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Second-generation tau PET tracer in situ binding assessed with fluorescence imaging
Antic A, Dreos A, Lashley T, Yo-Ap SY, Sander K, Schöll M, Hanrieder J.. Research Square, 2026-10-27
Topic: Disease mechanisms in lab and animal studies
Brain positron emission tomography (PET) imaging is a valuable tool which allows visualization of the pathological structures inside the living patients’ brains. While amyloid-β PET tracers have been in use with Alzheimer’s disease patients in clinics, tau PET tracers have still not entered the clinical routine. Second-generation tau PET tracers have been developed with the aim to overcome the limitations of the first-generation tau PET tracers, such as low sensitivity and off-target binding. However, the detailed pathological characterization of these tracers’ binding is still needed for fully understanding their potential as accurate markers of pathogenic tau. Herein, we focused on the second-generation tau PET tracer Genentech Tau Probe 1 ([ 18 F]GTP1) and made use of the fluorescent properties of its non-radioactive unlabeled variant GTP1 for correlative fluorescence microscopy. The results show that GTP1 binds to tau tangles and neuropil threads (NPTs), but not amyloid-β plaques. Importantly, our results indicate that there is a strong correlation between the fluorescent GTP1 signal and the [ 18 F]GTP1 signal detected with autoradiography, which is currently the standard way of studying the tau PET tracer binding in situ . Together, this data shows the robust application of a non-radioactive tau PET tracer in binding studies in post-mortem tissue and sheds new light on the tau binding properties of GTP1.
Key findings
- The results show that GTP1 binds to tau tangles and neuropil threads (NPTs), but not amyloid-β plaques.
- Importantly, our results indicate that there is a strong correlation between the fluorescent GTP1 signal and the [ 18 F]GTP1 signal detected with autoradiography, which is currently the standard way of studying the tau PET tracer binding in situ .
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Study details
- Evidence strengthLow
How this study scored 16/100
Preprint — not yet peer-reviewed. It scored 21 on the same rubric, but non-peer-reviewed sources are capped at 16, so it shows as 16. Scored zero for study design, sample size, effect reported, studied in people and randomised / blinded because the record does not state it. We have no data on times cited, citations per year, impact for its field and year, cited by studies here, still being cited, senior author's track record, institution's track record and multi-centre collaboration, so those were left out: it earned 13 of the 62 points we could judge it on, which is 21 out of 100.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 2 / 10 | Tier 4 — not a peer-reviewed journal (Research Square) |
| Journal's citation record | 0 / 4 | Not a journal article, so the journal's record does not count |
| Study design | 0 / 12 | No study design recorded — scores zero, not guessed (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Strength of evidence | 1 / 5 | Rated “low” in our summary |
| Peer-review validation | 4 / 10 | Preprint — not yet peer-reviewed. Hosted on a preprint server. |
| How recent | 5 / 5 | 2026 — within 1 year(s) of the newest study here |
| Sample size | 0 / 4 | Participant count not stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Effect reported | 0 / 3 | No effect size reported — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Studied in people | 0 / 3 | Not stated whether this was studied in people — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Randomised / blinded | 0 / 2 | No randomisation or blinding stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Times cited | — / 7 | No citation count (not found in OpenAlex) — left out of this score |
| Citations per year | — / 5 | No citation count or no year — left out of this score |
| Impact for its field and year | — / 6 | No field-weighted citation impact (OpenAlex has none yet) — left out of this score |
| Cited by studies here | — / 6 | Not yet checked against this library's citation graph — left out of this score |
| Still being cited | — / 4 | No yearly citation counts — left out of this score |
| Senior author's track record | — / 4 | Senior author's record not available — left out of this score |
| Institution's track record | — / 3 | No institution listed in OpenAlex — left out of this score |
| Multi-centre collaboration | — / 3 | Institutions not listed — left out of this score |
| Indexed in PubMed | 1 / 2 | Not in PubMed, but has a DOI |
| Free to read | 0 / 2 | Behind a paywall — scores zero |
| Points | 13 / 62 | Scored on 12 of 20 parts. We have no data for the rest, so they are left out: 13 of the 62 points we could judge it on is 21 out of 100. |
| Total | 21 / 100 | Capped to 16 because this is not a peer-reviewed article. |
What each of these 20 components measures, and what this score is not →
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Cite this study APA, Vancouver, BibTeX · download .bib or .ris
Built from the record alzhub holds for this paper, not looked up. Volume, issue and page numbers are not held in the record. The record names 7 authors; APA and Vancouver show the first six, BibTeX and the downloads carry all of them. Check the citation against the original before you use it.
APA 7th
Antic, A., Dreos, A., Lashley, T., Yo-Ap, S. Y., Sander, K., Schöll, M., et al. (2026). Second-generation tau PET tracer in situ binding assessed with fluorescence imaging. Research Square. https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-11153643/v1
Vancouver
Antic A, Dreos A, Lashley T, Yo-Ap SY, Sander K, Schöll M, et al. Second-generation tau PET tracer in situ binding assessed with fluorescence imaging. Research Square. 2026. doi:10.21203/rs.3.rs-11153643/v1.
BibTeX
@article{antic2026-8a81da8c,
author = {Antic, A. and Dreos, A. and Lashley, T. and Yo-Ap, S. Y. and Sander, K. and Schöll, M. and Hanrieder, J.},
title = {{Second-generation tau PET tracer in situ binding assessed with fluorescence imaging}},
journal = {Research Square},
year = {2026},
doi = {10.21203/rs.3.rs-11153643/v1},
url = {https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-11153643/v1}
}
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