PET imaging of tryptophan metabolism can provide quantitative imaging markers for differentiating grade I from grade II/III meningiomas. TDO2 may be an important driver of in vivo tryptophan metabolism in these tumors. These results can have implications for pharmacological targeting of the KP in meningiomas.

Collectively, these results suggest that AhR may offer a novel and robust therapeutic target for a patient population with highly limited treatment options.

Abnormal tryptophan metabolism via the kynurenine pathway is involved in the pathophysiology of a variety of human diseases including cancers. a-11 C-methyl-L-tryptophan ( 11 C-AMT) PET imaging demonstrated increased tryptophan uptake and trapping in epileptic foci and brain tumors, but the short half-life of 11 C limits its widespread clinical application. Recent in vitro studies suggested that the novel radiotracer 1-(2-18 F-fluoroethyl)-L-tryptophan ( 18 F-FETrp) may be useful to assess tryptophan metabolism via the kynurenine pathway. In this study, we tested in vivo organ and tumor uptake and kinetics of 18 F-FETrp in patient-derived xenograft mouse models and compared them with 11 C-AMT uptake. Methods: Xenograft mouse models of glioblastoma and metastatic brain tumors (from lung and breast cancer) were developed by subcutaneous implantation of patient tumor fragments. Dynamic PET scans with 18 F-FETrp and 11 C-AMT were obtained for mice bearing human brain tumors 1-7 d apart. The biodistribution and tumoral SUVs for both tracers were compared. Results: 18 F-FETrp showed prominent uptake in the pancreas and no bone uptake, whereas 11 C-AMT showed higher uptake in the kidneys. Both tracers showed uptake in the xenograft tumors, with a plateau of approximately 30 min after injection; however, 18 F-FETrp showed higher tumoral SUV than 11 C-AMT in all 3 tumor types tested. The radiation dosimetry for 18 F-FETrp determined from the mouse data compared favorably with the clinical 18 F-FDG PET tracer. Conclusion: 18 F-FETrp tumoral uptake, biodistribution, and radiation dosimetry data provide strong preclinical evidence that this new radiotracer warrants further studies that may lead to a broadly applicable molecular imaging tool to examine abnormal tryptophan metabolism in human tumors.