One-step synthesis of an 18F-labeled boron-derived methionine analog: a substitute for 11C-methionine?

Amino acid-based tracers have been extensively investigated for positron emission tomography (PET) imaging of brain tumors, and ¹¹C-methionine (¹¹C-MET) is one of the most extensively investigated. However, widespread clinical use of ¹¹C-MET is challenging due to the short half-life of ¹¹C and low radiolabeling yield. In this issue of the European Journal of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging, Yang and colleagues report an ¹⁸F-labeled boron-derived methionine analog, ¹⁸F-B-MET, as a potential substitute for ¹¹C-MET in PET imaging of glioma. The push-button synthesis, highly efficient radiolabeling, and good imaging performance in glioma models make this tracer a promising candidate for future clinical translation.