DTPA chelates of various diamagnetic and paramagnetic lanthanide(III) metal ions, as well as the chemically similar DTPA chelate of Y(3+), were studied in aqueous solution by variable temperature (17)O NMR with the aim of characterizing their internal dynamics. As a consequence of poor chemical shift dispersion and fast quadrupole relaxation, no dynamic exchange process could be detected for the diamagnetic complexes nor for the Sm-DTPA complex. In contrast, the spectra recorded for the Eu-DTPA complex show chemical exchange due to the well-known racemization process and, at high temperature, feature signal broadening that reveals a fluxional process involving the interchange of the coordinated and noncoordinated oxygen atoms of the carboxylate groups. The spectra recorded for the Pr-DTPA complex feature coalescence events due to such a fluxional process, which is ascribable to the rotation of the carboxylate groups. The activation free energy barriers determined experimentally are remarkably lower than the calculated activation barriers recently reported for the rotation of the carboxylate groups of various Ln-DOTA complexes. Furthermore, the smallest activation free energy measured for the Pr-DTPA complex, about 45 kJ mol(-1), is significantly lower than the activation free energy characterizing the racemization process. The fluxional behavior of the carboxylate groups is, however, not expected to significantly affect the residence time of the water molecule coordinated to the metal ion.