Targeting free prostate-specific antigen for in vivo imaging of prostate cancer using a monoclonal antibody specific for unique epitopes accessible on free prostate-specific antigen alone - Abstract

This study investigated the feasibility of targeting the free, unbound forms of prostate-specific antigen (fPSA) for in vivo imaging of prostate adenocarcinomas (PCa), as PSA is produced and secreted at abundance during every clinical stage and grade of PCa, including castration-resistant disease.

We injected 125I-labeled monoclonal antibody PSA30 (specific for an epitope uniquely accessible on fPSA alone) intravenously in male nude mice carrying subcutaneous xenografts of LNCaP tumors (n=36). Mice were sacrificed over a time course from 4 hours to 13 days after injecting 125I-labeled PSA30. Tissue uptake of 125I-PSA30 at 48 and 168 hours after intravenous injection was compared with two clinically used positron emission tomography radiopharmaceuticals, 18F-fluoro-deoxy-glucose (18F-FDG) or 18F-choline, in cryosections using Digital AutoRadiography (DAR) and also compared with immunohistochemical staining of PSA and histopathology. On DAR, the areas with high 125I-PSA30 uptake corresponded mainly to morphologically intact and PSA-producing LNCaP cells, but did not associate with the areas of high uptake of either 18F-FDG or (18)F-choline. Biodistribution of 125I-PSA30 measured in dissected organs ex vivo during 4 to 312 hours after intravenous injection demonstrated maximum selective tumor uptake 24-48 hours after antibody injection. Our data showed selective uptake in vivo of a monoclonal antibody highly specific for fPSA in LNCaP cells. Hence, in vivo imaging of fPSA may be feasible with putative usefulness in disseminated PCa.

Written by:
Evans-Axelsson S, Ulmert D, Orbom A, Peterson P, Nilsson O, Wennerberg J, Strand J, WingÄrdh K, Olsson T, Hagman Z, Tolmachev V, Bjartell A, Lilja H, Strand SE. Are you the author?
Division of Urological Cancers, Department of Clinical Sciences, Lund University , Malmö, Sweden.

Reference: Cancer Biother Radiopharm. 2012 May;27(4):243-51.
doi: 10.1089/cbr.2011.1088

PubMed Abstract
PMID: 22489659

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