Abstract LB479: Nir-ii fluorescence imaging based on trop-2-targeted peptide guides precise resection of abdominal metastases from ovarian cancer
Authors: Chengxi Li, Kangliang Lou, Jingwen Bai, Yiyang Gao, Linling Lin, Lulin Yang, Guojun Zhang
Journal: Cancer Research (2025)

Abstract Objection: In China, the incidence and mortality rates of ovarian cancer have been increasing, and it has become the third most common gynecological malignant tumor in China, with the number of death cases accounting for 4.7% of all female malignant tumors. Clinical guidelines indicate that patients with intermediate to advanced stages are suitable for tumor cytoreduction, and one of the important prognostic factors for ovarian cancer patients is the amount of residual tumor after surgery. We hope that near-infrared dual-region fluorescence molecular imaging can accurately detect abdominal metastases of ovarian cancer during surgery and maximize the resection of all visible tumors under intraoperative fluorescence guidance, so as to reduce the tumor load, improve the efficacy of chemotherapy, improve the prognosis, and reduce the risk of postoperative complications and recurrence in patients. Methods: Our group pre-synthesized a novel NIR-II probe specifically targeting the cell membrane protein Trop2 molecule, Trop2 targeting polypeptide-ICG (TP-ICG). Subsequently, the tumor-specific targeting efficiency and biosafety of TP-ICG were evaluated at the cellular and small animal levels. Finally, the accuracy of the fluorescent molecular probe in guiding precise resection of ovarian cancer abdominal metastases in real time during in vivo NIR-II imaging was evaluated using various mouse models. Results: Compared to CP-ICG, TP-ICG showed a 6.8-fold increase in uptake in Caov-3-Luc cells and a 4.3-fold increase in uptake in A2780-Luc-Trop2 cells. In the unilateral subcutaneous tumor model using A2780-Luc-Trop2, the signal-to-background ratio (SBR) of tumors in mice injected with TP-ICG was 4.2-fold higher than that in mice injected with CP-ICG (p &amp;lt; 0.05). In the bilateral model, the SBR of tumors on the A2780-Luc-Trop2 side was 2.42 times higher than that on the A2780-Luc-NC side (p &amp;lt; 0.05). Importantly, the NIR-II fluorescent probe was able to accurately identify tiny metastatic lesions (minimum diameter less than 1 mm) in the A2780-Luc-Trop2 ovarian cancer intraperitoneal metastasis mouse model. Moreover, the fluorescent probe effectively identified ovarian tumors in the liver, correlating with pathological H&amp;E sections at the section level. Conclusion: Our constructed fluorescent molecular probes achieved real-time intraoperative tumor boundary assessment and metastatic foci visualization using near-infrared-II imaging, maximizing precise surgical resection of ovarian cancer metastases. Citation Format: Chengxi Li, Kangliang Lou, Jingwen Bai, Yiyang Gao, Linling Lin, Lulin Yang, Guojun Zhang. Nir-ii fluorescence imaging based on trop-2-targeted peptide guides precise resection of abdominal metastases from ovarian cancer [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2025; Part 2 (Late-Breaking, Clinical Trial, and Invited Abstracts); 2025 Apr 25-30; Chicago, IL. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2025;85(8_Suppl_2):Abstract nr LB479.