Nuclear Medicine/Biomedical Imaging Research Core (BICOR) Overview

Marcelo Di Carli, MD
Program Director

Peter Holton
Operations Director
Email: pholton1@bwh.harvard.edu

BICOR Organization Chart

The purpose of BICOR is to fulfill the need for radiotracers for research staff and clinicians. The facility includes a medical cyclotron, radiotracer processing facilities which meet the requirements of current good manufacturing practices (cGMP), a radiopharmacy, a micro PET/CT lab, and various support laboratories.

The cyclotron produces PET isotopes, C-11, N-13, O-15, and F-18 from which a variety of compounds are prepared for both pre-clinical and human use.

Compounds with FDA approved clinical applications

Compounds currently available for research use in humans

Compounds currently available for pre-clinical only use

  • 15O-Water
  • 11C-Acetate (High concentration for prolonged preclinical protocols)
  • 18F-GE179 (GE Healthcare proprietary compound)
  • 18F-GE180 (GE Healthcare proprietary compound)
  • 18F- Fluoride (Available as radiochemical starting material. Low cost material is derived from cyclotron target rinse as a byproduct of other productions. A dedicated cyclotron irradiation is available at higher cost with delivery of up to a Curie of 18F)
  • 89Zr-B.20

Compounds currently under development or consideration

  • 11C-PDMP (novel radiolabel)
  • 18F-Rhodamine (proprietary preparation under development – Boston Children’s Hospital)
  • 18F-VHH (novel radiolabel)
  • 18F-Flurodopa

BICOR is committed to increasing the list of available compounds in response to the changing needs of the community. Staff members are prepared to work with researchers to identify literature compounds as well as to support effort to bring novel compounds through chemistry development, pre-clinical production, and translation to first in human studies.

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