ARRONAX, a high intensity cyclotron in Nantes

International audienceA cyclotron named ARRONAX is being built in Nantes (France). It is mainly devoted to radiochemistry and nuclear medicine research and will be operational the last quarter of 2008. This machine will accelerate both protons and α-particles at high energy (up to 70 MeV) and high intensity (2 simultaneous proton beams with intensity up to 350 µA). In nuclear medicine, these characteristics will allow the cyclotron to produce a large variety of radionuclides on a regular schedule and in sufficient amount to perform clinical trials. A priority list of 12 radioisotopes, which contains isotopes for therapeutic use as well as for PET imaging, has been established by an international scientific committee. In radiochemistry, a vertical pulsed α-beam will allow fundamental studies of radiolysis in aqueous media, which is of great interest for radiobiology and for nuclear waste management

ARRONAX, a high intensity cyclotron in Nantes

A cyclotron named ARRONAX is being built in Nantes (France). It is mainly devoted to radiochemistry and nuclear medicine research and will be operational the last quarter of 2008. This machine will accelerate both protons and α-particles at high energy (up to 70 MeV) and high intensity (2 simultaneous proton beams with intensity up to 350 µA). In nuclear medicine, these characteristics will allow the cyclotron to produce a large variety of radionuclides on a regular schedule and in sufficient amount to perform clinical trials. A priority list of 12 radioisotopes, which contains isotopes for therapeutic use as well as for PET imaging, has been established by an international scientific committee. In radiochemistry, a vertical pulsed α-beam will allow fundamental studies of radiolysis in aqueous media, which is of great interest for radiobiology and for nuclear waste management

Evaluation of potential innovative positron-emitting radionuclides for PET applications

International audienceThe opportunities offered by the construction in Nantes (France) of a high energy (70 MeV) and high intensity (2 simultaneous 350 μA proton beams and one 30 μA alpha beam) cyclotron (ARRONAX) for radiochemistry and nuclear medicine research has prompted us to reinvestigate the production of several beta+ isotopes. Fluorine-18 is widely used in clinical routine practice for PET examination, but fails to achieve all the potential benefits of PET imaging for one major reason: its short half-life is not suited to the long kinetics of large molecules, e.g. antibodies, which may be used for diagnostics (immuno-PET) and radioimmunotherapy. Since PET cameras achieve better image quantification than SPECT cameras, beta+/beta- couples of the same element, which will follow the same metabolic pathways, could be used to monitor radionuclide distribution, and thus to obtain more precise dosimetry, especially in the field of radioimmunotherapy (RIT)

Negative liposomes labelled with In 111 oxine in tumor bearing mice

SIGLEAvailable from CEN Saclay, Service de Documentation, 91191 Gif-sur-Yvette Cedex (France) / INIST-CNRS - Institut de l'Information Scientifique et TechniqueFRFranc