In Vivo Alpha-V Beta-3 Integrin Expression in Human Aortic Atherosclerosis

William S. Jenkins, Alex T Vesey, Anna Vickers, Anoushka Neale, Catriona Moles, Martin Connell, Nikhil Vilas Joshi, Christophe Lucatelli, Alison M. Fletcher, James C Spratt, Saeed Mirsadraee, Edwin JR van Beek, James H F Rudd, David E Newby, Marc R Dweck

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract / Description of output

Objectives
Intraplaque angiogenesis and inflammation are key promoters of atherosclerosis and are mediated by the alpha-V beta-3 (αvβ3) integrin pathway. We investigated the applicability of the αvβ3-integrin receptor-selective positron emission tomography (PET) radiotracer 18F-fluciclatide in assessing human aortic atherosclerosis.
Methods
Vascular 18F-fluciclatide binding was evaluated using ex vivo analysis of carotid endarterectomy samples with autoradiography and immunohistochemistry, and in vivo kinetic modelling following radiotracer administration. Forty-six subjects with a spectrum of atherosclerotic disease categorised as stable (n=27) or unstable (n=19; recent myocardial infarction) underwent PET and CT imaging of the thorax after administration of 229 (IQR 217–237) MBq 18F-fluciclatide. Thoracic aortic 18F-fluciclatide uptake was quantified on fused PET-CT images and corrected for blood-pool activity using the maximum tissue-to-background ratio (TBRmax). Aortic atherosclerotic burden was quantified by CT wall thickness, plaque volume and calcium scoring.
Results
18F-Fluciclatide uptake co-localised with regions of increased αvβ3 integrin expression, and markers of inflammation and angiogenesis. 18F-Fluciclatide vascular uptake was confirmed in vivo using kinetic modelling, and on static imaging correlated with measures of aortic atherosclerotic burden: wall thickness (r=0.57, p=0.001), total plaque volume (r=0.56, p=0.001) and aortic CT calcium score (r=0.37, p=0.01). Patients with recent myocardial infarction had greater aortic 18F-fluciclatide uptake than those with stable disease (TBRmax 1.29 vs 1.21, p=0.02).
Conclusions
In vivo expression of αvβ3 integrin in human aortic atheroma is associated with plaque burden and is increased in patients with recent myocardial infarction. Quantification of αvβ3 integrin expression with 18F-fluciclatide PET has potential to assess plaque vulnerability and disease activity in atherosclerosis.
This is an open access article distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 Unported (CC BY 4.0) license, which permits others to copy, redistribute, remix, transform and build upon this work for any purpose, provided the original work is properly cited, a link to the licence is given, and indication of whether changes were made.
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)1868–1875
JournalHeart
Volume105
Issue number24
Early online date17 Aug 2019
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 29 Nov 2019

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'In Vivo Alpha-V Beta-3 Integrin Expression in Human Aortic Atherosclerosis'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this