In vivo comprehensive imaging technology of transplanted islets in transparent livers by quantum dots

Abstract

In vivo imaging technology can detect and diagnose almost all of transplanted cells remains unestablished. In order to enhance the safety and treatment effect of regenerative medicine, it is necessary to understand where transplanted cells accumulate in the tissue and how the accumulated cells behave in tissues and organs at a cell level. In this study, we challenged the innovative diagnosis of transplanted islet cells in the liver of mice by advanced technologies such as fluorescence imaging using “quantum dots (QDs)” and whole tissue clearing using “clear, unobstructed brain/body imaging cocktails and computational analysis (CUBIC)”. After transplantation of islet cells labeled with QDs800 into the living body of the nude mice through portal vein, it was confirmed that the transplanted islet cells were mainly accumulated in the liver of the mice after 10 min. of transplantation using in vivo imaging system. In addition, we now examine the spatiotemporal distribution of transplanted islet cells at the single cell level by organ clearing and 3D imaging of organs using light sheet fluorescence microscopy.