[(11)C]Ascorbic and [(11)C]dehydroascorbic acid, an endogenous redox pair for sensing reactive oxygen species using positron emission tomography.

Here we report the radiosynthesis of an endogenous redox pair, [(11)C]ascorbic acid ([(11)C]VitC) and [(11)C]dehydroascorbic acid ([(11)C]DHA), the reduced and oxidized forms of vitamin C, and their application to ROS sensing. These results provide the basis for in vivo detection of ROS using positron emission tomography (PET).