Synthesis of a Functionalizable Water-Soluble Cryptophane-111

The development of optimized xenon host systems is of crucial importance for the success of molecular imaging using hyperpolarized Xe-129 MRI. Cryptophane-111 is a promising candidate because of its encapsulation properties. The synthesis of cryptophane-111-based biosensors requires both water-solubilizing and chemically activatable groups. An expeditious synthesis of a water-soluble and functionalizable cryptophane-111 is described.