Citation: Ming LIU, Xin ZHOU, Fang FANG, Yuwu ZHONG, Jianhong TANG. β-galactosidase-responsive Gd(Ⅲ) complexes for magnetic resonance imaging: From structural designs to diagnostic applications[J]. Chinese Journal of Inorganic Chemistry, ;2026, 42(11): 2275-2289. doi: 10.11862/CJIC.20260185 shu

β-galactosidase-responsive Gd(Ⅲ) complexes for magnetic resonance imaging: From structural designs to diagnostic applications

Ming LIU ¹ ,
Xin ZHOU ¹ ,
Fang FANG ^2,, ,
Yuwu ZHONG ³ ,
Jianhong TANG ^1,,

1.
School of Future Technology, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences (UCAS), Beijing 101408, China
2.
School of Medicine, Fuzhou University, Fuzhou 350108, China
3.
Institute of Molecular Engineering Plus, College of Chemistry, Fuzhou University, Fuzhou 350108, China

Corresponding author: Fang FANG, fang.fang@fzu.edu.cn Jianhong TANG, tangjianhong@ucas.ac.cn
Received Date: 5 June 2026
Revised Date: 17 September 2026

Figures(7)

Magnetic resonance (MR) imaging is a real-time, noninvasive, and indispensable modality in biomedical research and clinical diagnosis. Due to the limited intrinsic sensitivity of MR imaging, 30%-50% of clinical MR imaging scans require the administration of paramagnetic Gd(Ⅲ)-based contrast agents (GBCAs) to enhance the MR signal intensity. All currently clinically approved GBCAs are “always-on” contrast-enhanced Gd(Ⅲ) agents, which do not respond to specific biological species. The development of bioresponsive GBCAs to improve the specificity of MR imaging has attracted considerable effort over the past three decades. Among these advances, many galactosyl-conjugated Gd(Ⅲ) agents have been developed as model bioresponsive molecular scaffolds for visualizing β-galactosidase activity, gene expression, gene therapy, senescence, and tumors. This review focuses on the structural designs and the diagnostic applications of β-galactosidase-responsive Gd(Ⅲ) MR agents. According to the unique coordination environment changes upon enzymatic activation, we classified these chelates into two major categories: the number of water molecules that directly bind to Gd(Ⅲ) (q)-modulated and the rotational tumbling rate of Gd(Ⅲ) complexes (τ_r)-modulated Gd(Ⅲ) complexes.
- magnetic resonance imaging,
- Gd(Ⅲ)-based contrast agents,
- β-galactosidase-responsive,
- molecular imaging and therapy
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沈阳化工大学材料科学与工程学院沈阳 110142