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Kazim M, Ganguly A, Malespini SM, Thang L, Patel NL, Kim C, Kalen JD, Difilippantonio S, Yoo E. Granzyme-targeting quenched activity-based probes for assessing tumor response to immunotherapy. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2025:2025.03.13.643086. [PMID: 40161750 PMCID: PMC11952571 DOI: 10.1101/2025.03.13.643086] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 04/02/2025]
Abstract
Molecular imaging of immune activation holds tremendous potential for the development of novel immunotherapy. In particular, chemical probes capable of detecting immune responses before changes in tumor size occur can guide early therapeutic strategies. Here, we present quenched activity-based probes targeting granzymes as a biomarker of antitumor immunity. Through optimization of peptide recognition element and functional chemical warhead, we have developed an optical imaging probe Cy5-IEPCyaPhP-QSY21, which rapidly reacts with GzmB at substoichiometric concentrations and enables efficient, selective labeling of the active enzyme in a complex proteome. With high specificity and minimal background signal, this probe produces GzmB-induced near-infrared fluorescence signals in the tumors of living mice shortly after injection. Both in vivo and ex vivo fluorescence signals correlate with GzmB expression and activity, and the population of CD8+ cells in tumor tissues. Moreover, it demonstrates the potential to track tumor response to immunotherapy. Thus, this study offers a chemical tool for assessing immune-mediated anticancer activity using noninvasive optical imaging.
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Affiliation(s)
- Muhammad Kazim
- Chemical Biology Laboratory, Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Frederick, Maryland, 21702, United States
| | - Arghya Ganguly
- Chemical Biology Laboratory, Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Frederick, Maryland, 21702, United States
| | - Sebastian M. Malespini
- Chemical Biology Laboratory, Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Frederick, Maryland, 21702, United States
| | - Lai Thang
- Animal Research Technical Support, Laboratory of Animal Sciences Program, Frederick National Laboratory for Cancer Research, Frederick, Maryland, 21702, United States
| | - Nimit L. Patel
- Small Animal Imaging Program, Frederick National Laboratory for Cancer Research, Frederick, Maryland, 21702, United States
| | - Caleb Kim
- Small Animal Imaging Program, Frederick National Laboratory for Cancer Research, Frederick, Maryland, 21702, United States
| | - Joseph D. Kalen
- Small Animal Imaging Program, Frederick National Laboratory for Cancer Research, Frederick, Maryland, 21702, United States
| | - Simone Difilippantonio
- Animal Research Technical Support, Laboratory of Animal Sciences Program, Frederick National Laboratory for Cancer Research, Frederick, Maryland, 21702, United States
| | - Euna Yoo
- Chemical Biology Laboratory, Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Frederick, Maryland, 21702, United States
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Skorenski M, Ji S, Verhelst SHL. Covalent activity-based probes for imaging of serine proteases. Biochem Soc Trans 2024; 52:923-935. [PMID: 38629725 DOI: 10.1042/bst20231450] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/14/2024] [Revised: 04/03/2024] [Accepted: 04/04/2024] [Indexed: 04/25/2024]
Abstract
Serine proteases are one of the largest mechanistic classes of proteases. They regulate a plethora of biochemical pathways inside and outside the cell. Aberrant serine protease activity leads to a wide variety of human diseases. Reagents to visualize these activities can be used to gain insight into the biological roles of serine proteases. Moreover, they may find future use for the detection of serine proteases as biomarkers. In this review, we discuss small molecule tools to image serine protease activity. Specifically, we outline different covalent activity-based probes and their selectivity against various serine protease targets. We also describe their application in several imaging methods.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marcin Skorenski
- Department of Cellular and Molecular Medicine, Laboratory of Chemical Biology, KU Leuven - University of Leuven, Herestraat 49 Box 901b, 3000 Leuven, Belgium
| | - Shanping Ji
- Department of Cellular and Molecular Medicine, Laboratory of Chemical Biology, KU Leuven - University of Leuven, Herestraat 49 Box 901b, 3000 Leuven, Belgium
| | - Steven H L Verhelst
- Department of Cellular and Molecular Medicine, Laboratory of Chemical Biology, KU Leuven - University of Leuven, Herestraat 49 Box 901b, 3000 Leuven, Belgium
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