Development and evaluation of a novel germanium-68/gallium-68 generator

Abstract

[ACCESS RESTRICTED TO THE UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI AT AUTHOR'S REQUEST.] Nuclear medicine is a branch of medical imaging that uses small amounts of radioactive material to diagnose or treat a variety of diseases, including many types of cancers, heart disease and certain other abnormalities within the body. Positron emission tomography, also called PET imaging or a PET scan, is a type of nuclear medicine imaging. Radioactive materials used in medical imaging (called radiopharmaceuticals) are produced by cyclotron or radionuclide generator. Current radiopharmaceuticals used in PET scans are mainly cyclotron produced which increases the expense and manufacturing complexities of such radiopharmaceuticals. A radionuclide generator is a mobile device which produces radioactive material and provides a more efficient method and an less expensive choice in the manufacturing of PET imaging agents. There is a need to develop an effective radionuclide generator for PET imaging. This research is to develop and evaluate a novel mother/daughter Germanium-68/Gallium-68 generator for PET imaging. This type of generator has been investigated for over fifty years but many problems still exist which need to be resolved before application in a clinical setting can be achieved. Such problems include metal impurities, mother radionulide contamination, and diluted daughter radionuclide. It was found in this research that the Fajans adsorption technique is a way to produce higher purified and concentrated Ga-68 radionuclide while lowering Ge-68 contamination. The progressive lowering of metals detected in the final solutions collected from the borosilicate bead Fajans adsorption generator points towards a very workable separation system. The potential benefits of a Fajans adsorption Ge-68/Ga-68 generator system are substantial and will greatly improve the efficiency and delivery of Ga-68 as a PET imaging agent.