An electro-amalgamation approach to isolate no-carrier-added 177Lu from neutron irradiated Yb for biomedical applications

IntroductionA novel two-step separation process for the production of no-carrier-added (NCA) 177Lu from neutron irradiated Yb target through an electrochemical pathway employing mercury-pool cathode has been developed.MethodsA two-cycle electrolysis procedure was adopted for separation of 177Lu from 177Lu/Yb mixture in lithium citrate medium. The influence of different experimental parameters on the separation process was investigated and optimized for the quantitative deposition of Yb in presence of 177Lu. The first electrolysis was performed for 50 min in the 177Lu/Yb feed solution at pH 6 applying a potential of 8 V using platinum electrode as anode and mercury as the cathode. The second electrolysis was performed under the same conditions using fresh electrodes. The radionuclidic and chemical purity of 177Lu was determined by using gamma ray spectrometry and atomic absorption spectrometry. The suitability of 177Lu for biomedical applications was ascertained by labeling 1,4,7,10-tetraazacyclododecane-1,4,7,10-tetraacetic acid D-Phe1-Tyr3-octreotate(DOTA-TATE) with 177Lu.ResultsThis process could provide NCA 177Lu with >99.99% radionuclidic purity and an overall separation yield of ∼99% was achieved within 3–4 h. The Hg content in the product was determined to be <1 ppm. Radiolabeling yield of >98% was obtained with DOTA-TATE under the optimized reaction conditions.ConclusionsAn efficient strategy for the separation of NCA 177Lu, suitable for biomedical applications, has been developed.