PET Probes for Preclinical Imaging of GRPR-Positive Prostate Cancer: Comparative Preclinical Study of [68Ga]Ga-NODAGA-AMBA and [44Sc]Sc-NODAGA-AMBA

Gastrin-releasing peptide receptors (GRPR) are overexpressed in prostate cancer (PCa). Since bombesin analogue aminobenzoic-acid (AMBA) binds to GRPR with high affinity, scandium-44 conjugated AMBA is a promising radiotracer in the PET diagnostics of GRPR positive tumors. Herein, the GRPR specificity of the newly synthetized [Sc-44]Sc-NODAGA-AMBA was investigated in vitro and in vivo applying PCa PC-3 xenograft. After the in-vitro assessment of receptor binding, PC-3 tumor-bearing mice were injected with [Sc-44]Sc/[Ga-68]Ga-NODAGA-AMBA (in blocking studies with bombesin) and in-vivo PET examinations were performed to determine the radiotracer uptake in standardized uptake values (SUV). Sc-44/Ga-68-labelled NODAGA-AMBA was produced with high molar activity (approx. 20 GBq/mu moL) and excellent radiochemical purity. The in-vitro accumulation of [Sc-44]Sc-NODAGA-AMBA in PC-3 cells was approximately 25-fold higher than that of the control HaCaT cells. Relatively higher uptake was found in vitro, ex vivo, and in vivo in the same tumor with the Sc-44-labelled probe compared to [Ga-68]Ga-NODAGA-AMBA. The GRPR specificity of [Sc-44]Sc-NODAGA-AMBA was confirmed by significantly (p <= 0.01) decreased %ID and SUV values in PC-3 tumors after bombesin pretreatment. The outstanding binding properties of the novel [Sc-44]Sc-NODAGA-AMBA to GRPR outlines its potential to be a valuable radiotracer in the imaging of GRPR-positive PCa.

Automated summary

This study investigated the GRPR specificity of the newly synthesized [Sc-44]Sc-NODAGA-AMBA and its potential as a valuable radiotracer in the imaging of GRPR-positive PCa through in vitro and in vivo experiments.