Synthesis of the phytohormone [11C]methyl jasmonate via methylation on a C18 Sep Pak? cartridge

[11C]labeled (±)-methyl jasmonate was synthesized using a C18 Sep Pak™ at ∼100°C to sustain a solid-supported 11C-methylation reaction of sodium (±)-jasmonate using [11C]methyl iodide. After reaction, the Sep Pak was rinsed with acetone to elute the labeled product, and the solvent evaporated rendering [11C]-(±)-methyl jasmonate at 96% radiochemical purity. The substrate, (±)-jasmonic acid, was retained on the Sep Pak so further chromatography was unnecessary. Total synthesis time was 25 min from the end of bombardment (EOB) which included 15 min to generate [11C]methyl iodide using the GE Medical Systems PET Trace MeI system, 5 min for reaction and extraction from the cartridge, and 5 min …