Expression of the cellular transmembrane receptor ?v?6 integrin is essentially restricted to malignant epithelial cells in carcinomas of a broad variety of lineages, whereas it is virtually absent in normal adult tissues. Thus, it is a highly attractive target for tumor imaging and therapy. Furthermore, ?v?6 integrin plays an important role for the epithelial-mesenchymal interaction and the development of fibrosis. Methods: On the basis of the (68)Ga chelators TRAP (triazacyclononane-triphosphinate) and NODAGA, we synthesized mono-, di-, and trimeric conjugates of the ?v?6 integrin-selective peptide cyclo(FRGDLAFp(NMe)K) via click chemistry. These were labeled with (68)Ga and screened regarding their suitability for in vivo imaging of ?v?6 integrin expression by PET and ex vivo biodistribution in severe combined immunodeficiency mice bearing H2009 tumor (human lung adenocarcinoma) xenografts. For these, ?v?6 integrin expression in tumor and other tissues was determined by ?6 immunohistochemistry. Results: Despite the multimers showing higher ?v?6 integrin affinities (23-120 pM) than the monomers (260 pM), the best results-that is, low background uptake and excellent tumor delineation-were obtained with the TRAP-based monomer (68)Ga-avebehexin. This compound showed the most favorable pharmacokinetics because of its high polarity (log D = -3.7) and presence of additional negative charges (carboxylates) on the chelator, promoting renal clearance. Although tumor uptake was low (0.65% ± 0.04% injected dose per gram tissue [%ID/g]), it was still higher than in all other organs except the kidneys, ranging from a maximum for the stomach (0.52 ± 0.04 %ID/g) to almost negligible for the pancreas (0.07 ± 0.01 %ID/g). A low but significant target expression in tumor, lung, and stomach was confirmed by immunohistochemistry. Conclusion: Because of highly sensitive PET imaging even of tissues with low ?v?6 integrin expression density, we anticipate clinical applicability of (68)Ga-avebehexin for imaging of ?v?6 tumors and fibrosis by PET.     «

Expression of the cellular transmembrane receptor ?v?6 integrin is essentially restricted to malignant epithelial cells in carcinomas of a broad variety of lineages, whereas it is virtually absent in normal adult tissues. Thus, it is a highly attractive target for tumor imaging and therapy. Furthermore, ?v?6 integrin plays an important role for the epithelial-mesenchymal interaction and the development of fibrosis. Methods: On the basis of the (68)Ga chelators TRAP (triazacyclononane-triphosphin...     »