Development of new radiopharmaceutical candidates

Targeted radionuclide therapy is an emerging approach in cancer treatment that uses radiopharmaceuticals to selectively deliver radiation to tumor cells. Metal-based radiopharmaceuticals typically consist of a carrier molecule that targets cancer cells, a radionuclide such as lutetium-177, and a chelator that forms a stable complex with the radiometal. At SCK CEN, one of our key research areas focuses on the preclinical development of such radiopharmaceuticals, with the aim of optimizing their pharmacokinetic properties through the design and synthesis of novel molecular structures.

Objectives

In this project, the student will actively contribute to the development of new radiopharmaceutical candidates. The work will focus on improving the synthesis of small-molecule carriers currently under investigation in our laboratories. Tasks will include optimizing reaction conditions, refining chromatographic purification methods (flash and high-performance liquid chromatography), and exploring crystallization techniques. The synthesized compounds will be characterized using LC–MS and NMR spectroscopy and may subsequently be evaluated for radiolabeling with Lu-177 or terbium-161.