Image-Guided Surgery: Are We Getting the Most Out of Small-Molecule Prostate-Specific-Membrane-Antigen-Targeted Tracers?

Bioconjug Chem. 2020 Feb 19;31(2):375-395. doi: 10.1021/acs.bioconjchem.9b00758. Epub 2020 Jan 6.

Abstract

Expressed on virtually all prostate cancers and their metastases, the transmembrane protein prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA) provides a valuable target for the imaging of prostate cancer. Not only does PSMA provide a target for noninvasive diagnostic imaging, e.g., PSMA-positron emission tomography (PSMA-PET), it can also be used to guide surgical resections of PSMA-positive lesions. The latter characteristic has led to the development of a plethora of PSMA-targeted tracers, i.e., radiolabeled, fluorescent, or hybrid. With image-guided surgery applications in mind, this review discusses these compounds based on clinical need. Here, the focus is on the chemical aspects (e.g., imaging label, spacer moiety, and targeting vector) and their impact on in vitro and in vivo tracer characteristics (e.g., affinity, tumor uptake, and clearance pattern).

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
  • Review

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Antigens, Surface / analysis*
  • Glutamate Carboxypeptidase II / analysis*
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Positron-Emission Tomography / methods*
  • Prostate / diagnostic imaging
  • Prostate / surgery
  • Prostatic Neoplasms / diagnostic imaging*
  • Prostatic Neoplasms / surgery*
  • Radiopharmaceuticals / analysis
  • Surgery, Computer-Assisted / methods*
  • Tomography, Emission-Computed, Single-Photon / methods

Substances

  • Antigens, Surface
  • Radiopharmaceuticals
  • FOLH1 protein, human
  • Glutamate Carboxypeptidase II