Radiosynthesis and micro-SPECT analysis of triazole-based RGD integrin ligands as non-peptide molecular imaging probes for angiogenesis

Taking advantage of click chemistry, we synthesized triazole-containing RGD peptidomimetics capable of binding to αvβ3 integrin with diverse potency, and selected (125)I-labeled compounds proved to interact in vitro and in vivo with αvβ3 integrin expressed by melanoma cells. Two (125)I-compounds containing either 2-aminobenzimidazole or 2-aminopyridine groups as the arginine bioisostere with the capacity to selectively bind cells of highly expressing αvβ3 melanoma xenografts were found using micro-SPECT imaging studies.