Half-life determination of 155Tb from mass-separated samples produced at CERN-MEDICIS.

Terbium-155 has been identified for its potential for single-photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) in nuclear medicine. For activity measurements, an accurate and precise half-life of this radionuclide is required. However, the currently evaluated half-life of 5.32(6) d with a relative standard uncertainty of 1.1% determines the precision possible. Limited literature for the half-life measurements of this radionuclide is available and all reported investigations are prior to 1970. Further measurements are therefore needed to confirm the accuracy and improve the precision of the half-life for its use in the clinical setting. Two samples produced and mass separated at the CERN-MEDICIS facility have been measured at the National Physical Laboratory by two independent techniques: liquid scintillation counting and high-purity germanium gamma-ray spectrometry. A half-life of 5.2346(36) d has been determined from the weighted mean of the half-lives determined by the two techniques. The half-life reported in this work has shown a relative difference of 1.6% to the currently evaluated half-life and has vastly improved the precision.

Deuteron induced Tb-155 production, a theranostic isotope for SPECT imaging and auger therapy.

Several terbium isotopes are suited for diagnosis or therapy in nuclear medicine. Tb-155 is of interest for SPECT imaging and/or Auger therapy. High radionuclide purity is mandatory for many applications in medicine. The quantification of the activity of the produced contaminants is therefore as important as that of the radionuclide of interest. The experiments performed at the ARRONAX cyclotron (Nantes, France), using the deuteron beam delivered up to 34MeV, provide an additional measurement of the excitation function of the Gd-nat(d,x)Tb-155 reaction and of the produced terbium and gadolinium contaminants. In this study, we investigate the achievable yield for each radionuclide produced in natural gadolinium as a function of the deuteron energy. Other reactions are discussed in order to define the production route that could provide Tb-155 with a high yield and a high radionuclide purity. This article aims to improve data for the Gd-nat(d,x) reaction and to optimize the irradiation conditions required to produce Tb-155.

How to produce high specific activity tin-117m using alpha particle beam.

Tin-117m is an interesting radionuclide for both diagnosis and therapy, thanks to the gamma-ray and electron emissions, respectively, resulting from its decay to tin-117g. The high specific activity of tin-117m is required in many medical applications, and it can be obtained using a high energy alpha particle beam and a cadmium target. The experiments performed at the ARRONAX cyclotron (Nantes, France) using an alpha particle beam delivered at 67.4MeV provide a measurement of the excitation function of the Cd-nat(α,x)Sn-117m reaction and the produced contaminants. The Cd-116(α,3n)Sn-117m production cross section has been deduced from these experimental results using natural cadmium. Both production yield and specific activity as a function of the projectile energy have been calculated. These informations help to optimize the irradiation conditions to produce tin-117m with the required specific activity using α particles with a cadmium target.

PLANET TOPERS: Planets, Tracing the Transfer, Origin, Preservation, and Evolution of their ReservoirS.

The Interuniversity Attraction Pole (IAP) 'PLANET TOPERS' (Planets: Tracing the Transfer, Origin, Preservation, and Evolution of their Reservoirs) addresses the fundamental understanding of the thermal and compositional evolution of the different reservoirs of planetary bodies (core, mantle, crust, atmosphere, hydrosphere, cryosphere, and space) considering interactions and feedback mechanisms. Here we present the first results after 2 years of project work.

Production of scandium-44 m and scandium-44 g with deuterons on calcium-44: cross section measurements and production yield calculations.

HIGHLIGHTS • Production of Sc-44 m, Sc-44 g and contaminants. • Experimental values determined using the stacked-foil technique. • Thick-Target production Yield (TTY) calculations. • Comparison with the TALYS code version 1.6.Among the large number of radionuclides of medical interest, Sc-44 is promising for PET imaging. Either the ground-state Sc-44 g or the metastable-state Sc-44 m can be used for such applications, depending on the molecule used as vector. This study compares the production rates of both Sc-44 states, when protons or deuterons are used as projectiles on an enriched Calcium-44 target. This work presents the first set of data for the deuteron route. The results are compared with the TALYS code. The Thick-Target production Yields of Sc-44 m and Sc-44 g are calculated and compared with those for the proton route for three different scenarios: the production of Sc-44 g for conventional PET imaging, its production for the new 3 γ imaging technique developed at the SUBATECH laboratory and the production of a Sc-44 m/Sc-44 g in vivo generator for antibody labelling.

Cross section measurements of deuteron induced nuclear reactions on natural titanium up to 34 MeV.

Experimental cross sections for deuteron induced nuclear reactions on natural titanium were measured, using the stacked-foil technique and gamma spectrometry, up to 34 MeV with beams provided by the ARRONAX cyclotron. The experimental cross section values were monitored using the (nat)Ti(d,x)(48)V reaction, recommended by the IAEA. The excitation functions for (nat)Ti(d,x)(44m,46,47,48)Sc are presented and compared with the existing ones and with the TALYS 1.6 code calculations using default models. Our experimental values are in good agreement with data found in the literature. TALYS 1.6 is not able to give a good estimation of the production cross sections investigated in this work. These production cross sections of scandium isotopes fit with the new Coordinated Research Project (CRP) launched by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to expand the database of monitor reactions.

Production of medical isotopes from a thorium target irradiated by light charged particles up to 70 MeV.

The irradiation of a thorium target by light charged particles (protons and deuterons) leads to the production of several isotopes of medical interest. Direct nuclear reaction allows the production of Protactinium-230 which decays to Uranium-230 the mother nucleus of Thorium-226, a promising isotope for alpha radionuclide therapy. The fission of Thorium-232 produces fragments of interest like Molybdenum-99, Iodine-131 and Cadmium-115g. We focus our study on the production of these isotopes, performing new cross section measurements and calculating production yields. Our new sets of data are compared with the literature and the last version of the TALYS code.

Cross section measurements of deuteron induced nuclear reactions on natural tungsten up to 34 MeV.

(186g)Re is a ß-/γ emitter of great interest for nuclear medicine. It has shown successful results on bone metastases palliation and has similar chemical properties as (99m)Tc, the most commonly used imaging agent. (186g)Re is routinely produced using rhenium target in nuclear reactor. Higher specific activity could be obtained using accelerators. In this paper, production cross section values are presented for the (nat)W(d,x)(186g)Re reaction up to 34MeV, using the stacked-foils method and gamma spectrometry. From this data set, the thick target production yield of (186g)Re is determined and compared with the validated values of the IAEA and also with the proton route. The production cross sections of the (nat)W(d,x)(183,182g,184m,184g,181)Re and (nat)W(d,x)(187)W reactions have also been determined. A good agreement is found with the literature. Our data are compared with the version 1.6 (December 2013) of the TALYS code which shows discrepancies both on the shape and on the amplitude for these deuteron induced reactions.

(232)Th(d,4n)(230)Pa cross-section measurements at ARRONAX facility for the production of (230)U.

INTRODUCTION: (226)Th (T1/2=31 min) is a promising therapeutic radionuclide since results, published in 2009, showed that it induces leukemia cells death and activates apoptosis pathways with higher efficiencies than (213)Bi. (226)Th can be obtained via the (230)U α decay. This study focuses on the (230)U production using the (232)Th(d,4n)(230)Pa(ß-)(230)U reaction. METHODS: Experimental cross sections for deuteron-induced reactions on (232)Th were measured from 30 down to 19 MeV using the stacked-foil technique with beams provided by the ARRONAX cyclotron. After irradiation, all foils (targets as well as monitors) were measured using a high-purity germanium detector. RESULTS: Our new (230)Pa cross-section values, as well as those of (232)Pa and (233)Pa contaminants created during the irradiation, were compared with previous measurements and with results given by the TALYS code. Experimentally, same trends were observed with slight differences in orders of magnitude mainly due to the nuclear data change. Improvements are ongoing about the TALYS code to better reproduce the data for deuteron-induced reactions on (232)Th. CONCLUSIONS: Using our cross-section data points from the (232)Th(d,4n)(230)Pa reaction, we have calculated the thick-target yield of (230)U, in Bq/µA·h. This value allows now to a full comparison between the different production routes, showing that the proton routes must be preferred.

Serum transthyretin levels in patients with burn injury.

We examined serum transthyretin levels after thermal injury in a longitudinal study of 61 patients with burn injury from day 2 to day 28 after trauma. All the patients had a maximal decrease in transthyretin levels between days 6 and 8. Transthyretin values remained lower during the recovery phase in patients who died than in patients who survived. In addition, persistently low transthyretin values were associated with sepsis in the survivors. Finally, transthyretin levels were only slightly dependent on the extent of the burn injury. These results emphasize the interest of transthyretin monitoring in patients with burn injuries.