The robotic radiosynthesis of 5-[18F]fluoro-2′-deoxyuridine and its biological characterization

5-[18F]fluoro-2′-deoxyuridine ([18F]FUdR) was synthesized using a robotic system as a proliferation probe for PET. [18F]FUdR was prepared via radiofluorodestannylation reaction from its organotin precursor. Biodistribution study and microPET imaging of [18F]FUdR in NG4TL4 sarcoma-bearing FVB/n mice were performed. The tumor-to-blood and tumor-to-muscle ratio increased steadily from 15 (1.81 and 3.42) to 120 min (9.10 and 11.9) post injection. The dynamic microPET imaging demonstrates remarkable radioactivity retention in the tumor, which is consistent with the results of biodistribution study.