Cardiac Targeting Peptide, a Novel Cardiac Vector: Studies in Bio-Distribution, Imaging Application, and Mechanism of Transduction

oleh: Maliha Zahid, Kyle S. Feldman, Gabriel Garcia-Borrero, Timothy N. Feinstein, Nicholas Pogodzinski, Xinxiu Xu, Raymond Yurko, Michael Czachowski, Yijen L. Wu, Neale S. Mason, Cecilia W. Lo

Format: Article
Diterbitkan: MDPI AG 2018-11-01

Deskripsi

Our previous work identified a 12-amino acid peptide that targets the heart, termed cardiac targeting peptide (CTP). We now quantitatively assess the bio-distribution of CTP, show a clinical application with the imaging of the murine heart, and study its mechanisms of transduction. Bio-distribution studies of cyanine5.5-<i>N</i>-Hydroxysuccinimide (Cy5.5) labeled CTP were undertaken in wild-type mice. Cardiac targeting peptide was labeled with Technetium 99m (<sup>99m</sup>Tc) using the chelator hydrazino-nicotinamide (HYNIC), and imaging performed using micro-single photon emission computerized tomography/computerized tomography (SPECT/CT). Human-induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC)-derived cardiomyocytes (CMCs) were incubated with dual-labeled CTP, and imaged using confocal microscopy. TriCEPs technology was utilized to study the mechanism of transduction. Bio-distribution studies showed peak uptake of CTP at 15 min. <sup>99m</sup>Tc-HYNIC-CTP showed heart-specific uptake. Robust transduction of beating human iPSC-derived CMCs was seen. TriCEPs experiments revealed five candidate binding partners for CTP, with Kcnh5 being felt to be the most likely candidate as it showed a trend towards being competed out by siRNA knockdown. Transduction efficiency was enhanced by increasing extracellular potassium concentration, and with Quinidine, a Kcnh5 inhibitor, that blocks the channel in an open position. We demonstrate that CTP transduces the normal heart as early as 15 min. <sup>99m</sup>Tc-HYNIC-CTP targets the normal murine heart with substantially improved targeting compared with <sup>99m</sup>Tc Sestamibi. Cardiac targeting peptide&#8217;s transduction ability is not species limited and has human applicability. Cardiac targeting peptide appears to utilize Kcnh5 to gain cell entry, a phenomenon that is affected by pre-treatment with Quinidine and changes in potassium levels.