Knowledgebase

New essential analysis equipment for Quality Control has been installed in FIELD-LAB. This equipment will be used to perform measurements on isotopes, produced by FIELD-LAB in the near future, to establish if the isotope is up to GMP (Good Manufacturing Practice) standards and, consequently, can be used in patients.

Already in 2001, NRG supported the development of Peptide Receptor Radionuclide Therapy with carrier added Lutetium-177 (Lu-177 c.a.) by the supply of Lutetium-177 trichloride as a radiochemical. Nowadays, Lu-177 no carrier added is preferably used. “Lu-177 n.c.a. has a higher specific activity and thus radiolabeling efficiency, than lu-177 c.a.”, according to Marion Chomet, lead scientist at FIELD-LAB. Chomet and her colleagues are now fine-tuning and finalizing their custom made lutetium-177 n.c.a. process. But there are several challenges and practical considerations that they are facing.

Kansen voor West visited FIELD-LAB in Petten last Wednesdag 9 November. Kansen voor West (Opportunities for West) is one of the larger subsidy providers of this project and every year they choose one of their projects for a workvisit.

The major bottleneck for research and development of radiopharmaceuticals for targeted alpha therapy is its limited availability. The irradiation of radium-226 could be a game changer as the amounts produced using this method could fulfill the market needs for alpha-emitters. However, there are several challenges in 226Ra target preparation and further processing of irradiated targets.

During the NVNG Spring Conference of last Friday our R&D manager Karlijn van der Schilden provided insight into the current developments of NRGǀPALLAS in the field of developing new production routes for existing and new isotopes. With inextricably linked the subject of securing availability and supply.

In order to predict the behavior of nuclear medicine in the body after administration, Ramona Bouwman, consultant radiation protection at NRG, has been developing a biokinetic model to do just that.

The construction of the FIELD-LAB building on the Energy & Health Campus in Petten is ready to start. The necessary licenses, being the nuclear energy act permit by the Authority for Nuclear Safety and Radiation Protection (ANVS) and the building license by the council of Petten, have been acquired.

In the University of Warwick and King’s College London, the FIELD-LAB of NRG has found its first international partners. The universities will be involved in a project on cisplatin to improve existing treatment and to find out why it might not be as effective in all patients. By joining FIELD-LAB, the universities hope to accelerate the process. “The beauty of FIELD-LAB lies in providing a form of open European collaboration, by offering all partners valuable information and knowledge” says Dr Imberti, University of Warwick.

In the University of Warwick and King’s College London, the FIELD-LAB of NRG has found its first international partners. Despite the significant barriers created by both the COVID-pandemic and Brexit, researchers and scientists on both sides of the Channel managed to get things started and hope to present exciting new findings in due time. Dr Cinzia Imberti, Sir Henry Wellcome Postdoctoral Fellow, University of Warwick, UK and Nora Klaassen, project manager R&D at Field-Lab, Petten, the Netherlands, shed some light on how this collaboration started and its hopes for the future.

During the Targeted Radiopharmaceuticals Summit, James Nagarajah gave a presentation. In his presentation he spoke about the challenges that can be faced during the development of a new radio pharmaceutical, and how these can be overcome by collaborating with suppliers, industry partners and medical institutes.