Radioactive holmium acetylacetonate microspheres for interstitial microbrachytherapy: an in vitro and in vivo stability study.

Purpose: The clinical application of holmium acetylacetonate microspheres (HoAcAcMS) for the intratumoral radionuclide treatment of solid malignancies requires a thorough understanding of their stability. Therefore, an in vitro and an in vivo stability study with HoAcAcMS was conducted.

Methods: HoAcAcMS, before and after neutron irradiation, were incubated in a phosphate buffer at 37°C for 6 months.

Cell-membrane damage and element leaching in transplanted Parmelia sulcata lichen related to ambient SO2, temperature, and precipitation.

Measurements were performed in lichen (Parmelia sulcata) transplants, to gain insight into the lichen vitality as possibly affected by both element deposition or lichen element content and further ambient atmospheric conditions (temperature, precipitation, SO2 levels). The electrical conductivity of rinsing solutions was used to assess cell-membrane damage in Parmelia sulcata in an experiment, which ran from August 2001 until August 2002. Element contents of the solutions and lichens were determined by inductively coupled plasma-optical emission spectrometry and by k0-instrumental neutron activation analysis, respectively.