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noveMBer 2010 volume 14, number 6 R&D News ......................... 1 Pharma Notes .................... 6 Appointments .................... 7 New Products .................. 15 Calendar .......................... 17 Career Spotlight............... 18
2010 readers’ Choice awards page 8 lawson researChers reCeive fundinG to develoP non-reaCtor Based isotoPes Researchers at Lawson Health Research Institute (Lawson) have been selected by Natural Resources Canada to receive funding to move forward with a project to develop production of the key medical isotope technetium-99m (Tc-99m). Tc-99m is a radioactive tracer used in nuclear medicine for a wide variety of diagnostic tests. However, demand for medical use began to overtake a dwindling supply in the late 2000s. The Canadian government announced the funding of four projects, totaling $35-million, on Oct. 15. Lawson has teamed up with TRIUMF, Advanced Applied Physics Solutions, BC Cancer Agency, Centre for Probe Development and Commercialization and the University of
British Columbia to study, develop and prepare for commercialization a technology suited for producing Tc-99m isotopes using existing medical cyclotrons. According to Dr. Michael Kovacs, director of the Lawson Cyclotron & PET Radiochemistry Facility, “With the aging NRU reactor at Chalk River reaching the end of its useful life, this project is a critical first step by the federal government to ensure a stable and highly diversified supply chain of technetium-99m for Canadians.” In funding this project, Natural Resources Canada has recognized the depth of the team’s expertise in the design of cyclotron targets. The funding will be used in London to upgrade the beam current output of our General Electric cyclotron. A high current target and pneumatic transport system will be installed and shown to produce technetium-99m at commercially relevant levels.
metrohm eXpands its Brand in Canada
Publications Mail Registration Number: 40052410
Starting Jan. 1, 2011, the best of Brinkmann Canada will be rebranded as Metrohm Canada. Although this rebranding is a new development, the Brinkmann-Metrohm partnership has actually spanned more than five decades; and for the last five years Brinkmann has been a fully owned subsidiary of Metrohm AG (a worldwide market leader in titration, ion chromatography and electrochemistry instruments and accessories). With the Brinkmann-Metrohm USA brand transformation already thriving in the U.S., this rebranding simply ex-
tends Metrohm’s global presence to include all of North America along with the rest of the continents. For customers in Canada, this rebranding initiative provides more ordering flexibility, more technical support and expanded field service.
