Automated synthesis of [C11]DTBZ for PET molecular imaging study

NUCL 3

Keunpoong Lim, keunpoong.lim@vanderbilt.edu, Ronald R. Price, and Ronald M. Baldwin. Department of Radiology and Radiological Sciences, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, 1161 21st Avenue South, Nashville, TN 37232-2675
[C11](+)Dihydrotetrabenazine (2-hydroxy-3-isobutyl-9-[C11]methoxy-10-methoxy-1,2,3,4,6,7,-hexahydro-11bH-benzo[α]-quinolizine; [C11]DTBZ) has been developed and used for 20 years. Its binding affinity to vesicular monoamine transporter (VMAT2) attracted its use for the study of dopaminergic neuronal function. VMAT2 level down-regulation in the brain is believed to be associated with movement disorders, such as Parkinson's disease (PD), Alzheimer's disease (AD), and Huntington's disease (HD). Recently, [C11]DTBZ has been used to assess the amount of beta-cell mass (BCM) of pancreas where [C11]DTBZ binding has occurred. By using a commercial automated chemistry module (GE TRACERlab Fx-C) we successfully synthesized [C11]DTBZ in radiochemical purity (RCP) >82% based on [C11]CH3I whose radiochemical purity (RCP) is also >90% (n=5) based on radio-HPLC analysis. Purification of the reaction mixture by HPLC yielded a single peak with radiochemical purity (>99.9%)
 

Molecular Imaging
9:00 AM-11:50 AM, Sunday, August 19, 2007 Boston Park Plaza -- Stuart Rm, Oral

Division of Nuclear Chemistry & Technology

The 234th ACS National Meeting, Boston, MA, August 19-23, 2007