Bacterial infections provide diagnostic dilemmas that could be enlightened by modern imaging technologies. We have developed a simple method for imaging bacterial infections in mice that relies on the phosphorylation and trapping of the thymidine kinase (TK) substrate 1-(2'-deoxy-2'-fluoro-beta-D-arabinofuranosyl)-5-[125I] iodouracil ([125I]FIAU) within bacteria. FIAU was found to inhibit the growth of WT Escherichia coli but not a TK- strain, indicating that WT E. coli could metabolize this compound. In silico analyses demonstrated that all pathogenic strains of bacteria whose genomes have been sequenced contain a TK gene highly homologous to the E. coli TK. Accordingly, we demonstrated that localized infections caused by representatives of five genera of bacteria could be readily imaged with [125I]FIAU. Such imaging provides a general method for the diagnosis of localized bacterial infections that could be translatable to the clinic.

Doctor’s Comment: Chronic prostatitis, in most cases, is considered a disease of unknown etiology by the urological profession. The authors above have found a way to determine whether or not chronic prostatitis is a bacterial infection using radiolabeled iodouracil. This is a study that needs to be undertaken as soon as possible.