2-((2-((dimethylamino)methyl)phenyl)thio)-5-iodophenylamine (ADAM): an improved serotonin transporter ligand

Serotonin transporters (SERT) are target-sites for commonly used antidepressants, such as fluoxetine, paroxetine, sertraline, and so on. Imaging of these sites in the living human brain may provide an important tool to evaluate the mechanisms of action as well as to monitor the treatment of depressed patients. Synthesis and characterization of an improved SERT imaging agent, ADAM (2-((2-((dimethylamino)methyl)phenyl)thio)-5-iodophenylamine)(7) was achieved. The new compound, ADAM(7), displayed an extremely potent binding affinity toward SERT ( K(i)=0.013 nM, in membrane preparations of LLC-PK(1)-cloned cell lines expressing the specific monoamine transporter). ADAM(7) also showed more than 1,000-fold selectivity for SERT over norepinephrine transporter (NET) and dopamine transporter (DAT) ( K(i)=699 and 840 nM, for NET and DAT, respectively). The radiolabeled compound (125)I]ADAM(7) showed an excellent brain uptake in rats (1.41% dose at 2 min post intravenous IV] injection), and consistently displayed the highest uptake (between 60-240 min post IV injection) in hypothalamus, a region with the highest density of SERT. The specific uptake of (125)I]ADAM(7) in the hypothalamus exhibited the highest target-to-nontarget ratio (hypothalamus - cerebellum]/cerebellum was 3.97 at 120 min post IV injection). The preliminary imaging study of (123)I]ADAM in the brain of a baboon by single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) at 180-240 min post IV injection indicated a specific uptake in midbrain region rich in SERT. These data suggest that the new ligand (123)I]ADAM(7) may be useful for SPECT imaging of SERT binding sites in the human brain.