[(68)Ga]Ga-DO(2)A-(OBu-l-tyr)(2): synthesis, (68)Ga-radiolabeling and in vitro studies of a novel (68)Ga-DO(2)A-tyrosine conjugate as potential tumor tracer for PET.

The synthesis, (68)Ga-labeling and in vitro study of the novel tyrosine chelate derivative [(68)Ga]Ga-1,4,7,10-tetraazacyclododecane-1,7-diacetic acid-4,10-di-(O-butyl)-l-tyrosine ([(68)Ga]Ga-DO(2)A-(OBu-l-tyr)(2)) as a potential tracer for imaging tumor metabolism by positron emission tomography (PET) is presented. This approach combines the biological amino acid transporter targeting properties of l-tyrosine with the outstanding availability of (68)Ga(III) via the (68)Ge/(68)Ga generator. In vitro studies utilizing the F98-glioblastoma cell line revealed specific uptake of [(68)Ga]Ga-DO2A-(OBu-l-tyr)(2) that was comparable to that of the reference O-(2-[(18)F]fluoroethyl)-l-tyrosine (FET). These promising results indicate a high potential of [(68)Ga]Ga-DO(2)A-(OBu-l-tyr)(2) for molecular imaging of tumor-driven amino acid uptake by PET.