Evaluation of the potassium channel tracer [18F]3F4AP in rhesus macaques

Nicolas J. Guehl, Karla M. Ramos-Torres, Clas Linnman, Sung Hyun Moon, Maeva Dhaynaut, Moses Q. Wilks, Paul K. Han, Chao Ma, Ramesh Neelamegam, Yu Peng Zhou, Brian Popko, John A. Correia, Daniel S. Reich, Georges El Fakhri, Peter Herscovitch, Marc D. Normandin*, Pedro Brugarolas*

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

17 Scopus citations

Abstract

Demyelination causes slowed or failed neuronal conduction and is a driver of disability in multiple sclerosis and other neurological diseases. Currently, the gold standard for imaging demyelination is MRI, but despite its high spatial resolution and sensitivity to demyelinated lesions, it remains challenging to obtain specific and quantitative measures of molecular changes involved in demyelination. To understand the contribution of demyelination in different diseases and to assess the efficacy of myelin-repair therapies, it is critical to develop new in vivo imaging tools sensitive to changes induced by demyelination. Upon demyelination, axonal K+ channels, normally located underneath the myelin sheath, become exposed and increase in expression, causing impaired conduction. Here, we investigate the properties of the K+ channel PET tracer [18F]3F4AP in primates and its sensitivity to a focal brain injury that occurred three years prior to imaging. [18F]3F4AP exhibited favorable properties for brain imaging including high brain penetration, high metabolic stability, high plasma availability, high reproducibility, high specificity, and fast kinetics. [18F]3F4AP showed preferential binding in areas of low myelin content as well as in the previously injured area. Sensitivity of [18F]3F4AP for the focal brain injury was higher than [18F]FDG, [11C]PiB, and [11C]PBR28, and compared favorably to currently used MRI methods.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)1721-1733
Number of pages13
JournalJournal of Cerebral Blood Flow and Metabolism
Volume41
Issue number7
DOIs
StatePublished - Jul 2021

Funding

We thank Daniel Yokell at the MGH Gordon PET Radiopharmacy for providing [18 F]FDG and [11 C]PiB, David Lee and Timothy Beaudoin at the MGH Gordon PET Cyclotron for producing 18 F and 11 C for the synthesis of [18 F]3F4AP and [11 C]PBR28. We thank the veterinary staff (Helen Deng and Eric McDonald) for assistance with animal handling. The author(s) disclosed receipt of the following financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article: This study was partially supported by the following grants: R00EB020075 (PB), R01NS114066 (PB), P41EB022544 (MDN), S10OD018035 (GEF and MDN), T32EB013180 (GEF), Philippe Foundation award (NJG), Intramural Research Program of NINDS (DSR), Ellen R. and Melvin J. Gordon Center for the Cure and Treatment of Paralysis (CL), The Polsky Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship at the University of Chicago (BP and PB). Adelson Medical Research Foundation (DSR, BP). The author(s) disclosed receipt of the following financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article: This study was partially supported by the following grants: R00EB020075 (PB), R01NS114066 (PB), P41EB022544 (MDN), S10OD018035 (GEF and MDN), T32EB013180 (GEF), Philippe Foundation award (NJG), Intramural Research Program of NINDS (DSR), Ellen R. and Melvin J. Gordon Center for the Cure and Treatment of Paralysis (CL), The Polsky Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship at the University of Chicago (BP and PB). Adelson Medical Research Foundation (DSR, BP). Acknowledgements

Keywords

  • Demyelination
  • PET imaging
  • [F]3F4AP
  • pharmacokinetics
  • traumatic brain injury

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Neurology
  • Clinical Neurology
  • Cardiology and Cardiovascular Medicine

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