A1 adenosine receptor antagonists as ligands for positron emission tomography (PET) and single-photon emission tomography (SPET)

The high affinity of 8-cyclopentyl-1,3-dipropylxanthine (CPX) for the A(1) adenosine receptor (A(1)AR) provides a good lead for developing radioligands suitable for positron emission tomography (PET) and single-photon emission tomography (SPET). This study tested the hypothesis that the kinds of chemical modifications made in the synthesis of CPX analogues containing carbon-ii, fluorine-18, or radioiodine will not alter affinity for the A(1)AR. This report describes the synthesis and radioligand binding assays of unlabeled CPX analogues having methyl, 2-methoxyethyl, 2-fluoropropyl, or 3-fluoropropyl substituents, respectively, at either N-1 (13a-d) or N-3 (8a-d) or an (E)-3-iodoprop-2-en-1-yl substituent at N-3 (8f). Compounds 8d,f and 13b,d antagonized the binding of [H-3]CPX to the A(1)AR of rat brain with affinities similar to those of CPX; compound 8c was twice as potent as CPX. Analogues 8a,b and 13a were less potent than CPX, but for each the K-i of antagonism was greater than or equal to 0.5 nM. Attempts to iodinate the 8-(4-hydroxyphenyl) analogue of CPX failed, probably because the xanthine substituent strongly deactivated the phenol toward electrophilic iodination. In summary, several of the modifications of the propyl groups of CPX needed to produce ligands for imaging by PET and SPET preserve or enhance affinity for the A(1)AR.