Novel approach to engineered cells may enable molecular medical imaging

Credit:DOI: 10.1002/btm2.10584

A tiny molecular structure that looks like a bubble may be able to significantly improve medical imaging, according to a Penn State research team. Called gas vesicles (GVs), these structures are naturally produced by certain microorganisms and are responsible for controlling the microorganism’s buoyancy in water. Researchers can genetically engineer human cells to produce these gas vesicles, resulting in an ultrasound contrast medium capable of revealing deep tissue structures at the resolution of a single cell. The problem is that the process to engineer such cells is costly and arduous. To make the process easier, Lance Lian, associate professor of biomedical engineering and of biology at Penn State, led a team in developing a more efficient approach. They published their work in Bioengineering and Translational Medicine.

“The great thing about our approach is that it doesn’t require the tedious and time-consuming single-cell cloning and sorting methods,” said Lian, co-corresponding author on the paper. “Instead, we can work with a mixture of cells and still get strong and reliable ultrasound contrast.” In the context of this research, “single-cell cloning” refers to a labor-intensive process of isolating and cultivating individual cells that have undergone specific genetic modifications, such as incorporating the desired genes to produce GVs. Researchers typically do this to ensure that they are working with a population of cells that have uniform genetic characteristics.

By Joslyn Neiderer, Pennsylvania State University

Article can be accessed on: phys.org