Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is an important test in the medical field that provides a painless, noninvasive way to visualize images of the body by using a strong magnetic field. Contrast agents have provided many benefits to MRI imaging. An effective contrast agent has high specificity, high relaxivity, is soluble in water, and is thermodynamically stable. MRI usually depends on contrast agents to show abnormalities because the relaxivity rates of diseased tissue are quite different than the relaxivity rates of normal tissues. Relaxivity refers to the time required for protons to return to their equilibrium state in the longitudinal direction of the applied magnetic field after excitation by a pulse. There are numerous contrast agents being used today that significantly improve MRI imaging. However, a contrast agent that is organ specific would be even more advantageous for diagnosing diseased tissue and monitoring this tissue throughout treatment. The goal of this research was to produce a contrast agent that has organ specificity. This research involves the synthesis, purification, and measuring the relaxation rates for a gadolinium-based contrast media, as well as testing contrast agents already being used. Products were tested using T<sub>1</sub> relaxation rates to compare the newly developed agents which were synthesized using glucuronamide and 2-methoxyphenylpiperazine to current contrast agents being used today.

Synthesis and relaxivity of target-specific MRI contrast agents

255th National Meeting (2018)

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