In vivo MRI tracking of cell invasion and migration in a rat glioma model.

Abstract

PURPOSE: Malignant brain tumors are characterized by extensive infiltration into the normal brain tissue. Tumor migration is a complicated process which results from the interplay of a number of mechanisms, and the extent to which anatomic structure determined the migration pattern has not been extensively addressed. In the present study, we labeled C6 glioma cells with iron oxide nanoparticles and monitored the fate of the cells in vivo with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). PROCEDURES: C6 glioma cells were labeled with ferumoxide-poly-L-lysine complexes and their migration in the brains of rats tracked by T2-weighted MRI. The same amount of iron-laden cells were implanted into the caudate nucleus (CN) and at the vicinity of anterior commissure (AC), respectively, and MRI was performed during the course of 20-day monitoring period to track tumor growth and migration. RESULTS: A clear tendency of tumor migration along the white matter fiber tracts was observed in the AC group, which is consistent with the previous reports; by contrast, tumor expanded to but remained confined within the boundary of right hemisphere in the CN group. CONCLUSION: We successfully demonstrated the ability of MRI to investigate the impact of anatomical structure on the glioma migration pathway in vivo.