Provided herein are examples of metal chelating ligands that have high affinity for manganese. The resultant metal complexes can be used as MRI contrast agents, and can be functionalized with moieties that bind to or cause relaxivity change in the presence of biochemical targets.

Disclosed herein are complexes of gadolinium metal, ligand and meglumine that are substantially free of non-aqueous solvents. In particular, solvent-free complexes of 1) gadopentetate dimeglumine and 2) gadoterate meglumine are disclosed and methods of their preparation are disclosed. In addition, methods are disclosed for purifying reactants, monitoring and controlling pH, quantifying the free gadolinium content, quantifying the concentration of gadolinium-ligand complex in aqueous solution, and procedures for producing a drug product in one step. The one step process eliminates the need to dry the gadolinium-ligand complex, which is typically highly hygroscopic. The one step process includes purification steps that do not require the use of non-aqueous solvents.

In some aspects, the present disclosure provides compounds of the formula: ##STR00001##
wherein the variables are defined herein. In some aspects, the present disclosure provides methods of preparing imaging agents, compositions thereof, and methods of imaging using said imaging agents or compositions thereof.

Methods of ex vivo labeling of a biological material for in vivo imaging, methods of labeling a biological material in vivo, methods for preparing a labeling agent, and methods for in vivo imaging of a subject using a biological material labeled with a labeling agent are disclosed. In one non-limiting example, the biological material is selected from cells and the labeling agent is a .sup.89Zr-Desferrioxamine-NCS labeling agent.

The technology relates to a method for detecting high-risk unstable atherosclerotic plaque in a subject, the method comprising: a) administering to the subject a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) contrast agent capable of being activated by myeloperoxidase (MPO) in atherosclerotic plaque; b) allowing the contrast agent to be activated by myeloperoxidase in atherosclerotic plaque; c) obtaining an image of the atherosclerotic plaque from the subject using such molecular MRI, wherein enhanced imaging is indicative of unstable plaque. In some embodiments an MPO inhibitor is administered to a subject identified as having a high-risk unstable atherosclerotic plaque.

A hydrolysis method for tert-butyl ester in gadolinium-based contrast agent comprises hydrolyzing the tert-butyl ester with a catalyst. The preparation method of the catalyst comprises the following steps: subjecting zirconia and titanium tetrachloride to reaction in the presence of sulfuric acid and water at 60° C. to 90° C. until solids are dissolved, adding silica to perform reaction for 1 to 5 h, filtering to obtain solids, washing and calcining the solids. This hydrolysis method does not introduce other substances that are difficult to remove, such as acids, and provides high hydrolysis efficiency and high purity of the obtained product.

There is described a method for preparation of an imaging medium via transfer from a hyperpolarised singlet state that is not parahydrogen, said method comprising the steps of: (i) preparing a system containing: parahydrogen; a magnetisation transfer complex, with a molecular symmetry that allows the creation of a singlet state between spin pairs within it, said complex including a reversibly bound small molecule transference substrate; applying a magnetic field such that hyperpolarisation is transferred into the transfer complex, including the reversibly bound small molecule transference substrate; (ii) introducing a recipient complex capable of binding the small molecule transference substrate, said recipient complex including a recipient substrate, such that the recipient complex and recipient substrate, including the bound transference substrate, is hyperpolarised.

Provided herein is a compound useful as a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) contrast agent and a therapeutic agent, said compound having a structure represented by: Y—X—Z wherein, X is Mn(II), and Y and Z are each independently a bisphosphonate coupled to one or more therapeutic agents. Methods of use of the compound for MRI imaging and treatment for cancer or a microbial infection are also provided.

The present disclosure relates to magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) using biochemically responsive imaging probes that can be used in, for example, non-invasive pH mapping in cancer and/or diseases characterized by aberrant metabolism using contrast enhanced MRI.

The present disclosure deals with the quickening of MRI examinations. Subjects of the present disclosure are a method, a system, a computer program product, a use, a contrast agent for use and a kit.