# Molecular Imaging of Cardiac Pluripotent Stem Cells

> **NIH NIH R01** · STANFORD UNIVERSITY · 2020 · $469,746

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY
Molecular imaging is a new discipline that makes possible the noninvasive visualization of cellular and
molecular processes in living subjects. Here we will adopt the reporter gene and reporter probe imaging
technique (developed initially for cancer researchers) to solve a different important problem in cardiology
(i.e., understand pharmacokinetics and biodistribution of cardiac stem cell transplantation). However, the
Achilles’ heel of reporter gene imaging has always been random integration into cellular chromosomes.
Here we will develop 4 novel genome editing approaches (ZFN, TALEN, CRISPR, phiC31) that will enable
us to safely and efficiently introduce human PET reporter gene (hmTK2) into human induced pluripotent
stem cells (iPSCs). These cell types are chosen because of the recent discovery that adult somatic cells
can be transformed into iPSCs that acquire both unlimited self-renewal and pluripotent differentiation
(similar to human embryonic stem cells). We will perform comprehensive characterization of these genome
edited lines. Upon validation, we will subsequently image in vivo fate of iPSC-CMs in both small and large
animal myocardial infarction models to understand the biological effects of cell dosage, timing of delivery,
and imaging sensitivity. We will correlate iPSC-CM survival by PET reporter gene imaging and cardiac
function by magnetic resonance imaging. The information gathered from these studies should prove
instrumental for marrying molecular imaging with clinical stem cell therapy in the future.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 9924281
- **Project number:** 5R01HL133272-05
- **Recipient organization:** STANFORD UNIVERSITY
- **Principal Investigator:** Joseph C. Wu
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $469,746
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2016-07-21 → 2021-04-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/9924281

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 9924281, Molecular Imaging of Cardiac Pluripotent Stem Cells (5R01HL133272-05). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-23 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/9924281. Licensed CC0.

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