CUPRUM_TTD (INFN-CSN5, 2023-2025)

CUPRUM_TTD project, acronym for “67/64Cu PRoduction and Use in Medicine and Target Technology Development” is dedicated to the production of copper radionuclides 67/64Cu, currently considered among the best-suited isotopes for radioimmunotherapy and theranostic applications, used as single isotopes, or in pair. Currently, the large-scale production of 67Cu still remains challenging: only a few sites are producing it worldwide, while a stable supplier in Europe is still lacking. The production of 67Cu has been a top priority since the very early days of LARAMED project, as underlined by the COME experiment.

The goal of CUPRUM_TTD is, therefore, the R&D of the technology necessary for the cyclotron-driven production of 67Cu, i.e., the development of a robust target manufacturing technology and recovery, as well as the related target processing system, aimed at attaining clinical grade batches of 67Cu useful for in vivo/preclinical investigations coupled with new Cu-labeled prototype carriers.

Main project goals
CUPRUM_TTD project goals.

  • More information can be found here:
  • L. Mou, P. Martini, G. Pupillo, I. Cieszykowska, C.S. Cutler and R. Mikołajczak, 67Cu production capabilities: a mini review 2022 Molecules DOI: 10.3390/molecules27051501 https://www.mdpi.com/1420-3049/27/5/1501
  • L. De Nardo, G. Pupillo, L. Mou, J. Esposito, A. Rosato and L. Meléndez-Alafort, A feasibility study of the Therapeutic Application of a Mixture of 67/64Cu Radioisotopes produced by cyclotrons with proton irradiation, Medical Physics(2022) DOI: 10.1002/mp.15524 https://aapm.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/mp.15524