Customized radiosynthesis of a chemical allows the assessment of its metabolism, degradation and final fate in animals, humans and the environment. This information is vital for many safety assessment endpoints for chemicals.
Radiosynthesis involves producing an analogue of a test substance by replacing one or more atoms with a radioisotope. In most cases, 14C is the radioisotope incorporated into the test substance, although other isotopes may be needed for some chemicals not containing carbon. The exact positioning of the 14C atom is critical to allow you to follow the fate of the entire molecule and all metabolites and degradation products. In some instances, multiple radiolabeled substances are produced, with labels at different positions, to ensure that the entire biotransformation of the substance is tracked.