ABSTRACT
Innovative molecular imaging technologies have radically increased the quality and efficiency of preclinical studies by enabling the in vivo monitoring of disease progression and real-time investigation of therapeutic protocols. Apoptosis is the phenomenon of programmed cell death in which cells that are no longer required to the organism are removed from the organism without triggering inflammation. Apoptosis is known to occur not only during physiologic homeostatic processes but also during the development of various pathologies including cancer. During apoptosis, phosphatidylserine becomes externalized on the cell’s surface. Caspases are a family of inactive proteases activated under apoptotic conditions and involved in the apoptotic signal transduction. Another characteristic of apoptotic cells is the phenomenon of membrane permeability alteration, which provides a valid target for membrane-based probes of in vivo apoptosis imaging. Inflammation is known to have a significant role in various pathological conditions including arthritis, pulmonary disease, as well as cardiovascular disease and cancer.
