Bivalent Inhibitors of Prostate-Specific Membrane Antigen Conjugated to Desferrioxamine B Squaramide Labeled with Zirconium-89 or Gallium-68 for Diagnostic Imaging of Prostate Cancer

J Med Chem. 2020 Sep 10;63(17):9258-9270. doi: 10.1021/acs.jmedchem.0c00291. Epub 2020 Aug 13.

Abstract

Prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA) is a carboxypeptidase that is overexpressed in prostate cancer and is an excellent candidate for targeted diagnostic imaging and therapy. Lysine-ureido-glutamate inhibitors of PSMA radiolabeled with positron-emitting radionuclides can be used for diagnostic imaging with positron emission tomography (PET). A squaramide ester derivative of desferrioxamine B (H3DFOSq) was used to prepare four new agents with either one or two lysine-ureido-glutamate pharmacophores. The H3DFOSq ligand can be used to form stable complexes with either of the positron-emitting radionuclides gallium-68 (t1/2 = 68 min) or zirconium-89 (t1/2 = 3.3 days). The complexes were evaluated in PSMA-positive xenograft mouse models. Bivalent inhibitors, where two pharmacophores are tethered to a single DFOSq ligand, have better tumor uptake than their monovalent analogues. The ligands presented here, which can be labeled with either gallium-68 or zirconium-89, have the potential to increase the number of clinical sites that can perform diagnostic PET imaging.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Antigens, Surface / metabolism*
  • Cell Line, Tumor
  • Cell Transformation, Neoplastic
  • Deferoxamine / chemistry*
  • Enzyme Inhibitors / chemistry*
  • Enzyme Inhibitors / pharmacokinetics
  • Enzyme Inhibitors / pharmacology
  • Gallium Radioisotopes*
  • Glutamate Carboxypeptidase II / metabolism*
  • Humans
  • Isotope Labeling
  • Male
  • Mice
  • Positron Emission Tomography Computed Tomography / methods*
  • Prostatic Neoplasms / pathology*
  • Quinine / analogs & derivatives
  • Quinine / chemistry
  • Radioisotopes*
  • Tissue Distribution
  • Zirconium*

Substances

  • Antigens, Surface
  • Enzyme Inhibitors
  • Gallium Radioisotopes
  • Radioisotopes
  • squaramide
  • Gallium-68
  • Quinine
  • Zirconium
  • FOLH1 protein, human
  • Glutamate Carboxypeptidase II
  • Deferoxamine
  • Zirconium-89