Microfluidic continuous-flow radiosynthesis of [ 18 F]FPEB suitable for human PET imaging.

The synthesis of fluorine-18 labeled 3-fluoro-5-[(pyridin-3-yl)ethynyl] benzonitrile ([ ¹⁸ F]FPEB) for imaging metabotropic glutamate receptor subtype type 5 (mGluR5) was achieved with a commercial continuous-flow microfluidics device. This work represents the first positron emission tomography (PET) radiopharmaceutical that is suitable for human use with this technology. We also describe a validated synthesis of [ ¹⁸ F]FPEB with a commercial reactor-based system.