Young dynamic scientific woman, I have professional experiences, that either in industry (AREVA NC La Hague, treatment and recycling of used nuclear fuel site) or in laboratory (UNLV radiochemistry section, working on Technetium and Los Alamos National Laboratory, working on actinium chemistry).
My current interests are focused on developing fundamental concepts that advance use of radio-pharmaceutical anti-cancer agents. As such, my research lies at the intersection of synchrotron spectroscopy, radiochemistry, and inorganic chemistry. In general, I draw from my experiences in studying nuclear fuel cycles, technetium chemistry, and actinium and the other actinide elements to develop creative solutions to technical problems in radio-pharmaceutical chelation.
Complexes for stable chelation of actinium and actinium-daughter radioisotopes • Implemented known separation schemes to isolate Ac-225 from a Th-229 generator • Defined adequate conditions to quantify complexation o Established developing media for thin layer chromatography analysis o Used phosphor imaging and gamma spectroscopy to evaluate labeling efficiencies o Conceptualized an EXCEL document to automatically determine the percentage of complexation from gamma spectroscopy data • Determined selectivity for home-made and commercial ligands between Ac and Bi • Followed kinetics of complex formation between Bi and ligands • Assessed stability of complexes by introducing challenging ligand or metals • Synthesized new bismuth complexes • Characterized compounds by Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) and XRD
Detailed Description
LA-UR-14-25323
Radionuclides are commonly used for biological imaging and therapy. Gamma-emitters and positron-emitters are favorable for imaging purposes, whereas beta-emitters may be used for therapeutic applications. Recently, significant research efforts have explored targeted alpha therapy (TAT) as a promising treatment for cancers and infectious disease. Alpha particles properties (i.e., high linear energy transfer and short range) are valuable because they deliver high cytotoxic radiation dose to targeted cells, while limiting damage to non-diseased cells. To assure that the radionuclide is delivered to the desired site in the body, two components are needed: a biological targeting vector and a chelating agent attached to the chosen radionuclide. A relatively new radionuclide, Ac-225, is lately of interest for TAT. Ac-225 is an alpha-emitting nuclide with a 9.9 days half-life. From the Ac-225 decay scheme, the four alphas emitted come from Ac-225, Fr-221, At-217 and either Bi-213 or Po-213. Alternatively, Ac-225 can be used as a generator for the shorter-lived daughter isotope: Bi-213. The stability of actinium and bismuth complexes for a series of nitrogen containing heterocycles was investigated. The affinity of the ligands for one or the other metal was investigated as well as the stability of the complexes formed. The labelled complexes were challenged by addition of competing metal ions, or competing ligands such as EDTA or transferrin. The kinetics of formation of the complexes and their stability were followed by spotting aliquots on a TLC plate. The TLC plates were analyzed using phosphorimaging techniques and gamma spectroscopy. New, viable chelators for Ac-225 and Bi-213 were studied and showed rapid kinetics and elevated stability against various metal ions and ligands that could compete in biological environment.
