Fluorodopa, also known as FDOPA, is a fluorinated form of

L-DOPA -DOPA, also known as -3,4-dihydroxyphenylalanine and used medically as levodopa, is made and used as part of the normal biology of some plants and animals, including humans. Humans, as well as a portion of the other animals that utilize -DO ...

primarily synthesized as its

fluorine-18 Fluorine-18 (18F, also called radiofluorine) is a fluorine radioisotope which is an important source of positrons. It has a mass of 18.0009380(6) u and its half-life is 109.771(20) minutes. It decays by positron emission 96.7% of the time and el ...

isotopologue for use as a radiotracer in

positron emission tomography Positron emission tomography (PET) is a functional imaging technique that uses radioactive substances known as radiotracers to visualize and measure changes in metabolic processes, and in other physiological activities including blood flow, r ...

(PET). The most common side effects are injection site pain.

Medical uses

Fluorodopa is indicated for use in positron emission tomography (PET) to visualize

dopaminergic Dopaminergic means "related to dopamine" (literally, "working on dopamine"), a common neurotransmitter. Dopaminergic substances or actions increase dopamine-related activity in the brain. Dopaminergic pathways, Dopaminergic brain pathways facil ...

nerve terminals in the

striatum The striatum (: striata) or corpus striatum is a cluster of interconnected nuclei that make up the largest structure of the subcortical basal ganglia. The striatum is a critical component of the motor and reward systems; receives glutamat ...

for the evaluation of adults with suspected Parkinsonian syndromes (PS).

History

In October 2019, Fluorodopa was approved in the United States for the visual detection of certain nerve cells in adult patients with suspected Parkinsonian Syndromes (PS). The U.S.

Food and Drug Administration The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA or US FDA) is a List of United States federal agencies, federal agency of the United States Department of Health and Human Services, Department of Health and Human Services. The FDA is respo ...

(FDA) approved Fluorodopa F 18 based on evidence from one clinical trial of 56 patients with suspected PS. The trial was conducted at one clinical site in the United States.

References

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