Background. The decrease in asialoglycoprotein receptor (ASGPR) levels is observed in patients with chronic liver disease and liver tumor. The aim of our study was to develop ASGPR-targeted superparamagnetic perfluorooctylbromide nanoparticles (M-PFONP) and wonder whether this composite agent could target buffalo rat liver (BRL) cells in vitro and could improve R2 ∗ value of the rat liver parenchyma after its injection in vivo. Methods. GalPLL, a ligand of ASGPR, was synthesized by reductive amination. ASGPR-targeted M-PFOBNP was prepared by a film hydration method coupled with sonication. Several analytical methods were used to investigate the characterization and safety of the contrast agent in vitro. The in vivo MR T2 ∗ mapping was performed to evaluate the enhancement effect in rat liver. Results. The optimum concentration of Fe3O4 nanoparticles inclusion in GalPLL/M-PFOBNP was about 52.79 µg/mL, and the mean size was 285.6 ± 4.6 nm. The specificity of GalPLL/M-PFOBNP for ASGPR was confirmed by incubation experiment with fluorescence microscopy. The methyl thiazolyl tetrazolium (MTT) test showed that there was no significant difference in the optical density (OD) of cells incubated with all GalPLL/M-PFOBNP concentrations. Compared with M-PFOBNP, the increase in R2 ∗ value of the rat liver parenchyma after GalPLL/M-PFOBNP injection was higher. Conclusions. GalPLL/M-PFOBNP may potentially serve as a liver-targeted contrast agent for MR receptor imaging.

Background Renal schwannomas are very rare and are usually benign. Its clinical symptoms and imaging features are nonspecific, and the diagnosis is usually confirmed by pathology after surgical resection. Case presentation A 46-year-old Chinese female was admitted to the hospital with right flank pain that had persisted for the six months prior to admission. This pain had worsened for 10 days before admission, and dyspnea occurred when she was supine and agitated. A right abdominal mass could be palpated on physical examination. Computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging examinations revealed a large, nonenhanced, cystic and solid mass in the right kidney. The patient received radical nephrectomy for the right kidney. The diagnosis of schwannoma was confirmed by pathological examination. Conclusions We report a case of a large renal schwannoma with obvious hemorrhage and cystic degeneration, which can be used as a reference for further study.

Background: Liver fibrosis involves the increase of iron deposition. however, whether R2* measurement can be used as a noninvasive method to characterize processes of fibrogenesis with iron deposition is not clear. This study aims at assessing the usefulness of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) R2* value in diagnosing and staging of rat liver fibrosis. Methods: Male Sprague-Dawley rats were injected intraperitoneally with a mixture of 1.0 ml/kg carbon tetrachloride (CCl4) and oil (1:1 v/v) twice a week for 12 weeks. Liver R2* value was quantitatively determined by multi - echo fast gradient echo sequence. Liver iron content (LIC) was evaluated by an atomic absorption spectrophotometer. The stage of liver fibrosis was assessed by pathological METAVIR scores. The performances of R2* values for each fibrosis stage were evaluated. The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis was used to determine the optimal cutoff values for fibrosis stage. Results: R2* values and LIC gradually increased during the progression of the liver fibrosis, the correlation between the R2* values and the LIC was high-positive. There were significant differences in R2* values among the stages of liver fibrosis (F= 30.84，P < 0.001). There was a significant positive correlation between R2* values and LIC (r= 0.984, P < 0.001). The most discriminating cutoff values of R2* were 46.84 Hz for ≥ F1, 55.30 Hz for ≥ F2, 68.06 Hz for ≥ F3, and 78.79 Hz for F4. Conclusion: R2* values can be used for detecting and staging liver fibrosis. The degree of liver fibrosis was related to the degree of increase in R2* measurements.