Production of Zr-89 using sputtered yttrium coin targets 89Zr using sputtered yttrium coin targets

An increasing interest in zirconium-89 (89Zr) can be attributed to the isotope's half-life which is compatible with antibody imaging using positron emission tomography (PET). The goal of this work was to develop an efficient means of production for 89Zr that provides this isotope with high radionuclidic purity and specific activity. We investigated the irradiation of yttrium sputtered niobium coins and compared the yields and separation efficiency to solid yttrium coins. The sputtered coins were irradiated with an incident beam energy of 17.5MeV or 17.8MeV providing a degraded transmitted energy through an aluminum degrader of 12.5MeV or 12.8MeV, respectively, with various currents to determine optimal cyclotron conditions for 89Zr production.

Source: Nuclear Medicine and Biology - March 23, 2017 Category: Nuclear Medicine Authors: S.L. Queern, T.A. Aweda, A.V.F. Massicano, N.A. Clanton, R. El Sayed, J.A. Sader, A. Zyuzin, S.E. Lapi Source Type: research