Lanthanide(III) complexes of DOTA derivatives are utilized in the medical imaging techniques such as magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), magnetic resonance angiography (MRA), and magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS), nuclear imaging (PET and SPECT), or optical methods (luminescence). It has been shown that relaxometric parameters of the Gd(III) complexes of DOTA derivatives with a phosphinic acid pendant arm (Gd-DO3APR ) can reach optimal values (e.g. water residence time, τM, being close to ~10 ns). The relaxometric parameters can be further modified through the phosphorus substituents. It is also known that the complexes possess a high thermodynamic stability and they are kinetically inert. The main goal of this Thesis is an investigation of the effect of pendant amino group protonation in substituents bound to the phosphorus atom on properties of the complexes. Thus in this Thesis, DOTA derivatives with the phosphinic acid pendant arm with an amino group and their complexes were prepared and characterized. The complexes are intended as contrast agents for molecular imaging techniques (mainly for MRI and 31 P MRS). The first part of the Thesis introduces two new versatile "phospha-Mannich" protocols performed under mild conditions. Amino-H-phosphinic acids (AHPAs) were synthesized with excess of...