Abstract
Bioluminescent and fluorescent reporter systems have enabled the rapid and continued growth of the optical imaging field over the last two decades. Of particular interest has been noninvasive signal detection from mammalian tissues under both cell culture and whole animal settings. Here we report on the advantages and limitations of imaging using a recently introduced bacterial luciferase (lux) reporter system engineered for increased bioluminescent expression in the mammalian cellular environment. Comparison with the bioluminescent firefly luciferase (Luc) system and green fluorescent protein system under cell culture conditions demonstrated a reduced average radiance, but maintained a more constant level of bioluminescent output without the need for substrate addition or exogenous excitation to elicit the production of signal. Comparison with the Luc system following subcutaneous and intraperitoneal injection into nude mice hosts demonstrated the ability to obtain similar detection patterns with in vitro experiments at cell population sizes above 2.5 × 10 4 cells but at the cost of increasing overall image integration time.
Original language | English |
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Article number | 047003 |
Journal | Journal of Biomedical Optics |
Volume | 16 |
Issue number | 4 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Apr 2011 |
Externally published | Yes |
Funding
This work was supported by the National Institutes of Health, National Cancer Institute, Cancer Imaging Program, award number CA127745–01, the National Science Foundation Division of Chemical, Bioengineering, Environmental, and Transport Systems (CBET) under award number CBET-0853780, and the Army Defense University Research Instrumentation Program.
Keywords
- Bacterial luciferase
- Bioluminescence
- Firefly luciferase
- Green fluorescent protein
- Optical imaging