This study was undertaken to evaluate whether 99mTc-labeled human neutrophil peptide (HNP)-1 can be used as a tracer for rapid visualization of bacterial infections.
Methods: Mice were injected intramuscularly with 1 million Staphylococcus aureus or Klebsiella pneumoniae organisms and 5 min later were injected intravenously with 0.4 microg (0.8 MBq) 99mTc-HNP-1. At various intervals, detailed information about clearance and accumulation of this tracer at sites of infection and in various organs was obtained by scintigraphy. 99mTc-labeled immunoglobulin G (IgG), an established marker of infection and inflammation, was used for comparison.
Results: After injection into S. aureus- or K. pneumoniae-injected mice, 99mTC-HNP-1 was rapidly removed from the circulation, mainly through the kidneys and bladder, with half-lives of 170 and 55 min, respectively. Similar half-lives were observed for 99mTc-IgG in these animals. Visualization of foci with S. aureus or K. pneumoniae, as indicated by a ratio of 1.3 or higher between the targeted thigh muscle (containing bacteria) and the nontargeted (contralateral) thigh muscle (T/NT), was already achieved 5 min after injection of 99mTc-HNP-1. Similar T/NTs for 99mTc-IgG were obtained 4 h after injection of the tracer, indicating that imaging of foci of bacteria with 99mTc-HNP-1 is much faster than with 99mTc-IgG. To obtain insight into factors that contribute to accumulation of 99mTc-HNP-1 at sites of infection, the binding of this tracer to bacteria and leukocytes was assessed using a peritoneal infection model. Binding of 99mTC-HNP-1 to bacteria was approximately 1000 times higher than binding to leukocytes. Although the number of bacteria in the peritoneum was 1000-fold lower than the number of leukocytes, a significant correlation between binding of 99mTc-HNP-1 to bacteria on the one hand and accumulation of tracer on the other was still found, in contrast to 99mTc-IgG.
Conclusion: 99mTc-HNP-1 allows rapid visualization of bacterial infections. Binding of this tracer to bacteria most likely contributes significantly to the accumulation of 99mTc-HNP-1 at sites of infection.