PET chemistry: An introduction

Abstract

One major advantage of radioactivity is its extremely high sensitivity of detection. Regarding the medical applicability of radioactivity, it permits non-invasive in vivo detection of radiolabelled compounds at nano- to picomolar levels. The use of substances at such low concentrations usually precludes a physiological, toxic or immunologic response of the investigated biological system. Consequently, the considered physiological process or system is examined in an unswayed situation. Furthermore, a wide range of substances, even those which are toxic at higher concentrations, become considerable for the development of radiopharmaceuticals and use in nuclear medicine. In contrast to the wide range of employable bioactive molecules, the range of suitable radioactive nuclides is much more restricted by their nuclear physical and chemical properties. In particular, radionuclides for diagnostic applications should provide appropriate (short) half-lives and radiation properties for detection and imaging, but at the same time the radiation dose of patients and personnel have to be kept to minimum. Nonetheless, to date, a couple of radionuclides have proven suitable for both nuclear medical diagnostic applications, single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT), and positron emission tomography (PET). © 2011 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg.