Late-stage isotopic carbon labeling of pharmaceutically relevant cyclic ureas directly from CO2

International audienceA robust, click chemistry inspired procedure for radiolabeling of cyclic ureas was developed. This protocol, suitable for all carbon isotopes (11C, 13C, 14C), is based on the direct functionalization of carbon dioxide: the universal building block for carbon radiolabeling. The strategy is operationally simple, reproducible in different radiochemistry centers, exhibits a remarkably wide substrate scope with short reaction times, and demonstrates superior reactivity compared to previously reported systems. With this procedure, a variety of pharmaceuticals and an unprotected peptide were labeled with high radiochemical efficiency