18F and the dopamine pathway

Dopamine is a neurotransmitter and its absence from the human brain leads to Parkinson's disease-muscular rigidity, immobility and a flexed posture and tremor. In 1983, ¹⁸F-labelled fluorodopa was first used to trace pathways of dopamine in the human brain, by using a method called positron emission tomography. This paper describes the search for more efficient and rapid methods to label the aromatic amino acids involved in the pathway with ¹⁸F.