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Title: Preclinical evaluation of PSMA expression in response to androgen receptor blockade for theranostics in prostate cancer

Journal Article · · EJNMMI Research
ORCiD logo [1];  [2];  [3];  [4];  [2];  [2];  [2];  [2];  [2];  [2];  [5];  [2];  [2];  [6]
  1. David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, Los Angeles, CA (United States); Univ. of California, Los Angeles, CA (United States)
  2. David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, Los Angeles, CA (United States)
  3. Univ. Essen, Essen (Germany)
  4. Lund Univ., Lund (Sweden)
  5. David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, Los Angeles, CA (United States); Univ. Essen, Essen (Germany)
  6. Technical Univ. of Munich, Munich (Germany)

Prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA)-directed radioligand therapy (RLT) is a promising yet not curative approach in castration-resistant (CR) prostate cancer (PC). Rational combination therapies may improve treatment efficacy. Here, we explored the effect of androgen receptor blockade (ARB) on PSMA expression visualized by PET and its potential additive effect when combined with 177Lu-PSMA RLT in a mouse model of prostate cancer. Mice bearing human CRPC (C4-2 cells) xenografts were treated with 10 mg/kg enzalutamide (ENZ), with 50 mg/kg bicalutamide (BIC), or vehicle (control) for 21 days. PSMA expression was evaluated by 68Ga-PSMA11 PET/CT and quantified by flow cytometry of tumor fine needle aspirations before treatment and on days 23, 29, 34, and 39 post-therapy induction. For the RLT combination approach, mice bearing C4-2 tumors were treated with 10 mg/kg ENZ or vehicle for 21 days before receiving either 15 MBq (84 GBq/μmol) 177Lu-PSMA617 or vehicle. DNA damage was assessed as phospho-γH2A.X foci in tumor biopsies. Reduction of tumor volume on CT and survival were used as study endpoints. Tumor growth was delayed by ARB while 68Ga-PSMA11 uptake increased up to 2.3-fold over time when compared to controls. ABR-induced upregulation of PSMA expression was confirmed by flow cytometry. Phospho-γH2A.X levels increased 1.8- and 3.4-fold at 48 h in response to single treatment ENZ or RLT and ENZ+RLT, respectively. Despite significantly greater DNA damage and persistent increase of PSMA expression at the time of RLT, no additional tumor growth retardation was observed in the ENZ+RLT group (vs. RLT only, p = 0.372 at day 81). Median survival did not improve significantly when ENZ was combined with RLT. ARB-mediated increases in PSMA expression in PC xenografts were evident by 68Ga-PSMA11 PET imaging and flow cytometry. 177Lu-PSMA617 effectively decreased C4-2 tumor size. Furthermore, while pre-treatment with ARB increased DNA damage significantly, it did not result in synergistic effects when combined with RLT.

Research Organization:
Univ. of California, Los Angeles, CA (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE Office of Science (SC), Biological and Environmental Research (BER). Biological Systems Science Division
Grant/Contract Number:
SC0012353
OSTI ID:
1483931
Journal Information:
EJNMMI Research, Vol. 8, Issue 1; ISSN 2191-219X
Publisher:
Springer OpenCopyright Statement
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English
Citation Metrics:
Cited by: 41 works
Citation information provided by
Web of Science

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Cited By (6)

Concentration‐dependent effects of dutasteride on prostate‐specific membrane antigen (PSMA) expression and uptake of 177 Lu‐PSMA‐617 in LNCaP cells journal June 2019
Prospective study on the effect of short-term androgen deprivation therapy on PSMA uptake evaluated with 68Ga-PSMA-11 PET/MRI in men with treatment-naïve prostate cancer journal December 2019
New insights in the paradigm of upregulation of tumoral PSMA expression by androgen receptor blockade: Enzalutamide induces PSMA upregulation in castration-resistant prostate cancer even in patients having previously progressed on enzalutamide journal January 2020
Evaluation of PSMA expression changes on PET/CT before and after initiation of novel antiandrogen drugs (enzalutamide or abiraterone) in metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer patients journal October 2019
TheraP: a randomized phase 2 trial of 177 Lu-PSMA-617 theranostic treatment vs cabazitaxel in progressive metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (Clinical Trial Protocol ANZUP 1603) journal October 2019
The Future of PSMA-Targeted Radionuclide Therapy: An Overview of Recent Preclinical Research journal October 2019


Figures / Tables (5)