Synthesis of ¹¹C‑Labeled RXR Partial Agonist 1‑[(3,5,5,8,8-Pentamethyl-5,6,7,8-tetrahydronaphthalen-2-yl)amino]benzotriazole-5-carboxylic Acid (CBt-PMN) by Direct [¹¹C]Carbon Dioxide Fixation via Organolithiation of Trialkyltin Precursor and PET Imaging Thereof

The retinoid X receptor (RXR) partial agonist 1-[(3,5,5,8,8-pentamethyl-5,6,7,8-tetrahydronaphthalen-2-yl)­amino]­benzotriazole-5-carboxylic acid (1; CBt-PMN, E_max = 75%, EC₅₀ = 143 nM) is a candidate for treatment of central nervous system (CNS) diseases such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s diseases based on reports that RXR-full agonist 4-[1-(3,5,5,8,8-pentamethyl-5,6,7,8-tetrahydro-2-naphthyl)­ethynyl]­benzoic acid (bexarotene) shows therapeutic effects on these disease in rodent models. Here, we synthesized carbon-11-labeled ([¹¹C]1) as a tracer for positron emission tomography (PET) and used it in a PET imaging study to examine the brain uptake and biodistribution of 1. We found that ¹¹CO₂ fixation after tin–lithium exchange at −20 °C afforded [¹¹C]1. This methodology may also be useful for synthesizing ¹¹CO₂H-PET tracer derivatives of other compounds bearing π-rich heterocyclic rings. A PET/CT imaging study of [¹¹C]1 in mice indicated 1 is distributed to the brain and is thus a candidate for treatment of CNS diseases.