THE AIM OF THIS PROJECT IS TO EVALUATE AND COMPARE TWO NEW POLYIODINATED TRIGLYCERIDE DERIVATIVES AS RADIOLOGIC CONTRAST AGENTS FOR HEPATIC IMAGING BY COMPUTED TOMOGRAPHY (CT).

THE AIM OF THIS PROJECT IS TO EVALUATE AND COMPARE TWO NEW POLYIODINATED TRIGLYCERIDE DERIVATIVES AS RADIOLOGIC CONTRAST AGENTS FOR HEPATIC IMAGING BY COMPUTED TOMOGRAPHY (CT). THESE NEW LIPOPHILIC CONTRAST AGENTS CONSIST OF EITHER THE COMMONLY USED RADIOLOGIC CONTRAST AGENT IOPANOIC ACID OR ITS CONGENER DESETHYLIOPANOIC ACID ESTERIFIED TO THE1 AND 3 POSITION OF THE GLYCEROL MOLECULE. PRELIMINARY WORKHAS DEMONSTRATED THAT THESE TRIGLYCERIDE IOPANOATES HAVE CONSIDERABLE POTENTIAL AS HEPATIC-SPECIFIC CT CONTRAST AGENTS. THESE AGENTS WILL BE FORMULATED AS LIPID EMULSIONS SIMILAR TO THE PARENTERAL HYPERALIMENTATION EMULSIONS INTRALIPID R AND LIPOSYN R. ENCOMPASSED WITHIN THE SCOPE OFTHE SPECIFIC AIMS ARE THE FOLLOWING OBJECTIVES: (1) SYNTHESIS OF ADEQUATE QUANTITIES OF THE NEW TRIGYLCERIDES IOPANOATES; (2) OPTIMIZATION OF TECHNIQUES FOR INCORPORATINGTHESE AGENTS INTO EMULSIONS ANALOGOUS TO THOSE USED IN HUMANS FOR PARENTERAL HYPERALIMENTATION; AND (3) STUDY OF THE HEPATIC OPACIFICATION PROPERTIES OF THESE AGENTS IN NORMAL AND TUMOR-BEARING RABBITS. THE RESULTS FROM THESE STUDIES WILL DETERMINE THE JUSTIFICATION OF FURTHER INVESTIGATION OF THESE AGENTS IN A PHASE II FOLLOW-UP STUDY.