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The Current Role of Microfluidics in Radiofluorination Chemistry

Molecular Imaging and Biology volume 22, pages 463–475 (2020)Cite this article

Abstract

The current utilization of positron emission tomography (PET) imaging is limited due to the high costs associated with production facility start-up and operations; subsequently, there has been a movement towards microfluidic synthesis of radiolabeled imaging pharmaceuticals (tracers). In this review, we summarize the current status of microfluidic radiosynthesis units for producing fluorine-18 labeled PET imaging tracers, including a discussion of the relative strengths and weaknesses of such devices. In addition, we provide a brief overview of the radiotracers that have been produced using microfluidic devices to date. Finally, we discuss the prospects for the future of this field, including the potential of newly envisioned devices developed that may allow operators to easily synthesize specialized tracers for individual patient doses.

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Funding

This project was supported using funding from the Vanderbilt University Trans-Institutional Program (TIPs), Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center (VICC), and Vanderbilt Center for Molecular Probes (CMP).

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  1. Department of Chemistry, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA

    Karla-Anne Knapp & H. Charles Manning

  2. Center for Molecular Probes, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN, USA

    Karla-Anne Knapp, Michael L. Nickels & H. Charles Manning

  3. Vanderbilt Institute for Imaging Science, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN, USA

    Karla-Anne Knapp, Michael L. Nickels & H. Charles Manning

  4. Department of Radiology and Radiological Sciences, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN, USA

    Michael L. Nickels & H. Charles Manning

  5. Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN, USA

    H. Charles Manning

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  1. Karla-Anne Knapp
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Correspondence to H. Charles Manning.

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Knapp, KA., Nickels, M.L. & Manning, H.C. The Current Role of Microfluidics in Radiofluorination Chemistry. Mol Imaging Biol 22, 463–475 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11307-019-01414-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11307-019-01414-6

Key Words

  • Microfluidic
  • Fluorine-18
  • Positron emission tomography
  • Radiosynthesis