Zr-89 oxine

Zr-89 oxine is a radiopharmaceutical compound consisting of the positron-emitting radioisotope zirconium-89 (^89Zr) chelated with oxine (8-hydroxyquinoline). It is primarily used as a cell and nanoparticle labeling agent for positron emission tomography (PET) imaging. The lipophilic nature of the complex allows it to cross cell membranes and label various cell types—including leukocytes, T cells, dendritic cells, stem cells—as well as lipid-based nanomedicines and extracellular vesicles. Once inside the cell or vesicle, ^89Zr dissociates from the oxine ligand and becomes trapped intracellularly or within vesicles. This enables non-invasive in vivo tracking of labeled cells or particles for up to one week due to ^89Zr’s long half-life (~78 hours). Zr-89 oxine does not significantly interfere with cellular viability or function at appropriate doses. Its main clinical applications are in tracking immune cells during immunotherapy trials and monitoring regenerative medicine therapies[1][3][5][9].

Other names

zirconium-89 oxinezirconium89 oxinezirconium 89 oxine8-hydroxyquinoline zirconium-89 complex[^89Zr]oxine