Contrast agent
The labeling of (stem) cells with contrast agent, implantation and imaging of those cells is a story of success and one promising way in the future of molecular medicine.
Cell Tracking
The migration and differentiation of cells provides information about the state of the tissue an the integration of the cell in the cell network. Cells labeled with contrast agent (e.g., Iron or Gadolinium) can be detected with special MRI sequences by changes in the signal intensity. However, a histological proof is still necessary.
F19 Cell Imaging/Tracking
The advantage of fluorine-19 Imaging is the very high signal to noise ration, because there is almost no fluorine in the body. With the injection of fluorine labeled cells a detected signal must originate from the injection.
The challenge of fluorine imaging lies in the low signal of the fluorine, which makes it almost impossible to detect with normal equipment and strategies.