Applications of lentiviral vectors in noninvasive molecular imaging

Noninvasive imaging of molecular-genetic and cellular processes is an effective way to determine the location(s), magnitude, and time variation of action of gene products used for many therapeutic strategies. Lentiviral vectors provide effective means for the delivery, integration, and expression of transgenes in cultured mammalian cells as well as in vivo. Therefore, the combination of lentiviral vector-mediated therapeutic and imaging-targeted reporter gene delivery to various target organs holds promise for the future treatment of diseases. In this chapter, we provide protocols for developing lentiviral vectors that can be utilized for noninvasive monitoring/imaging of reporter gene expression. We have described the procedures to perform cellular assays and animal imaging based on positron emission tomography (PET), optical bioluminescence, and fluorescence reporter genes. The protocols described here are standardized for mouse models, which can also be adapted for other small animal models (e.g., rats).