Rational drug design based on EPI-X4, endogenous antagonist of C-X-C motif chemokine receptor (CXCR4), led to the identification of optimized analogues named JMF-01 to JMF-07, which demonstrated increased antagonistic activity.

The suboptimal metabolic stability of radiolabeled gastrin-releasing peptide receptor (GRPR) antagonists has been a hindering factor of these promising theranostic candidates for prostate cancer. Uppsala University researchers have recently reported the development of [111In]DOTAGA-PEG-2-SAR11-RM-26, after replacement of Gly11 by Sar11 in the peptidic chain.

Researchers have detailed the development and preclinical characterization of a novel heterobivalent radiotracer targeting prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA) and the gastrin-releasing peptide receptor (GRPR).

At the recent European Association of Nuclear Medicine meeting in Barcelona, researchers from the British Columbia Cancer Research Institute and the University of British Columbia reported the development and preclinical evaluation of bispecific radiotracers designed to target prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA) and fibroblast activation protein (FAP).

In a study comparing the antibody repertoire of individuals with severe myalgic encephalopathy/ chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) to that of healthy controls, the majority of individuals with CFS showed antibody responses to specific microbiome proteins. Such responses were largely absent in healthy controls, implicating immune reactions to the microbiome in the development of ME/CFS.

Analyzing RNA from blood platelets detected up to 18 different cancers, at early as well as late stages, with a specificity of 99% in asymptomatic controls. The specificity for symptomatic controls, including those who had inflammatory diseases, cardiovascular disease, or benign tumors, was 78%.