Molecular imaging of endothelial progenitor cell engraftment using contrast-enhanced ultrasound and targeted microbubbles

Imaging methods to track the fate of progenitor cells after their delivery would be useful in assessing the efficacy of cell-based therapies. We hypothesized that contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEU) using microbubbles targeted to a genetically engineered cell-surface marker on endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs) would allow the targeted imaging of vascular engraftment.