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Updated: Jul 14, 2026
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Non-invasive Imaging of Leukocyte Homing and Migration in vivo
Published on: December 5, 2010
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High Temporal-Resolution Imaging Single Immune Cell Migration in Vivo by Ultrabright NIR-II Organic Probes
Ying Chen1,2, Yang Yang3, Baofeng Yun1,2
1Department of Chemistry, College of Smart Materials and Future Energy, New Cornerstone Science Laboratory, State Key Laboratory of Molecular Engineering of Polymers, Shanghai Key Laboratory of Molecular Catalysis and Innovative Materials and Ichem, Fudan University, Shanghai, P. R. China.
Advanced Materials (Deerfield Beach, Fla.)
|January 16, 2026
Summary
Researchers developed novel organic probes for high-speed, non-invasive in vivo imaging of single immune cells, enabling real-time tracking of neutrophil migration and cell interactions in stroke models.
Area of Science:
- Biomedical Imaging
- Immunology
- Neuroscience
Background:
- Immune cell migration is crucial in various diseases.
- Real-time in vivo tracking of motile immune cells remains challenging.
- Understanding cellular interactions is key for therapeutic development.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop advanced imaging probes for non-invasive, high-speed in vivo immune cell tracking.
- To enable real-time profiling of immune cell migration and interactions in disease models.
- To facilitate fundamental research on cellular dynamics in immune responses.
Main Methods:
- Introduction of high-brightness organic probes operating in the second near-infrared (NIR-II) window (1000-1700 nm).
- Development of probes (DCPDs) with high brightness (>5000 M⁻¹ cm⁻¹).
- Application of probes for non-invasive, high-speed (up to ~50 fps) single immune cell imaging in vivo.
Main Results:
- Demonstrated non-invasive, high-speed imaging of single immune cells in the mouse brain.
- Successfully profiled neutrophil migration patterns in a stroke model.
- Observed real-time interactions between neutrophils and infused mesenchymal stem cells.
Conclusions:
- The developed NIR-II probes enable unprecedented temporal resolution for in vivo immune cell imaging.
- This technology facilitates the study of dynamic cellular processes in neurological diseases.
- Advancement paves the way for investigating single-cell dynamics in immune responses and disease pathogenesis.
