent for MR/NIRF dual mode applications to detect both tumor in situ and its metastasis.