Custom Radiosynthesis of PET Ligands and Use of PET Facility

The Intramural Research Program (IRP) of the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) Neuroimaging Research Branch (NRB) neuroscientists' research requires in vivo imaging of the brain and its molecular processes in a way that parallels human imaging research. The purpose of this acquisition is to acquire a service contract to support the NIDA-IRP Biobehavioral Imaging and Molecular Neuropsychopharmacology Unit.

Positron Emission Tomography (PET) is a non-invasive imaging technique that enables picomolar detection (i.e. the highest sensitivity among all non-invasive imaging modalities available) of molecular processes in a living animal. PET compound radiosynthesis requires dedicated instrumentation and skillset which the NIDA-IRP does not have.

Purpose and Objective:

The objective of this contract is to: 1) prepare custom radiosynthesis of specific derivatives either with F18 or C11 on a weekly basis, 2) obtain an estimated 300 rats and/or mice (per contract year), 3) house said animals for the duration of the studies and 4) allow NIDA researchers to have access (approximately 10-50 hrs total per year) to a small animal PET scanner to perform imaging of radiotracer distribution and occupancy in the rodent brain. The custom radiotracers will be utilized in ongoing experiments of NRB's Molecular Neuropsychopharmacology Unit. The objective is to synthesize several radiotracer derivatives, labeled with either F18 or C11 that will bind various targets. There is a specific need to have these PET tracers synthesized in close vicinity to NIDA-IRP so that we can have them available for immediate use in PET imaging experiments.

Other important considerations: Due to their half-life (110 minutes for F18- and 20 min for C11-labeled PET tracers) NIDA needs a facility to be within 2 miles of the NIDA-IRP so that the PET tracers can be quickly transported for immediate use.

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