Figure 4.

Small animal microPET imaging of transplanted ES cells. (a) One million mouse ES cells were transplanted into right shoulder (TF reporter gene) and left (DF reporter gene) shoulder of an adult nude mouse. The mouse was injected with ~150 μCi reporter probe [¹⁸F]-FHBG. PET imaging was performed 1 h after [¹⁸F]-FHBG injection and signals were expressed as [¹⁸F]-FHBG percentage injected dose per gram of tissue (%ID/g). (b) Small animal PET imaging of TF mouse ES cells two weeks after intramyocardial transplantation in nude rats. The TF mouse ES cells were imaged using [¹⁸F]-FHBG reporter probe and the myocardial viability was used using [¹⁸F]-fluoro-deoxyglucose ([¹⁸F]-FDG) radiotracer. The bottom row represents the merged [¹⁸F]-FHBG and [¹⁸F]-FDG images in horizontal, coronal, and sagittal views, which reflects the exact anatomic location of transplanted ES cells within the anterolateral wall of the heart (arrows). Appropriate animal protocol has been approved by the Administrative Panel on Laboratory Animal Care of Stanford University. Data in a and b were reproduced with permission from ref. 37 and 19, respectively.