(111)In-labeled anti-cadherin17 antibody D2101 has potential as a noninvasive imaging probe for diagnosing gastric cancer and lymph-node metastasis

OBJECTIVE: Cadherin-17 (CDH17) is a transmembrane protein that mediates cell–cell adhesion and is frequently expressed in adenocarcinomas, including gastric cancer. CDH17 may be an effective diagnostic marker for the staging of gastric cancer. Here, we developed an (111)In-labeled anti-CDH17 monoclonal antibody (Mab) as an imaging tracer and performed biodistribution and single-photon emission computed tomography (SPECT)/computed tomography (CT) imaging studies using mice with CDH17-positive gastric cancer xenografts. CDH17 expression in gastric cancer specimens was also analyzed. METHODS: The cross-reactivity and affinity of our anti-CDH17 Mab D2101 was evaluated by surface plasmon resonance analysis and cell enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, respectively. Biodistribution and SPECT/CT studies of (111)In-labeled D2101 ((111)In-D2101) were performed. CDH17 expression in gastric cancer specimens was evaluated by immunohistochemistry. RESULTS: Surface plasmon resonance analysis revealed that D2101 specifically recognizes human CDH17, but not murine CDH17. The affinity of D2101 slightly decreased as a result of the radiolabeling procedures. The biodistribution study revealed high uptake of (111)In-D2101 in tumors (maximum, 39.2 ± 9.5% ID/g at 96 h postinjection), but low uptake in normal organs, including the stomach. Temporal SPECT/CT imaging with (111)In-D2101 visualized tumors with a high degree of tumor-to-nontumor contrast. Immunohistochemical analysis revealed that, compared with HER2, which is a potential marker of N-stage, CDH17 had a higher frequency of positivity in specimens of primary and metastatic gastric cancer. CONCLUSION: Our (111)In-anti-CDH17 Mab D2101 depicted CDH17-positive gastric cancer xenografts in vivo and has the potential to be an imaging probe for the diagnosis of primary lesions and lymph-node metastasis in gastric cancer.