^99mTc-zolmitriptan: radiolabeling, molecular modeling, biodistribution and gamma scintigraphy as a hopeful radiopharmaceutical for lung nuclear imaging

Lung imaging radiopharmaceuticals are helpful agents for measuring pulmonary blood flow and allow detection of pulmonary embolism and lung cancer. The goal of this study was to develop a novel potential radiopharmaceutical for lung imaging. Zolmitriptan (a selective serotonin receptor agonist) was successfully labeled with ^99mTc via direct labeling method under reductive conditions studying different factors affecting the labeling efficiency. ^99mTc-zolmitriptan was obtained with a maximum labeling yield of 92.5 ± 0.61 % and in vitro stability up to 24 h. Molecular modeling was done to predict the structure of ^99mTc-zolmitriptan and ensure that radiolabeling did not affect binding ability of zolmitriptan to its receptor. Biodistribution studies showed that maximum lung uptake of ^99mTc-zolmitriptan was 23.89 ± 1.2 % injected dose/g tissue at 15 min post-injection and retention in lungs remained high up to 1 h, whereas the clearance from mice appeared to proceed mainly via the renal pathway. Scintigraphic images confirmed the biodistribution results showing a high resolution lung image with low accumulation of radioactivity in other organs except kidneys and urinary bladder. ^99mTc-zolmitriptan is not a blood product and so it is more safe than the currently available ^99mTc-MAA, and its lung uptake is higher than that of the recently discovered ¹²³I-IPMPD, ^99mTc(CO)₅I and ^99mTc-DHPM. So, ^99mTc-zolmitriptan could be used as a hopeful radiopharmaceutical for lung scintigraphic imaging.