Discovery of [18F]ACI‐12589, a Novel and Promising PET‐Tracer for Alpha‐Synuclein

Parkinson’s disease (PD) and other synucleinopathies such as Multiple System Atrophy (MSA) involve a progressive accumulation of a‐synuclein (a‐syn) inclusions that correlates with disease stage and clinical manifestations. The development of a PET agent capable of imaging a‐syn inclusions would significantly aid in differential diagnosis, staging, and monitoring possible benefits of candidate therapeutic agents targeting a‐syn. Due to the generally lower pathologic burden of a‐syn inclusions relative to other brain proteinopathies, a reliable a‐syn PET tracer must display high binding affinity and selectivity for its intended target.