The proliferation and trafficking of T lymphocytes in immune responses are crucial events in determining inflammatory responses. To study whole-body T lymphocyte dynamics noninvasively in vivo, we generated anti-CD4 and -CD8 cys-diabodies (cDbs) derived from the parental antibody hybridomas GK1.5 and 2.43, respectively, for (89)Zr-immuno-PET detection of helper and cytotoxic T cell populations.
Methods: Anti-CD4 and -CD8 cDbs were engineered, produced via mammalian expression, purified using immobilized metal affinity chromatography, and characterized for T cell binding. The cDbs were site-specifically conjugated to maleimide-desferrioxamine for (89)Zr radiolabeling and subsequent small-animal PET/CT acquisition and ex vivo biodistribution in both wild-type mice and a model of hematopoietic stem cell (HSC) transplantation.
Results: Immuno-PET and biodistribution studies demonstrate targeting and visualization of CD4 and CD8 T cell populations in vivo in the spleen and lymph nodes of wild-type mice, with specificity confirmed through in vivo blocking and depletion studies. Subsequently, a murine model of HSC transplantation demonstrated successful in vivo detection of T cell repopulation at 2, 4, and 8 wk after HSC transplantation using the (89)Zr-radiolabeled anti-CD4 and -CD8 cDbs.
Conclusion: These newly developed anti-CD4 and -CD8 immuno-PET reagents represent a powerful resource to monitor T cell expansion, localization, and novel engraftment protocols. Future potential applications of T cell-targeted immuno-PET include monitoring immune cell subsets in response to immunotherapy, autoimmunity, and lymphoproliferative disorders, contributing overall to preclinical immune cell monitoring.
Keywords: 89Zr; CD4+ and CD8+ T cells; antibody fragments; hematopoietic stem cell transplantation; immuno-PET.
© 2015 by the Society of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging, Inc.