Novel Bombesin Analogues Conjugated with DOTA-Ala(SO₃H)-4 aminobenzoic acid and DOTA-Lys(glucose)-4 aminobenzoic acid: Synthesis, Radiolabeling, and Gastrin Releasing Peptide Receptor Binding Affinity

In this study, a novel bombesin (BBN) analogues, DOTA-Ala($SO_3H$)-4 aminobenzoyl-Gln-Trp-Ala-Val-Gly-His-Leu-Met-$NH_2$ (DOTA-sBBN) and DOTA-Lys(glucose)-4 aminobenzoyl-Gln-Trp-Ala-Val-Gly-His-Leu-Met-$NH_2$ (DOTA-gluBBN), were synthesized and radiolabeled, and their binding affinities were evaluated. Peptides were prepared by a solid phase synthesis method and their purities were over 98%. DOTA is the chelating agent for $^{177}Lu$-labeling, and the DOTA-conjugated peptides were radiolabeled with $^{177}Lu$ by a high radiolabeling yield (>98%). The Log P values of DOTA-sBBN and DOTA-gluBBN were -2.20 and -2.79, respectively. 50.41% of $^{177}Lu$-DOTA-sBBN and 72.97% of $^{177}Lu$-DOTA-gluBBN were left undegraded by the serum incubation at $37^{\circ}C$ for 48 hr. A competitive displacement of $^{125}I-[Tyr^4]$-BBN on the PC-3 human prostate carcinoma cells revealed that 50% inhibitory concentration ($IC_{50}$) were 1.46 nM of DOTA-sBBN and 4.67 nM of DOTA-gluBBN indicating a highly nanomolar binding affinity for GRPR. Therefore, it is concluded that $^{177}Lu$-DOTA-sBBN and $^{177}Lu$-DOTA-gluBBN can be potential candidates as a targeting modality for the Gastrin-releasing peptide receptor (GRPR)-over-expressing tumors, and further studies to evaluate their biological and pharmacological characteristics are needed.