Correction: A 99mTc-Labelled Tetrazine for Bioorthogonal Chemistry. Synthesis and Biodistribution Studies with Small Molecule trans-Cyclooctene Derivatives.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0167425.].

A 99mTc-Labelled Tetrazine for Bioorthogonal Chemistry. Synthesis and Biodistribution Studies with Small Molecule trans-Cyclooctene Derivatives.

A convenient strategy to radiolabel a hydrazinonicotonic acid (HYNIC)-derived tetrazine with 99mTc was developed, and its utility for creating probes to image bone metabolism and bacterial infection using both active and pretargeting strategies was demonstrated. The 99mTc-labelled HYNIC-tetrazine was synthesized in 75% yield and exhibited high stability in vitro and in vivo. A trans-cyclooctene (TCO)-labelled bisphosphonate (TCO-BP) that binds to regions of active calcium metabolism was used to evaluate the utility of the labelled tetrazine for bioorthogonal chemistry. The pretargeting approach, with 99mTc-HYNIC-tetrazine administered to mice one hour after TCO-BP, showed significant uptake of radioactivity in regions of active bone metabolism (knees and shoulders) at 6 hours post-injection. For comparison, TCO-BP was reacted with 99mTc-HYNIC-tetrazine before injection and this active targeting also showed high specific uptake in the knees and shoulders, whereas control 99mTc-HYNIC-tetrazine alone did not. A TCO-vancomycin derivative was similarly employed for targeting Staphylococcus aureus infection in vitro and in vivo. Pretargeting and active targeting strategies showed 2.5- and 3-fold uptake, respectively, at the sites of a calf-muscle infection in a murine model, compared to the contralateral control muscle. These results demonstrate the utility of the 99mTc-HYNIC-tetrazine for preparing new technetium radiopharmaceuticals, including those based on small molecule targeting constructs containing TCO, using either active or pretargeting strategies.

(125)I-Tetrazines and Inverse-Electron-Demand Diels-Alder Chemistry: A Convenient Radioiodination Strategy for Biomolecule Labeling, Screening, and Biodistribution Studies.

A convenient method to prepare radioiodinated tetrazines was developed, such that a bioorthogonal inverse electron demand Diels-Alder reaction can be used to label biomolecules with iodine-125 for in vitro screening and in vivo biodistribution studies. The tetrazine was prepared by employing a high-yielding oxidative halo destannylation reaction that concomitantly oxidized the dihydrotetrazine precursor. The product reacts quickly and efficiently with trans-cyclooctene derivatives. Utility was demonstrated through antibody and hormone labeling experiments and by evaluating products using standard analytical methods, in vitro assays, and quantitative biodistribution studies where the latter was performed in direct comparison to Bolton-Hunter and direct iodination methods. The approach described provides a convenient and advantageous alternative to conventional protein iodination methods that can expedite preclinical development and evaluation of biotherapeutics.