In vitro and in vivo evaluation of (11)C-SD5024, a novel PET radioligand for human brain imaging of cannabinoid CB1 receptors.

We recently developed a novel cannabinoid subtype-1 (CB1) receptor radioligand (11)C-SD5024 for brain imaging. This study aimed to evaluate (11)C-SD5024 both in vitro and in vivo and compare it with the other CB1 receptor ligands previously used in humans, i.e., (11)C-MePPEP, (11)C-OMAR, (18)F-MK-9470, and (18)F-FMPEP-d2. In vitro experiments were performed to measure dissociation constant (Ki) in the human brain and to measure the lipophilicity of the five CB1 receptor ligands listed above. In vivo specific binding in monkeys was measured by comparing total distribution volume (VT) at baseline and after full receptor blockade. The kinetics of (11)C-SD5024 in humans were evaluated in seven healthy subjects with compartmental modeling. SD5024 showed Ki=0.47nM, which was at an intermediate level among the five CB1 receptor ligands. Lipophilicity (LogD7.4) was 3.79, which is appropriate for brain imaging. Monkey scans showed high proportion of specific binding: ~80% of VT. In humans, (11)C-SD5024 showed peak brain uptake of 1.5-3 standardized uptake value, which was slightly higher than that of (11)C-OMAR and (18)F-MK-9470. One-compartment model showed good fitting, consistent with the vast majority of brain uptake being specific binding found in the monkey. Regional VT values were consistent with known distribution of CB1 receptors. VT calculated from 80 and 120min of scan data was strongly correlated (R(2)=0.97), indicating that 80min provided adequate information for quantitation and that the influence of radiometabolites was low. Intersubject variability for VT of (11)C-SD5024 was 22%, which was low among the five radioligands and indicated precise measurement. In conclusion, (11)C-SD5024 has appropriate affinity and lipophilicity, high specific binding, moderate brain uptake, and provides good precision to measure the binding. The results suggest that (11)C-SD5024 is slightly better than or equivalent to (11)C-OMAR and that both are suitable for clinical studies, especially those that involve two scans in one day.

Evaluation of [11C]PipISB and [18F]PipISB in monkey as candidate radioligands for imaging brain cannabinoid type-1 receptors in vivo.

N-(4-Fluorobenzyl)-4-[3-(piperidin-1-yl)indole-1-sulfonyl]benzamide] (PipISB, 3) is a selective and high-potency cannabinoid subtype-1 (CB1) receptor inverse agonist. We have previously reported radiosyntheses of [11C]3 and [18F]3. Here, we aimed to evaluate the uptake and CB(1) receptor-specific binding of each radioligand in monkey brain in vivo with positron emission tomography (PET). [11C]3 or [18F]3 was injected intravenously into rhesus or cynomolgus monkey, respectively, and examined with PET at baseline or after pretreatment with a receptor-saturating dose of CB1 receptor-selective ligand (3 for [11C]3 or 8 for [18F]3). In one PET experiment, the dose of 3 was administered at 100 min after [11C]3. Relative plasma concentrations of radioligand and radiometabolites were concurrently measured in baseline experiments with high-performance liquid chromatography. Brain radioactivity uptake was highest in striatum and cerebellum, and it reached 170-270% standardized uptake value (SUV) at 120 min after injection of [11C]3 and 180% SUV at 240 min after injection of [18F]3. Radioactivity was well retained in all CB1 receptor-rich regions. No reference region could be identified for nonspecifically bound radioligand. Under CB1 receptor pretreatment and displacement conditions, initial brain uptakes of radioactivity were similar to those at baseline. Regional brain radioactivity concentrations then became homogeneous and diminished to between 70 and 80% SUV at 120 min after injection of [11C]3 and to 25% SUV at 240 min after injection of [18F]3. [18F]3 was not defluorinated but was metabolized to less lipophilic radiometabolites, as was [11C]3. Hence, [11C]3 and [18F]3 showed high CB1 receptor-specific binding in monkey brain in vivo and merit further investigation as prospective PET radioligands in humans.

Synthesis and in vitro autoradiographic evaluation of a novel high-affinity radioiodinated ligand for imaging brain cannabinoid subtype-1 receptors.

There is strong interest to study the involvement of brain cannabinoid subtype-1 (CB1) receptors in neuropsychiatric disorders with single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) and a suitable radioligand. Here we report the synthesis of a novel high-affinity radioiodinated CB1 receptor ligand ([125I]8, [125I]1-(2-iodophenyl)-4-cyano-5-(4-methoxyphenyl)-N-(piperidin-1-yl)-1H-pyrazole-3-carboxylate, [125I]SD7015). By autoradiography in vitro, [125I]8 showed selective binding to CB1 receptors on human brain postmortem cryosections and now merits labeling with iodine-123 for further evaluation as a SPECT radioligand in non-human primate.

A PET study comparing receptor occupancy by five selective cannabinoid 1 receptor antagonists in non-human primates.

There is a medical need for safe and efficacious anti-obesity drugs with acceptable side effect profiles. To mitigate the challenge posed by translating target interaction across species and balancing beneficial vs. adverse effects, a positron emission tomography (PET) approach could help guide clinical dose optimization. Thus, as part of a compound differentiation effort, three novel selective CB1 receptor (CB1R) antagonists, developed by AstraZeneca (AZ) for the treatment of obesity, were compared with two clinically tested reference compounds, rimonabant and taranabant, with regard to receptor occupancy relative to dose and exposure. A total of 42 PET measurements were performed in 6 non-human primates using the novel CB1R antagonist radioligand [(11)C]SD5024. The AZ CB1R antagonists bound in a saturable manner to brain CB1R with in vivo affinities similar to that of rimonabant and taranabant, compounds with proven weight loss efficacy in clinical trials. Interestingly, it was found that exposures corresponding to those needed for optimal clinical efficacy of rimonabant and taranabant resulted in a CB1R occupancy typically around ∼20-30%, thus much lower than what would be expected for classical G-protein coupled receptor (GPCR) antagonists in other therapeutic contexts. These findings are also discussed in relation to emerging literature on the potential usefulness of 'neutral' vs. 'classical' CB1R (inverse agonist) antagonists. The study additionally highlighted the usefulness of the radioligand [(11)C]SD5024 as a specific tracer for CB1R in the primate brain, though an arterial input function would ideally be required in future studies to further assure accurate quantitative analysis of specific binding.

In vivo SPECT and ex vivo autoradiographic brain imaging of the novel selective CB1 receptor antagonist radioligand [125I]SD7015 in CB1 knock-out and wildtype mouse.

We aimed to evaluate the novel high-affinity and relatively lipophilic CB(1) receptor (CB(1)R) antagonist radioligand [(125)I]SD7015 for SPECT imaging of CB(1)Rs in vivo using the multiplexed multipinhole dedicated small animal SPECT/CT system, NanoSPECT/CT(PLUS) (Mediso, Budapest, Hungary), in knock-out CB(1) receptor knock-out (CB(1)R-/-) and wildtype mice. In order to exclude possible differences in cerebral blood flow between the two types of animals, HMPAO SPECT scans were performed, whereas in order to confirm the brain uptake differences of the radioligand between knock-out mice and wildtype mice, in vivo scans were complemented with ex vivo autoradiographic measurements using the brains of the same animals. With SPECT/CT imaging, we measured the brain uptake of radioactivity, using %SUV (% standardised uptake values) in CB(1)R-/- mice (n=3) and C57BL6 wildtype mice (n=7) under urethane anaesthesia after injecting [(125)I]SD7015 intravenously or intraperitoneally. The Brookhaven Laboratory mouse MRI atlas was fused to the SPECT/CT images by using a combination of rigid and non-rigid algorithms in the Mediso Fusion™ (Mediso, Budapest, Hungary) and VivoQuant (inviCRO, Boston, MA, USA) softwares. Phosphor imager plate autoradiography (ARG) was performed on 4 µm-thin cryostat sections of the excised brains. %SUV was 8.6±3.6 (average±SD) in CB(1)R-/- mice and 22.1±12.4 in wildtype mice between 2 and 4 h after injection (p<0.05). ARG of identically taken sections from wildtype mouse brain showed moderate radioactivity uptake when compared with the in vivo images, with a clear difference between grey matter and white matter, whereas ARG in CB(1)R(-/-) mice showed practically no radioactivity uptake. [(125)I]SD7015 enters the mouse brain in sufficient amount to enable SPECT imaging. Brain radioactivity distribution largely coincides with that of the known CB(1)R expression pattern in rodent brain. We conclude that [(125)I]SD7015 should be a useful SPECT radioligand for studying brain CB(1)R in mouse and rat disease models.

N-(4-cyanotetrahydro-2H-pyran-4-yl) and N-(1-cyanocyclohexyl) derivatives of 1,5-diarylpyrazole-3-carboxamides showing high affinity for 18 kDa translocator protein and/or cannabinoid receptors.

In order to develop improved radioligands for imaging brain CB(1) receptors with positron emission tomography (PET) based on rimonabant (5-(4-chlorophenyl)-1-(2,4-dichlorophenyl)-4-methyl-N-(piperidin-1-yl)-1H-pyrazole-3-carboxamide, 1), we synthesized compounds 9a-s in which the N-piperidinyl ring was replaced with a 4-(4-cyanotetrahydro-2H-pyranyl) or 1-cyanocyclohexyl ring. Such changes were expected to be almost isosteric with 1, confer greater metabolic resistance, and in the case of the 4-(4-cyanotetrahydro-2H-pyranyl) compounds, substantially reduce lipophilicity. One derivative, 1-(2-bromophenyl)-N-(1-cyanocyclohexyl)-5-(4-methoxyphenyl)-4-methylpyrazole-3-carboxamide (9n), showed high affinity (K(i) = 15.7 nM) and selectivity for binding to CB(1) receptors. The corresponding 4-(4-cyanotetrahydro-2H-pyranyl) derivative (9m) also showed quite high affinity for CB(1) receptors (K(i) = 62 nM) but was found to have even higher affinity (K(i) = 29 nM) for the structurally unrelated 18 kDa translocator protein (TSPO). Some other minor structural changes among 9a-s were also found to switch binding selectivity from CB(1) receptors to TSPO or vice versa. These unexpected findings and their implications for the development of selective ligands or PET radioligands for CB(1) receptors or TSPO are discussed in relation to current pharmacophore models of CB(1) receptor and TSPO binding sites.

Imaging and quantitation of cannabinoid CB1 receptors in human and monkey brains using (18)F-labeled inverse agonist radioligands.

UNLABELLED: We recently demonstrated that (11)C-MePPEP, a PET ligand for CB(1) receptors, has such high uptake in the human brain that it can be imaged for 210 min and that receptor density can be quantified as distribution volume (V(T)) using the gold standard of compartmental modeling. However, (11)C-MePPEP had relatively poor retest and intersubject variabilities, which were likely caused by errors in the measurements of radioligand in plasma at low concentrations by 120 min. We sought to find an analog of (11)C-MePPEP that would provide more accurate plasma measurements. We evaluated several promising analogs in the monkey brain and chose the (18)F-di-deutero fluoromethoxy analog ((18)F-FMPEP-d(2)) to evaluate further in the human brain. METHODS: (11)C-FMePPEP, (18)F-FEPEP, (18)F-FMPEP, and (18)F-FMPEP-d(2) were studied in 5 monkeys with 10 PET scans. We calculated V(T) using compartmental modeling with serial measurements of unchanged parent radioligand in arterial plasma and radioactivity in the brain. Nonspecific binding was determined by administering a receptor-saturating dose of rimonabant, an inverse agonist at the CB(1) receptor. Nine healthy human subjects participated in 17 PET scans using (18)F-FMPEP-d(2), with 8 subjects having 2 PET scans to assess retest variability. To identify sources of error, we compared intersubject and retest variability of brain uptake, arterial plasma measurements, and V(T). RESULTS: (18)F-FMPEP-d(2) had high uptake in the monkey brain, with greater than 80% specific binding, and yielded less radioactivity uptake in bone than did (18)F-FMPEP. High brain uptake with (18)F-FMPEP-d(2) was also observed in humans, in whom V(T) was well identified within approximately 60 min. Retest variability of plasma measurements was good (16%); consequently, V(T) had a good retest variability (14%), intersubject variability (26%), and intraclass correlation coefficient (0.89). V(T) increased after 120 min, suggesting an accumulation of radiometabolites in the brain. Radioactivity accumulated in the skull throughout the entire scan but was thought to be an insignificant source of data contamination. CONCLUSION: Studies in monkeys facilitated our development and selection of (18)F-FMPEP-d(2), compared with (18)F-FMPEP, as a radioligand demonstrating high brain uptake, high percentage of specific binding, and reduced uptake in bone. Retest analysis in human subjects showed that (18)F-FMPEP-d(2) has greater precision and accuracy than (11)C-MePPEP, allowing smaller sample sizes to detect a significant difference between groups.

Discovery and labeling of high-affinity 3,4-diarylpyrazolines as candidate radioligands for in vivo imaging of cannabinoid subtype-1 (CB1) receptors.

Imaging of cannabinoid subtype-1 (CB1) receptors in vivo with positron emission tomography (PET) is likely to be important for understanding their role in neuropsychiatric disorders and for drug development. Radioligands for imaging with PET are required for this purpose. We synthesized new ligands from a 3,4- diarylpyrazoline platform of which (-)-12a ((-)-3-(4-chlorophenyl)-N'-[(4-cyanophenyl)sulfonyl]-4-phenyl- 4,5-dihydro-1H-pyrazole-1-carboxamidine) was found to have high-affinity and selectivity for binding to CB1 receptors. (-)-12a and its lower affinity enantiomer ((+)-12a) were labeled with carbon-11 (t1/2 ) 20.4 min) using [11C]cyanide ion as labeling agent and evaluated as PET radioligands in cynomolgus monkeys. After injection of [11C](-)-12a, there was high uptake and retention of radioactivity across brain according to the rank order of CB1 receptor densities. The distomer, [11C](+)-12a, failed to give a sustained CB1 receptor-specific distribution. Polar radiometabolites of [11C](-)-12a appeared moderately slowly in plasma. Radioligand [11C](-)-12a is promising for the study of brain CB1 receptors and merits further investigation in human subjects.

Synthesis, ex vivo evaluation, and radiolabeling of potent 1,5-diphenylpyrrolidin-2-one cannabinoid subtype-1 receptor ligands as candidates for in vivo imaging.

We have reported that [methyl- (11)C] (3 R,5 R)-5-(3-methoxyphenyl)-3-[(R)-1-phenylethylamino]-1-(4-trifluoromethylphenyl)pyrrolidin-2-one ([(11)C] 8, [(11)C]MePPEP) binds with high selectivity to cannabinoid type-1 (CB 1) receptors in monkey brain in vivo. We now describe the synthesis of 8 and four analogues, namely, the 4-fluorophenyl (16, FMePPEP), 3-fluoromethoxy (20, FMPEP), 3-fluoromethoxy- d 2 (21, FMPEP- d 2), and 3-fluoroethoxy analogues (22, FEPEP), and report their activity in an ex vivo model designed to identify compounds suitable for use as positron emission tomography (PET) ligands. These ligands exhibited high, selective potency at CB 1 receptors in vitro (K b < 1 nM). Each ligand (30 microg/kg, iv) was injected into rats under baseline and pretreatment conditions (3, rimonabant, 10 mg/kg, iv) and quantified at later times in frontal cortex ex vivo with liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS) detection. Maximal ligand uptakes were high (22.6-48.0 ng/g). Under pretreatment, maximal brain uptakes were greatly reduced (6.5-17.3 ng/g). Since each ligand readily entered brain and bound with high selectivity to CB 1 receptors, we then established and here describe methods for producing [(11)C] 8, [(11)C] 16, and [(18)F] 20- 22 in adequate activities for evaluation as candidate PET radioligands in vivo.

Synthesis and structure-activity relationships (SARs) of 1,5-diarylpyrazole cannabinoid type-1 (CB(1)) receptor ligands for potential use in molecular imaging.

Cannabinoid type-1 (CB(1)) receptor ligands, derived from the 1,5-diarylpyrazole core template of rimonabant (Acomplia), have been the focus of several studies aimed at examining structure-activity relationships (SARs). The purpose of this study was to design and synthesize a set of compounds based on the 1,5-diarylpyrazole template while focusing on the potential for discovery of CB(1) receptor radioligands that might be used as probes with in vivo molecular imaging. Each synthesized ligand was evaluated for potency as an antagonist at CB(1) and cannabinoid type-2 (CB(2)) receptors in vitro using a GTPgamma(35)S-binding assay. clog P values were calculated with Pallas 3.0. The antagonist binding affinities (K(B)) at CB(1) receptors ranged from 11 to >16,000 nM, CB(1) versus CB(2) selectivities from 0.6 to 773, and clog Ps from 3.61 to 6.25. An interesting new ligand, namely N-(piperidin-1-yl)-1-(2-bromophenyl)-5-(4-methoxyphenyl)-4-methyl-1H-pyrazole-3-carboxamide (9j), emerged from the synthesized set with appealing properties (K(B)=11 nM; CB(1) selectivity>773; clog P=5.85), for labeling with carbon-11 and development as a radioligand for imaging brain CB(1) receptors in vivo with positron emission tomography (PET).