Manganese(II) EOB-Pyclen Diacetate for Liver-Specific MRI
Ryan Hall, Jingcan Qin, Victoria Laney, Nadia Ayat, Zheng‐Rong Lu
Abstract
MRI is increasingly utilized for the diagnosis of liver disease and focal liver lesions. Although liver-targeted gadolinium-based contrast agents (GBCAs) have high efficacy, there continue to be safety concerns regarding release of toxic Gd(III) ions. Herein, Mn(EOB-PC2A) is synthesized as a nongadolinium alternative for liver-specific MRI. Mn(EOB-PC2A) has an r1 relaxivity of 2.8 mM–1 s–1 in Dulbecco's phosphate-buffered saline (DPBS) and 5.9 mM–1 s–1 in saline containing human serum albumin at 1.5 T. It has a strong uptake in hepatocytes with minimal toxicity and demonstrated robust liver-specific enhancement at a dose of 60 μmol/kg. Mn(EOB-PC2A) is a promising liver-specific contrast agent for liver MRI.