Inflammatory processes are an integral part in a wide range of diseases. Immunotherapies and anti-inflammatory approaches are emerging as key strategies to treat and manage disease. Yet, there is a need for non-invasive tools to study immune processes to support the development of new therapies in this area.
Cluster of differentiation 69 (CD69) is a general surface marker for activated immune cells, especially in the early activation process. A positron emission tomography (PET) tracer for CD69 is in clinical development by Antaros Tracer for quantitative, non-invasive assessment of inflammatory processes. This CD69 PET tracer has potential to provide insights into inflammatory diseases involving activated immune cells including immuno-oncology, inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and diabetes, and to support drug development in these fields.
In a recent paper, Olof Eriksson (CSO Antaros Tracer and Associate Professor at Uppsala University) and colleagues from Uppsala University, Karolinska Institutet and KTH Royal Institute of Technology have evaluated the performance of the CD69-targeting PET agent, ([68Ga]Ga-DOTA-ZCAM241, known in clinical development as ATC001), for early disease detection in a model of inflammatory arthritis. The results show promise for the PET tracer to image activated immune cells in early RA onset.
To read the full paper, follow the link below:
Title: Noninvasive PET Detection of CD69-Positive Immune Cells Before Signs of Clinical Disease in Inflammatory Arthritis
Authors: Puuvuori E, Shen Y, Hulsart-Billström G, Mitran B, Zhang B, Cheung P, Wegrzyniak O, Ingvast S, Persson J, Ståhl S, Korsgren O, Löfblom J, Wermeling F, and Eriksson O
Link to publication
About Antaros Tracer
Antaros Tracer is a sister company to Antaros Medical, formed to ensure an expedited and focused development of new Positron Emission Tomography (PET) tracers to be used as important biomarkers in drug development studies. Current disease area focus is fibrotic disease and immune-system activation in immune-oncology, inflammatory disease, and immunology.