Myocardial studies, labeled fatty acids

Several F-labeled fatty acid derivatives have been successfully prepared and evaluated as potential FAO assessing tracers [19-24]. Methyl-branched-chain (w- F-fluorofatty acids, such as 3-methyl-(3-MFHA) and 5-methyl-17-[ F]fluoro-heptadecanoic acid (5-MFHA), have been reported [23]. In a comparative study, it was found that rw-[ F]fluoropalmitic acid (FPA) exhibits the highest myocardial uptake, followed by 5-MFHA and 3-MFHA. FPA possesses the fastest myocardial washout rate, and 3-MFHA the slowest. In lipid analysis studies, 5-MFHA... 

Since fatty acids are the primary substrate for aerobic metabolism within the heart, they are also of interest as potentially useful tracers of myocardial perfusion (12-18). This class of compounds labeled with the positron emitter is being used with specially designed positron imaging (ECT) systems to quantitatively measure the regional distribution of myocardial blood flow in three dimensions (12,13,14). Carbon-11 labeled palmitic acid is also being evaluated as a tracer for studies of myocardial metabolism. Likewise, the o-iodofatty acids, which are structural analogs of the physiologic substrates, have been shown to be taken up by myocardial tissue in proportion to blood flow (15). Iodine-123 labeled 16-iodo-9-hexadecenoic acid (18,17) and 17-iodo-heptadeca-noic acid (18) have been used in conjunction with conventional scintillation cameras for in vivo studies in humans. In all cases with this class of compounds, turnover of the label within the tissue is related to some aspect of metabolism (17,18). 

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