Water-soluble derivatives of chitosan as a target delivery system of 99mTc to some organs in vivo for nuclear imaging and biodistribution

Carboxymethyl chitosan, (CMC), and N-lauryl-carboxymethyl chitosan (LCMC), have been prepared as water soluble derivatives of chitosan. These biodegradable chitosan derivatives were characterized and investigated for nuclear imaging and body distribution. They were labeled with ^99mTc to use them as targeted delivery to some organs in vivo for nuclear imaging and to follow their biodistribution within the body. The factors controlling the labeling efficiency have been investigated. The percent labeling yield was determined by using ascending paper chromatographic technique. In vivo biodistribution studies of radiolabeled chitosan derivatives were carried out in groups of female Wistar rats, the body distribution profile in rat was recorded by gamma scintigraphy and the biodistribution of ^99mTc-labeled compounds in each organ was calculated as a percentage of the injected dose per gram of tissue (%ID/g). It has been found that the biodistribution of the two compounds and the pattern of their liver uptake were markedly different. The present study demonstrates a high potential approach for liver imaging using ^99mTc-LCMC. An intriguing finding of this study was that the three samples were excreted rapidly via the kidneys because of the water-soluble nature of chitosan derivatives. This suggests that water-soluble chitosan derivatives are good polymeric carriers for radioactive element that overcomes accumulation in the body. Moreover, the easy and inexpensive availability of chitosan could be beneficial for applications in scintigraphic imaging.