[11C]ER176

[11C]ER176 is a Carbon-11 labeled positron emission tomography (PET) radioligand developed by the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) for imaging the 18-kDa translocator protein (TSPO). TSPO is a protein located on the outer mitochondrial membrane that is highly expressed in activated macrophages and microglia, serving as a sensitive biomarker for both neuroinflammation and peripheral inflammation. [11C]ER176 is a quinazoline derivative designed to overcome the limitations of earlier TSPO tracers, such as PK11195 and PBR28, by providing improved binding characteristics and showing reduced sensitivity to the rs6971 genetic polymorphism that typically causes high variability in binding affinity among different individuals. It is currently being evaluated in Phase 1 clinical studies as an imaging biomarker to quantify inflammation in musculoskeletal conditions, including rheumatoid arthritis, idiopathic inflammatory myopathy, and axial spondyloarthritis.

Other names

11C-ER176