Abstract 2780: In vivo quantitative molecular imaging for receptor-specific contrast and image guided surgery of glioblastoma

Abstract

Abstract Quantitative, noninvasive imaging utilizing the full potential of antibody targeted nanomedicines has recently emerged as a new paradigm in cancer therapeutics. However, the specificity of these nanomedicines to the molecular targets in in vivo is much controversial. We have leveraged a molecular-specific approach for the simultaneous imaging and quantitation of in vivo EGFR expression levels, using NIR-activable cetuximab targeted nanomedicine. Using quantitative molecular imaging, the EGFR specificity of these targeted nanomedicines is measured, following i.v. administration in glioblastoma tumors bearing mice. For the first time we demonstrate, that in vivo specificity of ligand targeted nanomedicines correlates positively with cellular expression levels of EGFR established by flow cytometry (Pearson's r = 0.93, p < 0.0003).Importantly, we show that the EGFR concentrations in glioblastoma (with varying expressions of EGFR) closely match with those previously derived from dual-reporter imaging using fluorescent conjugates. This first demonstration of non-invasive quantitation of targeted nanomedicine binding introduces an unexplored approach to leverage targeted nanomedicines as a critical component in the design and validation process of cancer therapeutics. Such an informed methodology promises to expedite translation and minimize failures that often occur after substantial investment. Citation Format: Shazia Bano. In vivo quantitative molecular imaging for receptor-specific contrast and image guided surgery of glioblastoma [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research 2020; 2020 Apr 27-28 and Jun 22-24. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2020;80(16 Suppl):Abstract nr 2780.