Automated production of [18F]VAT suitable for clinical PET study of vesicular acetylcholine transporter

•Automated production of a novel PET tracer [18F]VAT for VAChT was established using a two-step procedure.•[18F]VAT were synthesized with high radiochemical yield, good reproducibility and high product quality.•The radiopharmaceutical product of [18F]VAT is suitable for clinical PET studies.

Automated production of a promising radiopharmaceutical (−)−(1−(8−(2−[18F]fluoroethoxy)-3-hydroxy-1,2,3,4-tetrahydronaphthalen-2-yl)-piperidin-4-yl)(4-fluorophenyl)methanone ([18F]VAT) for the vesicular acetylcholine transporter(VAChT) was achieved using a two-step procedure in a current Good Manufacturing Practices fashion. The production of [18F]VAT was accomplished in approximately 140 min, with radiochemical yield of ~15.0% (decay corrected), specific activity>111 GBq/µmol, radiochemical purity>99% and mass of VAT ~3.4 μg/batch (n>10). The radiopharmaceutical product meets all quality control criteria for human use, and is suitable for clinical PET studies of VAChT.