A Molecularly Targeted Intraoperative Near-Infrared Fluorescence Imaging Agent for High-Grade Serous Ovarian Cancer

Ovarian cancer is the fifth leading cause of cancer deaths amongst women, accounting for more deaths than any other cancer of the female reproductive system. The foundation of its management consists of cytoreductive surgery (CRS) followed by systemic chemotherapy, with the completeness of surgical resection consistently identified as one of the most important prognostic factors for the disease. The goal of our investigation is the development of a near-infrared fluorescence (NIRF) imaging agent for the intraoperative imaging of high-grade serous ovarian cancer (HGSOC). As surgeons are currently limited to the visual and manual assessment of tumor tissue during CRS, this technology could facilitate more complete resections as well as serve important functions at other points in the surgical management of the disease. Elevated levels of cancer antigen 125 (CA125) have proven a useful biomarker of HGSOC, and the CA125-targeting antibody B43.13 has shown potential as a platform for immunoPET imaging in murine models of ovarian cancer. Herein, we report the development of a NIRF imaging agent based on B43.13: (ss)B43.13-IR800. We site-specifically modified the heavy chain glycans of B43.13 with the near-infrared dye IRDye(®) 800CW using a chemoenzymatic approach developed in our laboratories. SDS-PAGE analysis confirmed the specificity of the conjugation reaction, and flow cytometry, immunostaining, and fluorescence microscopy verified the specific binding of (ss)B43.13-IR800 to CA125-expressing OVCAR3 human ovarian cancer cells. NIRF imaging studies demonstrated that (ss)B43.13-IR800 can be used to image CA125-expressing HGSOC tumors in subcutaneous, orthotopic, and patient-derived xenograft mouse models. Finally, ex vivo analyses confirmed that (ss)B43.13-IR800 can bind and identify CA125-expressing cells in primary tumor and metastatic lymph node samples from human patients with HGSOC.