Biodistribution of cyclic carbonate of ioxilan: a radiopaque particulate macrophage imaging agent

A biodegradable radiopaque particulate contrast agent formulated from cyclic carbonate of ioxilan (IXC), which is a prodrug of nonionic water-solubel contrast ioxilan, recently has been developed. This contrast agent enhances liver attenuation and is cleared from the body as ioxilan. In the current study, we tested whether the biodistribution of IXC particles would be affected by the characteristics of particles.

IXC nanoparticles (average diameter = 290 nm) and IXC microparticles (average diameter = 1.7 mm) were prepared, characterized, and injected intravenously (i.v.; 50 mg I/kg body weight) into rats. Two sensitive, reproducible analytic methods--inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) and high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC)- were used to quantify tissue iodine and ioxilan concentrations.

Both IXC nanoparticles and microparticles were taken up in the liver and spleen. The IXC nanoparticles remained in the liver at high concentrations for 6 hr and were slowly cleared. They also gave a high blood iodine concentration in the first 5 min after i.v. injection, suggesting their potential use as a blood-pool imaging agent. Unlike the nanoparticles, the microparticles had a significantly lower uptake by the kidney.

Because of reduced renal uptake, microparticles are a preferred macrophage imaging agent. Biodegradable radiopaque particles may be used either as blood-pool imaging agents or as macrophage imaging agents depending on their size and distribution characteristics. The ICP-MS and HPLC methods are useful for biodistribution studies of iodinated contrast agents.