Radionuclide generators

The present status and future directions of research and development on radionuclide generator technology are reported. The recent interest to develop double-neutron capture reactions for production of in vivo generators; neutron rich nuclides for radio-immunotherapeutic pharmaceuticals: and advances with ultra-short lived generators is highlighted. Emphasis is focused on: production of the parent radionuclide; the selection and the evaluation of support materials and eluents with respect to the resultant radiochemical yield of the daughter, and the breakthrough of the radionuclide parent: and, the uses of radionuclide generators in radiopharmaceutical chemistry, biomedical and industrial applications. The 62Zn → 62Cu, 66Ni → 66Cu, 103mRh → 103Rh, 188W → 188Re and the 225Ac → 221Fr → 213Bi generators are predicted to be emphasized for future development. Coverage of the 99Mo → 99mTc generator was excluded, as it the subject of another review. The literature search ended June, 1996. (orig.)