The use of short-wave infrared (SWIR) light for fluorescence bioimaging offers the advantage of reduced photon scattering and improved tissue penetration compared to traditional shorter wavelength imaging approaches. While several nanomaterials have been shown capable of generating SWIR emissions, rare-earth-doped nanoparticles (REs) have emerged as an exceptionally bright and biocompatible class of SWIR emitters. Here, we demonstrate SWIR imaging of REs for several applications, including lymphatic mapping, real-time monitoring of probe biodistribution, and molecular targeting of the αvβ3 integrin in a tumor model. We further quantified the resolution and depth penetration limits of SWIR light emitted by REs in a customized imaging unit engineered for SWIR imaging of live small animals. Our results indicate that SWIR light has broad utility for preclinical biomedical imaging and demonstrates the potential for molecular imaging using targeted REs.

中文翻译：

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稀土稀土纳米粒子的短波红外荧光生物成像和分子靶向表达αVβ3的肿瘤。

与传统的较短波长成像方法相比，将短波红外（SWIR）光用于荧光生物成像具有减少光子散射和改善组织穿透的优势。虽然已显示出几种能够产生SWIR发射的纳米材料，但稀土掺杂的纳米颗粒（RE）却已成为一种异常明亮且具有生物相容性的SWIR发射器。在这里，我们展示了REs的SWIR成像在多种应用中的应用，包括淋巴图，实时监测探针的生物分布以及在肿瘤模型中对αvβ3整联蛋白的分子靶向。我们在专为活体小动物的SWIR成像而设计的定制成像装置中，进一步量化了RE发射的SWIR光的分辨率和深度穿透极限。