The invention provides compositions and methods for non-invasive imaging
of enzyme (e.g., protease) activity in cells, tissues and organs and
entire bodies in vitro, in vivo and in situ. The invention provides a
chimeric polypeptide having a bioluminescent or chemiluminescent
polypeptide, or a heterologous kinase, and at least one silencing moiety,
and a protease cleavage motif positioned between the first and second
domains. The imaging can be by computer assisted tomography (CAT),
magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS), magnetic resonance imaging (MRI),
positron emission tomography (PET), single-photon emission computed
tomography (SPECT), or bioluminescence imaging (BLI).