Development of a novel molecular probe for visualizing mesothelin on the tumor via positron emission tomography.

Objectives: Mesothelin (MSLN) is an antigen that is overexpressed in various cancers, and its interaction with tumor-associated cancer antigen 125 plays a multifaceted role in tumor metastasis. The serum MSLN expression level can be detected using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay; however, non-inva...

Descripción completa

Detalles Bibliográficos
Publicado en:European Journal of Nuclear Medicine & Molecular Imaging Vol. 52; no. 7; pp. 2605 - 2617
Autores principales: He, Yingfang, Kong, Jinping, Wang, Ze, Zhang, Yu, Qing, Tingting, Xie, Fang, Chen, Tengxiang, Han, Junbin
Formato: Journal Article
Publicado: Springer Nature Jun2025
Acceso en línea:Ver este registro en EBSCOhost
fields @attributes:
  recordID: 1
pdfLink:
plink: https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=ccm&AN=185470941&site=ehost-live
header:
  @attributes:
    shortDbName: ccm
    uiTerm: 185470941
    longDbName: CINAHL Complete
    uiTag: AN
  controlInfo:
    bkinfo:
    dissinfo:
    jinfo:
      jid:
        16197070
        NPC
      jtl: European Journal of Nuclear Medicine & Molecular Imaging
      issn: 16197070
      maglogo: N
    pubinfo:
      dt: Jun2025
      vid: 52
      iid: 7
      pid: 237
      pub: Springer Nature
      place: New York, New York
    artinfo:
      ui:
        185470941
        182540833
        10.1007/s00259-025-07087-4
        185470941
      ppf: 2605
      ppct: 12
      formats:
        fmt:
          – @attributes:
              type: T
          – @attributes:
              type: P
      tig:
        atl: Development of a novel molecular probe for visualizing mesothelin on the tumor via positron emission tomography.
      aug:
        au:
          He, Yingfang
          Kong, Jinping
          Wang, Ze
          Zhang, Yu
          Qing, Tingting
          Xie, Fang
          Chen, Tengxiang
          Han, Junbin
        affil: https://ror.org/013q1eq08 Institute of Radiation Medicine, Fudan University, Xietu Road 2094, 200032, Shanghai, China
      sug:
      ab: Objectives: Mesothelin (MSLN) is an antigen that is overexpressed in various cancers, and its interaction with tumor-associated cancer antigen 125 plays a multifaceted role in tumor metastasis. The serum MSLN expression level can be detected using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay; however, non-invasive visualization of its expression at the tumor site is currently lacking. Therefore, the aim of this study was to develop a molecular probe for imaging MSLN expression through positron emission tomography (PET). Methods: VHH 269-H4 was obtained via immunization of llama using a fragment of MSLN from residue 360 to residue 597. S-2-(4-isothiocyanatobenzyl)-1,4,7-triazacyclononane-1,4,7-triacetic acid (p-SCN-Bn-NOTA) was conjugated to VHH 269-H4 to yield precursor NOTA 269-H4 for radiolabeling. The chelator-to-VHH ratio was determined by mass spectrometry. The binding kinetics of VHH 269-H4 and NOTA 269-H4 were measured by surface plasmon resonance. Flow cytometry was carried out using the anti-mesothelin monoclonal antibody Anetumab to select MSLN-positive and MSLN-negative cell lines. After radiolabeling, the radiochemical purity and in vitro stability were tested by radio-thin-layer chromatography and size exclusion chromatography, respectively. A saturation binding assay was conducted to measure the dissociation constant (Kd) of [68Ga]Ga-NOTA-269-H4. By mircoPET/CT imaging and biodistribution studies, the in vivo performances of the novel tracer were investigated in NCG mice bearing OVCAR-8, SKOV-3, or patient-derived xenografts. Results: VHH 269-H4 targeting MSLN was obtained with a Kd value of 0.3 nM. After conjugation, approximately 27% and 3.2% of VHH were coupled to one and two NOTA chelators, respectively. This yielded precursor NOTA 269-H4 with a Kd value of 1.1 nM. The radiochemistry was accomplished with moderate radiochemical yields (34 ± 14%, n = 9, decay-corrected). [68Ga]Ga-NOTA-269-H4 was obtained with high radiochemical purity (> 99%), and was stable after 90 min incubation at room temperature. The binding affinity of the radioligand towards MSLN was kept in the nanomolar range. Flow cytometry revealed that OVCAR-8 cells possess a high level of MSLN expression, while MSLN expression on SKOV-3 cells was negligible. Consistently, in microPET/CT imaging, [68Ga]Ga-NOTA-269-H4 demonstrated clear tumor visualization using NCG mice bearing OVCAR-8 xenografts, but no radioactivity accumulation was observed in SKOV-3 xenografts, suggesting a high specificity of the tracer in vivo. In biodistribution studies, [68Ga]Ga-NOTA-269-H4 displayed radioactivity accumulation of 2.93 ± 0.39%ID/g in OVCAR-8 xenografts at 30 min post-injection, and the highest tumor-to-blood ratio (~ 3) was achieved at 90 min post-injection. In NCG mice bearing patient-derived xenografts, [68Ga]Ga-NOTA-269-H4 was able to noninvasively detect MSLN expression via microPET/CT imaging. Conclusions: To our knowledge, our studies achieved the first-time to non-invasively detect MSLN expression clearly using a single domain antibody fragment. To sum up, [68Ga]Ga-NOTA-269-H4 is a highly promising PET probe to visualize MSLN expression in vivo and holds great potential to monitor MSLN expression during tumor development.
      pubtype: Academic Journal
      doctype: Journal Article
      ougenre: Article
    language: English
    refInfo:
    holdings:
      @attributes:
        islocal: N