Affiliations: Department of Medical Ultrasonics, Institute of
Diagnostic and Interventional Ultrasound, The First Affiliated Hospital of Sun
Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong, China | Wake Forest Institute of Regenerative Medicine, Wake
Forest University, Winston Salem, NC, USA
Note: [] Corresponding authors: GuangJian Liu, Department of Medical
Ultrasonics, Institute of Diagnostic and Interventional Ultrasound, The First
Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-Sen University. NO.58, ZhongShan Road 2,
Guangzhou, 510080, Guangdong, China. Tel./Fax: +86 20 87765183; E-mail:
liugj@mail.sysu.edu.cn; Yuanyuan Zhang, Wake Forest Institute for Regenerative
Medicine, Wake Forest School of Medicine, Medical Center Boulevard,
Winston-Salem, NC 27157, USA. Tel.: +1 336 713 1189; Fax: +1 336 713 7290;
E-mail: yzhang@wakehealth.edu
Abstract: The purpose of this study was to distinguish passive retention of
microbubbles in liver sinusoids from active intracellular retaining, and to
provide further evidence of post vascular liver specific phase of perflubutane
microbubble contrast-enhanced ultrasound for potential use in the detection of
focal liver lesions. Fifty-four rats were divided into three groups: saline
group (G1, as a control, n=6), sulphur hexafluoride microbubble group (G2,
n=24) and perflubutane microbubble group (G3, n=24). The livers were perfused
at 2, 5, 10 and 20 min after injection of perflubutane or sulphur hexafluoride
gas-filled microbubbles or normal saline. Changes in contrast-enhanced images
within the liver were quantified. After perfusion, the echogenicity of the
liver in the saline group increased from −49.44 ± 0.08 dB to
− 44.37 ± 1.02 dB (p< 0.05). In G2, the enhancement decreased
significantly after perfusion at 2 and 5 min, and increased at 10 and 20 min
(all p< 0.05). In G3, the enhancement decreased from −18.05 ±
2.28 dB to − 26.76 ± 1.69 dB only at 2 min after perfusion (p <
0.05). Perflubutane microbubbles provided a post vascular liver specific phase
on contrast-enhanced ultrasound, which could begin as early as 5 min after
administration of the contrast agent in rats. This study suggests that
perflubutane microbubbles could result in a liver specific phase and provide
valuable information for diagnosis and detection of focal liver lesions which
may improve the efficiency of contrast-enhanced ultrasound in clinical
diagnoses of liver diseases.
