Automated production of oxygen-15 labeled butanol for PET measurement of regional cerebral blood flow.

Because [15O]butanol is the radiopharmaceutical of choice for PET studies of cerebral perfusion and neurological activation, we have developed a microprocessor-controlled radiosynthetic system for the preparation of this radiotracer in up to ten batches at a time. An IBM-compatible minicomputer was programmed to direct the reaction of molecular [15O]oxygen with tri-(n-butyl)borane bound to alumina, followed by purification of product [15O]butanol via solid phase extraction with C18 Sep-Paks and sterile filtration. Routine batch yields of over 150 mCi were achieved with a preparation turn-around time of 6.0 min. The final product had high radiochemical purity, low chemical impurity, and was sterile and apyrogenic. This radiopharmaceutical production system is reliable and suitable for tracer production in clinical PET imaging centers.