Molecular Imaging of Experimental Abdominal Aortic Aneurysms Targeting Vascular Homeostasis Disruption via CD31 Shedding

CD31 is a constitutive regulatory receptor that has crucial functions in the maintenance of homeostasis at the blood–vessel interface. Its loss at the surface (shedding) of both circulating and aneurysm infiltrated immune cells is a characteristic feature of patients presenting with abdominal aortic aneurysms (AAAs).1 The use of a novel radiolabelled peptide targeting CD31shed cells (P8RI; a synthetic CD31 agonist) at sites of active tissue inflammation has previously been developed and validated.