Early Monitoring of Cardiac Oxidative Stress in Type 2 Diabetic Mice Using a Magnetic Resonance Imaging and Immunospin Trapping Strategy

  • ACS Appl Mater Interfaces. 2026 Jan 21;18(2):3639-3653. doi: 10.1021/acsami.5c22976.
Hanrui Liu  1  2  3  4 ,  Jingxin Wang  1  5 ,  Chengyong Ma  6 ,  Kun Zhang  1  2  3  4 ,  Ran Sun  1  2  3  4 ,  Qihong Wu  1  2  3  4 ,  Minrui Liu  1  2  3  4 ,  Suming Zhang  1  2  3  4 ,  Meng Zhang  1  2  3  4 ,  Xiaohong Li  1  3  7 ,  Jiyu Tong  1  2 ,  Yingkun Guo  1  2  3  4
Affiliations
  • 1. Key Laboratory of Birth Defects and Related Diseases of Women and Children (Sichuan University), Ministry of Education, West China Second University Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, Sichuan 610041, China.
  • 2. Development and Related Diseases of Women and Children Key Laboratory of Sichuan Province, West China Second University Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, Sichuan 610041, China.
  • 3. Children's Medicine Key Laboratory of Sichuan Province, Chengdu, Sichuan 610041, China.
  • 4. Department of Radiology, West China Second University Hospital of Sichuan University, Chengdu, Sichuan 610041, China.
  • 5. Department of Ultrasound, West China Second University Hospital of Sichuan University, Chengdu, Sichuan 610041, China.
  • 6. Department of Critical Care Medicine, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, Sichuan 610041, China.
  • 7. National Office for Maternal and Child Health Surveillance of China, West China Second University Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, Sichuan 610041, China.
PMID: 41492152 DOI: 10.1021/acsami.5c22976
Abstract

Diabetic cardiomyopathy (DCM) is a common and serious complication in patients with diabetes, and early detection and monitoring are essential to improving clinical outcomes. This study introduces a noninvasive method to visualize cardiac macromolecule-free radicals, enabling the detection of oxidative stress damage in the early stages of DCM. The approach utilizes DEPMPO-biotin to capture free radicals, while avidin-BGEC serves as molecular probes to target and visualize these adducts using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Following intraperitoneal injection, avidin-BGEC selectively accumulated in the hearts of diabetic mice, resulting in increased T1 signal intensity (28.6% in diabetic mice vs 4.38% in controls) and decreased T1 relaxation time (727 ms in diabetic mice vs 30.8 ms in controls). This strategy also detected elevated oxidative stress levels in 4 week old Leprdb/db diabetic mice, which showed a 16.8% increase compared to a 3.10% increase in the controls (P < 0.5). Histochemical staining confirmed the high enrichment of avidin-BGEC within cardiomyocytes, colocalized with free radicals. This molecule capture and imaging system represents a promising paradigm for the early detection of DCM, which could enhance clinical practices regarding timely diagnosis and monitoring.

Keywords
diabetic cardiomyopathy; extremely small iron oxide; immunospin trapping; magnetic resonance imaging; reactive oxygen species.
Products