Effective synthesis of Tc tricarbonyl complexes by microwave heating

Technetium-99m (^99mTc) is one of the most frequently used nuclides for single-photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) imaging because of its radiochemical characteristics, such as gamma emission of suitable energy (141 keV) and adequate half-life (6.01 h). Although triaquatricarbonyl ^99mTc cation (^99mTc(CO)₃(H₂O)₃]⁺) has several advantages as a ^99mTc-labeling agent, e.g., compact chelate size, chelate stability, and simplicity of preparation, its synthetic protocols should be improved. Because microwave heating is a convenient method for synthetic reactions, we studied the effect of microwave irradiation on the synthesis of ^99mTc tricarbonyl complexes. We found several factors beneficial for the preparation of nuclear medicines. In particular, microwave heating promoted one-pot syntheses of ^99mTc tricarbonyl chelates in a short time. In addition, the ^99mTc tricarbonyl complex could be obtained using low concentrations of ligands.