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Updated: Feb 6, 2026

Solid Phase 11C-Methylation, Purification and Formulation for the Production of PET Tracers
Published on: October 24, 2019
Radiosynthesis and reactivity of N-[11C]methyl carbamoylimidazole
Manikandan Kadirvel1,2, Déborah Cardoso3, Sally Freeman2
11Wolfson Molecular Imaging Centre, University of Manchester, Manchester, M20 3LJ UK.
Abstract:
N-Methyl carbamoylimidazole is a safe and practical alternative to methyl isocyanate for carbamoylation reactions. We have developed a new chemical route for its synthesis from methyl iodide and applied this to the synthesis of N-[11C]methyl carbamoylimidazole as a new [11C]synthon to radiolabel biomolecules for PET imaging research. N-[11C]methyl carbamoylimidazole was prepared from [11C]methyl iodide in 70-74% radiochemical yield (decay corrected) and can be used in situ for further reaction without purification. The reactivity of N-[11C]methyl carbamoylimidazole was demonstrated in a series of [11C]carbamoylation reactions.
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