Nano-Aptamer for Breast Cancer Imaging: Initial Considerations.

The application of aptamers especially in the use of drug delivery systems (DDSs) has the potential to develop in vivo nanoparticles for theranosis (therapy+diagnosis). With the advent of medical imaging and radiotherapeutics, this area of research developing the next era of radiopharmaceuticals is both attractive and promising. Overall, nano-radiopharmaceuticals have the potential to solve several problems regarding the in vivo stability of aptamers. This paper discusses a study in the development and proof-of-concept of nano-aptamers and supporting its use as a nano-radiopharmaceutical for the treatment of breast cancer and other potentially related disease states

Towards a consistent mechanism of emulsion polymerization—new experimental details

The application of atypical experimental methods such as conductivity measurements, optical microscopy, and nonstirred polymerizations to investigations of the ‘classical’ batch ab initio emulsion polymerization of styrene revealed astonishing facts. The most important result is the discovery of spontaneous emulsification leading to monomer droplets even in the quiescent styrene in water system. These monomer droplets with a size between a few and some hundreds of nanometers, which are formed by spontaneous emulsification as soon as styrene and water are brought into contact, have a strong influence on the particle nucleation, the particle morphology, and the swelling of the particles. Experimental results confirm that micelles of low-molecular-weight surfactants are not a major locus of particle nucleation. Brownian dynamics simulations show that the capture of matter by the particles strongly depends on the polymer volume fraction and the size of the captured species (primary free radicals, oligomers, single monomer molecules, or clusters)

Update on Cyclotron Production Studies on NCA Radionuclides: Copper-64, Astatine-211, Rhenium-186g

Radionuclide production for biomedical applications has been studied in recent years at INFN-LASA Laboratory, in co-operation with the Cyclotron Laboratory of the Joint Research Centre (JRC Ispra, Italy), taking advantage of extensive experience in the experimental nuclear physics and nuclear chemistry fields. Several research aspects concerning radiation detection and the relevant instruments, the measurements of excitation functions of the involved nuclear reactions and the required radiochemistry methods have been investigated. The latest studies on high specific activity, accelerator-produced radionuclides in no-carrier-added (NCA) form, for use in therapeutic applications and in related SPET/PET diagnoses investigated, are: 1. NCA 64Cu, produced by natZn(d,alphaxn), natZn(d,2pxn) and 64Zn(d,2p) reactions for simultaneous beta+/beta- metabolic radiotherapy, with intrinsic PET imaging, including the short-lived radionuclide 61Cu; 2. 186gRe, produced by 186W(p,n) and 186W(d,2n) reactions, for bone metastases pain palliation by beta (1.1 MeV) metabolic radiotherapy, including SPECT imaging; 3. NCA 211At/211gPo, produced by the 209Bi(alpha,2n) reaction, with internal spike of the alpha emitter 210At from the 209Bi(alpha,3n) reaction (leading to very small amount of 210Po as radiotoxic long-lived impurity), for high-LET metabolic radio- and immuno-radiotherapy; Targets are irradiated at the Scanditronix MC-40 Cyclotron (K=40) of the JRC with proton or alpha beams up to 39 MeV, 3He2+ particle beam up to 53 MeV or deuteron beams up to 19.5 MeV. Activity measurements are performed either at JRC Ispra or at LASA Laboratory: gamma, X spectra are measured with HPGe detectors, alpha spectra with PIPS detectors with a resolution of 17 keV (FWHM), and beta spectra with a conventional liquid scintillation counting LSC and spectrometry system with Horrocks number capability for quenching correction, and a higher-resolution liquid scintillation portable spectrometer with alpha/beta pulse shape analysis (PSA) discriminator. In order to produce NCA radionuclides suitable radiochemical separation processes for the radionuclides of interest, together with quality control checks must be developed. The radiochemical separations adopted are presented for each radionuclide produced. In order to evaluate production feasibility or to confirm the cross sections experimentally obtained, calculations for the involved nuclear reactions are carried out with the EMPIRE-II code, taking into accounting the major nuclear reaction channels.JRC.I.4-Nanotechnology and Molecular Imagin

Cyclotron Production of 64Cu by Deuteron Irradiation of 64Zn

The short-lived (12.7 h half-life) 64Cu radioisotope is both a + and a - emitter. This property makes 64Cu a promising candidate for novel medical applications, since it can be used simultaneously for therapeutic application of radiolabelled biomolecules and for diagnosis with PET. Following previous work on 64Cu production by deuteron irradiation of natural zinc, we report here the production of this radioisotope by deuteron irradiation of enriched 64Zn. In addition, yields of other radioisotopes such as 61Cu, 67Cu, 65Zn, 69mZn, 66Ga and 67Ga, which were co-produced in this process, were also measured. The evaporation code ALICE-91 and the transport code SRIM 2003 were used to determine the excitation functions and the stopping power, respectively. All the nuclear reactions yielding the above-mentioned radioisotopes were taken into account in the calculations both for the natural and enriched Zn targets. The experimental and calculated yields were shown to be in reasonable agreement. The work was carried out at the Scanditronix MC-40 Cyclotron of the Institute for Health and Consumer Protection of the Joint Research Centre of the European Commission (Ispra site, Italy). The irradiations were carried out with 19.5 MeV deuterons, the maximum deuteron energy obtainable with this cyclotron.JRC.I.4-Nanotechnology and Molecular Imagin

Cyclotron production of Cu-64 by deuteron irradiation of Zn-64

The short-lived (12.7 h half-life) 64Cu radioisotope is both a b+ and a b emitter. This property makes 64Cu a promising candidate for novel medical applications, since it can be used simultaneously for therapeutic application of radiolabelled biomolecules and for diagnosis with PET. Following previous work on 64Cu production by deuteron irradiation of natural zinc, we report here the production of this radioisotope by deuteron irradiation of enriched 64Zn. In addition, yields of other radioisotopes such as 61Cu, 67Cu, 65Zn, 69mZn, 66Ga and 67Ga, which were co-produced in this process, were also measured. The evaporation code ALICE-91 and the transport code SRIM 2003 were used to determine the excitation functions and the stopping power, respectively. All the nuclear reactions yielding the above-mentioned radioisotopes were taken into account in the calculations both for the natural and enriched Zn targets. The experimental and calculated yields were shown to be in reasonable agreement. The work was carried out at the Scanditronix MC-40 Cyclotron of the Institute for Health and Consumer Protection of the Joint Research Centre of the European Commission (Ispra site,Italy). The irradiations were carried out with 19.5MeV deuterons, the maximum deuteron energy obtainable with the MC-40 cyclotron