ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Carbon-11 labeled L-methionine (11C-MET) is a popular tracer used in the clinic for imaging brain tumors with positron emission tomography. However, the stability of 11C-MET in its final formulation is not well documented in literature. Recently, we observed fast degradation of HPLC-purified 11C-MET over time, and systematic investigation was conducted to identify the cause. RESULTS: In this study, we verified the degraded product as 11C-labeled methionine sulfoxide (11C-METSO). To minimize oxidation, ascorbate (100 ppm) was added to the HPLC eluant, and the resulting HPLC-purified 11C-MET was stable in the final formulation solution without noticeable degradation for up to 1 h after the end of synthesis. CONCLUSIONS: Our data suggest that to minimize degradation, ascorbate can be added to the 11C-MET formulation solution especially if it is not administered into patients soon after the end of synthesis.
ABSTRACT
INTRODUCTION: The shortage of reactor-produced molybdenum-99 ((99)Mo, t(½)=66 h) has renewed interest in alternative production methods of its daughter isotope, technetium-99m ((99m)Tc, t(½)=6.02 h). While adsorption chromatography serves as a mechanism for selective elution of sodium pertechnetate from technetium generators, this method of purification is not sufficient for many alternative production methods. Several ion-separation/solid phase extraction chromatography methods are known, yet none have been demonstrated on cyclotron-produced [(99m)Tc]TcO(4)(-). Herein we describe the design, manufacture and optimization of a remotely operated module for the purification of sodium pertechnetate from a bulk solution of molybdate. METHODS: The automated purification module was designed to separate [(99m)Tc]TcO(4)(-) using either Dowex 1x8 or an Aqueous Biphasic Extraction Chromatography (ABEC) resin. (100)Mo composite targets were irradiated with 18.5 MeV protons for 10 µA·h using an ASCI TR19 cyclotron. Once purified, the radiopharmaceutical quality of (99m)TcO(4)(-) isolated from each process (Dowex and/or ABEC) was established by assaying for molybdate breakthrough, alumina levels and, in the case of the Dowex approach, residual organics. RESULTS: The separation processes are efficient (75% for Dowex, 90% for ABEC) and complete in less than 30 min. Overall, up to 2.1 GBq of (99m)Tc was produced using the (100)Mo(p,2n)(99m)Tc transformation, processed using the separation module and subjected to a detailed chemical and radionuclidic analysis. Due to its expense and limited availability, (100)MoO(4)(2-) was recovered in >90% yield using a precipitation/filtration/lyophilization approach. CONCLUSIONS: Na[(99m)Tc]TcO(4) was produced using a medical cyclotron, recovered using an automated purification module and found to exceed all established quality control parameters.
