Hello! I realize I have been very lax in publishing as of late, but I do promise to feature some interesting posts in the near future. Until then, have a look at the recent article I wrote for the ACC&CE (Association of Consulting Chemists & Chemical Engineers) Newsletter. It explains the collaboration I have with a fellow colleague pertaining to our mutual consulting businesses. The link is below. Refer to the May 8th blog post for additional information about this collaboration. Hope you find it informative. Comments and questions welcome! Thanks for reading. Until next time!
https://chemconsult.org/wp-content/uploads/Volume-29-3.pdf
Tuesday, October 24, 2017
Friday, July 21, 2017
Radioiodination Techniques: A Unique Skill Set in the Pharmaceutical Industry
Hello! Yes, I know...I haven't posted in quite a while. Over two months in fact! I love having my consulting business out of my home, but regular life has a tendency to invade my "office" and dictate how much time I really want to dedicate to AM Rossmeisl Consulting. Be that as it may, my life has permitted me to carve out another post for this blog. So here I go! I realize that in my previous post, I said I would write about specific iodination techniques and when to choose them. I decided to go a different route.
This time around I thought I would discuss the topic of how unique it is for a chemist to possess the knowledge of radioiodination techniques. To be perfectly honest, I never thought I would be in this position. While in college, I thought I would eventually get a job in the biotech field, but not necessarily a position requiring so much chemistry expertise. When I obtained the position in DuPont's Iodination Department, I figured I would only stay there a short time gaining experience and the like and then move on and advance to something else. I stayed fourteen years! I really began to enjoy what I did and after a few years decided that I would rather advance in that department instead of somewhere else. Besides, with my biology degree (and chemistry minor), I also had the added benefit of having some skills and understanding of biological topics and subject matters. I was in a unique niche. I was gaining knowledge of iodination techniques (and becoming quite adept and experienced) and also comprehended an understanding of how biological assays worked as well as knowing the pharmacokinetics of pharmaceutical compounds. I possessed the acumen of having chemistry as well as biology insights. This truly was an asset when working with researchers in obtaining the final results they wished to achieve in their projects when either developing new drugs or discovering new assays for diagnostic purposes.
Labeling compounds and molecules with the isotopes of iodine is still widely utilized since detection of radioactive iodine is efficient (i.e high energy gamma emitter) and the handling of said isotopes is somewhat safer than other means. However, researchers don't want to spend a great deal of time synthesizing radioiodinated compounds since in reality it could take up some time and this is time taken away from other vital segments of their projects. It's understandable. This is why researchers and scientists depend on chemists like myself to assist them in either providing the actual radioiodinated compound required or lend some expertise if they decide to label the compound themselves. This is the focus and goal of my consulting service. This also explains what I mean by possessing a unique skill set. Knowledge of radioiodination techniques is a valued asset to have. Sometimes researchers cannot determine why they encounter issues and problems when they attempt to iodinate a compound themselves. They are very adept in their given research circumstances, but don't realize that there are nuances and specific aspects in iodinating compounds that is only learned after years of experience in synthesizing these compounds.
Factors to consider when iodinating compounds are: what technique will be best for the compound, where is the active site or binding site on the molecule and what will the effect of radiation or oxidation be on the compound. Consideration has to also be made as to which optimum purification will be best. Specific activity requirements also need to be examined. I will not go into specifics here; however, I will write future posts about determining which labeling and purifying techniques should be chosen and the reasons why. Stay tuned!
In conclusion, I believe that a chemist who acquires this skill set in knowing how to perform radioiodination reactions and subsequent purifications can contribute greatly to the science world. Individuals who provide this service can aid their respective colleagues in achieving their research endeavors. I am proud to be one of those individuals.
Thanks for stopping by! Look forward to the next post about choosing specific radioiodination reaction and purification conditions. Until next time!
This time around I thought I would discuss the topic of how unique it is for a chemist to possess the knowledge of radioiodination techniques. To be perfectly honest, I never thought I would be in this position. While in college, I thought I would eventually get a job in the biotech field, but not necessarily a position requiring so much chemistry expertise. When I obtained the position in DuPont's Iodination Department, I figured I would only stay there a short time gaining experience and the like and then move on and advance to something else. I stayed fourteen years! I really began to enjoy what I did and after a few years decided that I would rather advance in that department instead of somewhere else. Besides, with my biology degree (and chemistry minor), I also had the added benefit of having some skills and understanding of biological topics and subject matters. I was in a unique niche. I was gaining knowledge of iodination techniques (and becoming quite adept and experienced) and also comprehended an understanding of how biological assays worked as well as knowing the pharmacokinetics of pharmaceutical compounds. I possessed the acumen of having chemistry as well as biology insights. This truly was an asset when working with researchers in obtaining the final results they wished to achieve in their projects when either developing new drugs or discovering new assays for diagnostic purposes.
Labeling compounds and molecules with the isotopes of iodine is still widely utilized since detection of radioactive iodine is efficient (i.e high energy gamma emitter) and the handling of said isotopes is somewhat safer than other means. However, researchers don't want to spend a great deal of time synthesizing radioiodinated compounds since in reality it could take up some time and this is time taken away from other vital segments of their projects. It's understandable. This is why researchers and scientists depend on chemists like myself to assist them in either providing the actual radioiodinated compound required or lend some expertise if they decide to label the compound themselves. This is the focus and goal of my consulting service. This also explains what I mean by possessing a unique skill set. Knowledge of radioiodination techniques is a valued asset to have. Sometimes researchers cannot determine why they encounter issues and problems when they attempt to iodinate a compound themselves. They are very adept in their given research circumstances, but don't realize that there are nuances and specific aspects in iodinating compounds that is only learned after years of experience in synthesizing these compounds.
Factors to consider when iodinating compounds are: what technique will be best for the compound, where is the active site or binding site on the molecule and what will the effect of radiation or oxidation be on the compound. Consideration has to also be made as to which optimum purification will be best. Specific activity requirements also need to be examined. I will not go into specifics here; however, I will write future posts about determining which labeling and purifying techniques should be chosen and the reasons why. Stay tuned!
In conclusion, I believe that a chemist who acquires this skill set in knowing how to perform radioiodination reactions and subsequent purifications can contribute greatly to the science world. Individuals who provide this service can aid their respective colleagues in achieving their research endeavors. I am proud to be one of those individuals.
Thanks for stopping by! Look forward to the next post about choosing specific radioiodination reaction and purification conditions. Until next time!
Monday, May 8, 2017
Additional Website
Hello again! I'm not writing an actual post this time. I just wanted to inform anyone who visits this blog that my services as a consulting chemist can also be found on an additional website. I have collaborated with a fellow chemist, Mr. Mark Freeman, who has a consulting business of his own. His primary consulting services concern radioiodination methods/techniques as well as related disciplines. He has graciously featured me on this site as a technical consultant. Please visit this site if you have need of our consulting services. We would appreciate it! The link is below. Thanks in advance for any business you may send our way. Until next time!
Iodination Consultancy Group Website:
http://iconsultancygroup.com
Iodination Consultancy Group Website:
http://iconsultancygroup.com
Sunday, April 30, 2017
Can Valaciclovir Be Iodinated? Or...My Adventure With Shingles!
Hello! I know...I haven't posted in quite a while! Literally over a month! I was all excited about starting my blog back in February and was doing pretty well by doing one each month. I know...if you want a blog to be successful, you need to post on a regular basis. And my intentions were good! But then...it hit!! (March 30th, 2017: I will never forget that day.) The worst viral infection I have ever gotten (short of the mumps when I was 6!) which then triggered a case of the shingles! Shingles? Me? Ms. Fit and Healthy and at the gym five days a week? Really? I couldn't believe it! So my excuse for not blogging would be the mind was willing but the flesh was very weak! As I am writing this, I am still recovering. I'm doing much better but I still have residual nerve pain. The official name for this is called postherpetic neuralgia and I could actually have this annoying pain for months! Or longer! I don't wish this on anyone. The truth is anyone can get shingles since most of us have had the chicken pox.
So I have spent the last few weeks trying to rest and going to the doctor. When I wasn't doing that, I did ALOT of Internet surfing. I wanted to find anything I could about shingles. Being the scientist that I am, I wanted to do my research on the subject. I delved deep into shingles territory. Truth be known, there's so much out there. Most of it is rubbish! However, I did find some interesting articles and informative data about shingles that I did not know about. I have a Biology degree and shingles was a topic that I studied ever so fleetingly back in 1984 during my Microbiology class, but now I have more knowledge about shingles than I care to know.
So...How am I going to connect this experience of mine with radioiodination of compounds and chemistry consulting? I thought long and hard about this, and I figured there was some connection somewhere. And then I remembered something I did that demonstrated how I am a typical chemist and a consulting one at that. If you are reading this blog and/or in any science discipline, you will relate to this. Here's what I did: when the doctor prescribed Valtrex for me as an anti-viral regimen the first thing I did was look it up to see what the molecular structure was. The actual chemical name is valaciclovir and it has a molecular mass of 324.336 g/mol. However, it cannot be iodinated. It has no active ring and there's some steric hindrance. I was a little sad, because I was so looking forward to writing a post about which iodination method I would choose and theorize which HPLC purification I would consider. How "geeky scientist" is that? You know that you're entrenched in the radioiodination world when the first thing you do is look up structures and theorize reaction and purification methods! And like I stated, I was a little sad at that the fact that it couldn't be labeled with 125-I. The reality is that not all compounds that are used for research purposes can be iodinated. Sometimes other labeling methods must be utilized if a radioactive tracer is needed for a particular experiment or assay.
This response of mine also lead me to ponder about how I would consult with a potential client if they came to me with a conundrum of how to proceed with their work if radioiodination wasn't an option. This used to happen to me quite often when I worked at DuPont. A customer would inquire about having some radiolabelling done on their compound and when I would review the molecular structure, it would be determined that 125-I could not be used. There either was no site for the 125-I to label to or the molecular structure itself deterred any reaction from occurring (steric hindrance). In some instances, there was a perfect site for the 125-I to label to, but this region of the compound was also the active site. Placing a radioactive isotope right in that spot would cause issues with any experiments or biological assays.
Chemistry consulting sometimes means having discussions with clients that lead to other options that they did not consider. I may have some ideas for their work that they did not know were choices that may even be more beneficial for what they want to achieve. Presenting alternative options to clients also makes for good business relationships. I'm sure fellow scientists would appreciate discussions I can engage in with them which will provide options for their research. Fellow scientists helping each other out should always be the norm. We are not in competition with each other; we are all trying to achieve the same goal in improving society through science.
I believe I achieved what I set out to do in connecting my chemistry consulting with my experience with shingles. It was a little bit of a stretch but it gave me an opportunity to state some aspects of what I can provide in my chemistry consulting. It's also giving me an idea for my next post. I think I will write about how I come to a decision as to which iodination methods should be used for particular compounds.
Thanks for stopping by! Comments are appreciated. Until next time!
So I have spent the last few weeks trying to rest and going to the doctor. When I wasn't doing that, I did ALOT of Internet surfing. I wanted to find anything I could about shingles. Being the scientist that I am, I wanted to do my research on the subject. I delved deep into shingles territory. Truth be known, there's so much out there. Most of it is rubbish! However, I did find some interesting articles and informative data about shingles that I did not know about. I have a Biology degree and shingles was a topic that I studied ever so fleetingly back in 1984 during my Microbiology class, but now I have more knowledge about shingles than I care to know.
So...How am I going to connect this experience of mine with radioiodination of compounds and chemistry consulting? I thought long and hard about this, and I figured there was some connection somewhere. And then I remembered something I did that demonstrated how I am a typical chemist and a consulting one at that. If you are reading this blog and/or in any science discipline, you will relate to this. Here's what I did: when the doctor prescribed Valtrex for me as an anti-viral regimen the first thing I did was look it up to see what the molecular structure was. The actual chemical name is valaciclovir and it has a molecular mass of 324.336 g/mol. However, it cannot be iodinated. It has no active ring and there's some steric hindrance. I was a little sad, because I was so looking forward to writing a post about which iodination method I would choose and theorize which HPLC purification I would consider. How "geeky scientist" is that? You know that you're entrenched in the radioiodination world when the first thing you do is look up structures and theorize reaction and purification methods! And like I stated, I was a little sad at that the fact that it couldn't be labeled with 125-I. The reality is that not all compounds that are used for research purposes can be iodinated. Sometimes other labeling methods must be utilized if a radioactive tracer is needed for a particular experiment or assay.
This response of mine also lead me to ponder about how I would consult with a potential client if they came to me with a conundrum of how to proceed with their work if radioiodination wasn't an option. This used to happen to me quite often when I worked at DuPont. A customer would inquire about having some radiolabelling done on their compound and when I would review the molecular structure, it would be determined that 125-I could not be used. There either was no site for the 125-I to label to or the molecular structure itself deterred any reaction from occurring (steric hindrance). In some instances, there was a perfect site for the 125-I to label to, but this region of the compound was also the active site. Placing a radioactive isotope right in that spot would cause issues with any experiments or biological assays.
Chemistry consulting sometimes means having discussions with clients that lead to other options that they did not consider. I may have some ideas for their work that they did not know were choices that may even be more beneficial for what they want to achieve. Presenting alternative options to clients also makes for good business relationships. I'm sure fellow scientists would appreciate discussions I can engage in with them which will provide options for their research. Fellow scientists helping each other out should always be the norm. We are not in competition with each other; we are all trying to achieve the same goal in improving society through science.
I believe I achieved what I set out to do in connecting my chemistry consulting with my experience with shingles. It was a little bit of a stretch but it gave me an opportunity to state some aspects of what I can provide in my chemistry consulting. It's also giving me an idea for my next post. I think I will write about how I come to a decision as to which iodination methods should be used for particular compounds.
Thanks for stopping by! Comments are appreciated. Until next time!
Sunday, March 26, 2017
What Does a Consulting Chemist Really Do?
"If you know you are on the right track, if you have this inner knowledge, then nobody can turn you off...no matter what they say."---Barbara McClintock, Nobel-Prize winning geneticist known for her discoveries with regulation of genetic expression
____________________________________________________
Hello! I hope you enjoyed the last post containing an article I wrote for the ACC&CE newsletter. This time around I thought I would discuss what it's like to be a consulting chemist. I'm fairly new at this, so apologies to anyone who is a veteran consultant. I truly don't want to insult anyone's intelligence in stating what I've gone through and not include what other consulting chemists have done. I can only give my perspective and what I have experienced thus far.
It seems today that there are many consultants for various occupations and fields of expertise. I guess anyone could call themselves a consultant if you have particular experiences in specific fields of work. Consulting can be very lucrative work seeing one has expertise in specific areas and others need said expertise to solve problems or achieve results for their work.
In my particular case, I am a consulting chemist. I can provide expertise in chemistry and related disciplines. I decided to go into this line of work just recently because I felt like I have much to offer in the science world. I may have been out of the work force for some time but I still have experiences and expertise to share in chemistry, especially in the area of radioiodination techniques. I have knowledge of specific chemistry areas. When I first started my consulting business, many would ask: "What is it exactly that you do?" or "How does that work for you? What do you do all day?" First of all, my business isn't an "all day" event. I can pretty much work it into my busy life as a Stay-At-Home Mom. I dedicate certain days to do consulting work, but I'm certainly available if a potential client contacts me. I do check my e-mail daily and my cell is always with me! I usually start off my day by checking my e-mail to see if anyone has contacted me for inquiries or questions. If need be, I will then contact potential clients via e-mail or phone to set up a time for discussions and/or inquire what their needs are. I may also have Skype meetings with clients at this time of the day; I usually try to set up these meetings as early as possible in the day but these meetings may occur at a later time. I proceed at this point to doing actual work for clients which has been requested for me to do. More on that list in the next paragraph! I then go to all my social media sites (Facebook, Twitter, Google Plus, etc...) to either update or change anything on these sites as well as make a post or two. I also go and do a bit of networking on LinkedIn to see if anyone has sent me a message or to check in with the various groups I belong to. These groups always have someone asking a question or inquiring if anyone has the answer to a problem. Then, of course, there is always some time set aside to update my website or profiles with associations I belong to. I then move on to whatever is on my "Goals and Objectives" list. This can be anything from composing articles, writing for this blog and reading new articles on LinkedIn to purchasing office supplies, setting up times to meet with clients (via Skype or phone) and organizing notes and resources I have in my possession. At the moment, I am organizing all the notes and articles I have on ALL radioiodination techniques and purification methods so that I will have them in a neat and organized array to be "at the ready" for inquiries.
I mentioned earlier in the last paragraph that I would list out some of the work I may provide for clients who have requested my services. These functions might include: troubleshooting and problem-solving for radioiodination techniques, internet searches, literature/journal article searches, review of research plans and protocols, editorial advice on technical data, analytical/Q.C. advice, technical report writing, SOP streamlining, radiation safety advice and providing guidance in other chemistry-related disciplines such as biology and biochemistry. Sometimes just having a face-to-face meeting (usually via Skype) is all is needed to assist a client. They just need a discussion to go over what their issues are and how they can overcome them.
So that's basically my day as a consulting chemist in a nutshell. There is, of course some modification along the way, but I believe I have presented how I usually proceed. I hope this article has answered any questions one might have as to what I actually do and what I can offer as a consultant.
In the spirit of networking, I kindly ask that you share this article where appropriate, especially with anyone you might know who needs my kind of expertise. Word of mouth is perhaps the best compliment in referencing someone for what they can offer. I appreciate any feedback.
Thanks for stopping by and look forward to more posts here in the near future. Please provide me with any comments and/or inquires. Until next time!
Sunday, March 5, 2017
Article Link
Hello! No specific article this time except a link to the current newsletter of the Association of Consulting Chemists and Chemical Engineers of which I am a member. Check out my article about radioiodinations and my consulting business. Comments and/or inquiries appreciated! Thanks!
http://chemconsult.org/wp-content/uploads/Volume-29-1.pdf
http://chemconsult.org/wp-content/uploads/Volume-29-1.pdf
Tuesday, February 21, 2017
Radioactivity: The Deadly "R" Word In Science
Greetings! I haven't blogged in a little while, but between the winter sicknesses and crazy snowstorms, I haven't had the chance! Gotta love New England! Don't get me wrong, I love where I live, but by the end of February, I'm done. Give me 75 degrees and sunny! But this isn't a blog about the weather, so let's discuss something else.
What's the first thing you think of and your reaction when you hear the term "radioactivity"? Unless you're already a scientist or in a science-related field, my guess is you think of weapons of mass destruction or a nuclear plant meltdown along with a "deer-in-the-headlights" look on your face. No offense or disrespect, but that's what most people think of. When I first started my career at DuPont in the Iodination Department, I would tell people what I did and I would get every reaction from bewilderment to disbelief to outright shock. "I suppose you glow?" they would ask, or "You work with WHAT?" (Big sigh on my part!). Sometimes I wouldn't be very forthcoming as to what I did or I would modify the explanation a bit. I didn't exactly lie about what I did; I just left some details out. It just made it much easier to deal with people and eliminate the awkwardness that followed. I found it amusing quite frankly. What most people don't realize it that using radioactive materials and substances for good and noble means has lead to many important discoveries and medical uses for mankind. Radioactivity should not be looked upon as frightening and associated only with destructive methods.
When the pioneer scientists of physics and chemistry (i.e. Marie and Pierre Curie, Henri Becquerel) discovered radioactive elements, they had no idea how beneficial these substances would become in later years. Discovery of radium and plutonium would lead to the discovery of many other isotopes. Various isotopes have numerous uses and applications whether diagnostic or therapeutic. Radioactive compounds are used for detection and quantification in most if not all research settings. It is standard practice to utilize radioactive compounds in research and development of pharmaceuticals and diagnostic assays. There are many isotopes to discuss but I will limit this article to 125-I and 131-I since they are included in my area of expertise.
When Rosalyn Yalow and Solomon Berson developed the radioimmunoassay (RIA) technique in the late 1950's, they provided groundbreaking research in detecting diseases that had never been done before. However, before the actual RIA was developed, they needed a key component to this vital assay: the iodinated compound. In order to perform the RIA, a compound labeled with the isotopes of iodine, 125-I or 131-I, would be needed. Originally, before the RIA was developed, these two pioneers labeled insulin with 125-I and injected diabetic patients with the radiolabelled insulin in order to observe where insulin travelled in the body. The radiation given off by the 125-I would help them visualize where the insulin ended up, whether in urine or other parts of the body. So that they didn't have to inject people with radioactive iodine and utilize smaller quantities of materials, Yalow and Berson developed the RIA. They could mix the radiolabelled insulin with it's naturally occurring antibody to form an antibody-hormone pair. They then added a quantity of a patient's blood. Separations of the mixtures were then performed and measurements of the radioactivity taken. They could then calculate the difference in radioactivity levels so as to determine how much insulin was in the patient's sample blood.
Many researchers and scientists at various medical and pharmaceutical settings started using this assay for numerous applications. In order to procure the iodinated component for the assay, they would iodinate the compound they needed themselves. Many journal articles were published at this point with advice and guidance on how to iodinate various compounds. However, so many individuals were utilizing RIA techniques that a potential market was in the making. Companies were established to provide radioiodinated compounds and services so that researchers or medical facilities could just purchase said products and proceed with their assays. These companies are still in existence today. However, there are other means of detection such as fluorescence so the demand for iodinated compounds has fallen slightly. But the need is still there and in some instances RIA is the premium choice for quantifying biological entities in the body.
Still think that radioactivity is a scary and frightening thing? You really shouldn't. When working with radioactive materials, one must have utmost respect for the substances at hand and utilize safety regulations; however, the benefits and progress of what one can achieve by using radioactive materials (i.e. iodinated compounds) outweighs any danger that might occur. Use of iodinated compounds has lead to numerous discoveries about the human body, development of pharmaceuticals and the emergence of diagnostic tests and therapeutic treatments.
When I worked at DuPont in the Iodination Dept., I always felt like I was part of a bigger picture. Researchers at various pharmaceutical companies depended on me for providing them with quality iodinated products that would aide them in their research and development. I was always so proud to be part of that process. So radioactivity has never been frightening to me. To me, it has meant progress, innovation, discovery and breakthrough. Better understanding of the human body and cures for diseases have been made possible because of work with radioactivity. This is why I still want to provide expertise in this area of science through my consulting business. I feel that this field of chemistry is still a vital part of science and I feel very strongly about wanting to be associated with that.
Thanks for stopping by! I hope you learned something new today. Please leave a comment if you wish and check in again soon for future posts. Until next time!
What's the first thing you think of and your reaction when you hear the term "radioactivity"? Unless you're already a scientist or in a science-related field, my guess is you think of weapons of mass destruction or a nuclear plant meltdown along with a "deer-in-the-headlights" look on your face. No offense or disrespect, but that's what most people think of. When I first started my career at DuPont in the Iodination Department, I would tell people what I did and I would get every reaction from bewilderment to disbelief to outright shock. "I suppose you glow?" they would ask, or "You work with WHAT?" (Big sigh on my part!). Sometimes I wouldn't be very forthcoming as to what I did or I would modify the explanation a bit. I didn't exactly lie about what I did; I just left some details out. It just made it much easier to deal with people and eliminate the awkwardness that followed. I found it amusing quite frankly. What most people don't realize it that using radioactive materials and substances for good and noble means has lead to many important discoveries and medical uses for mankind. Radioactivity should not be looked upon as frightening and associated only with destructive methods.
When the pioneer scientists of physics and chemistry (i.e. Marie and Pierre Curie, Henri Becquerel) discovered radioactive elements, they had no idea how beneficial these substances would become in later years. Discovery of radium and plutonium would lead to the discovery of many other isotopes. Various isotopes have numerous uses and applications whether diagnostic or therapeutic. Radioactive compounds are used for detection and quantification in most if not all research settings. It is standard practice to utilize radioactive compounds in research and development of pharmaceuticals and diagnostic assays. There are many isotopes to discuss but I will limit this article to 125-I and 131-I since they are included in my area of expertise.
When Rosalyn Yalow and Solomon Berson developed the radioimmunoassay (RIA) technique in the late 1950's, they provided groundbreaking research in detecting diseases that had never been done before. However, before the actual RIA was developed, they needed a key component to this vital assay: the iodinated compound. In order to perform the RIA, a compound labeled with the isotopes of iodine, 125-I or 131-I, would be needed. Originally, before the RIA was developed, these two pioneers labeled insulin with 125-I and injected diabetic patients with the radiolabelled insulin in order to observe where insulin travelled in the body. The radiation given off by the 125-I would help them visualize where the insulin ended up, whether in urine or other parts of the body. So that they didn't have to inject people with radioactive iodine and utilize smaller quantities of materials, Yalow and Berson developed the RIA. They could mix the radiolabelled insulin with it's naturally occurring antibody to form an antibody-hormone pair. They then added a quantity of a patient's blood. Separations of the mixtures were then performed and measurements of the radioactivity taken. They could then calculate the difference in radioactivity levels so as to determine how much insulin was in the patient's sample blood.
Many researchers and scientists at various medical and pharmaceutical settings started using this assay for numerous applications. In order to procure the iodinated component for the assay, they would iodinate the compound they needed themselves. Many journal articles were published at this point with advice and guidance on how to iodinate various compounds. However, so many individuals were utilizing RIA techniques that a potential market was in the making. Companies were established to provide radioiodinated compounds and services so that researchers or medical facilities could just purchase said products and proceed with their assays. These companies are still in existence today. However, there are other means of detection such as fluorescence so the demand for iodinated compounds has fallen slightly. But the need is still there and in some instances RIA is the premium choice for quantifying biological entities in the body.
Still think that radioactivity is a scary and frightening thing? You really shouldn't. When working with radioactive materials, one must have utmost respect for the substances at hand and utilize safety regulations; however, the benefits and progress of what one can achieve by using radioactive materials (i.e. iodinated compounds) outweighs any danger that might occur. Use of iodinated compounds has lead to numerous discoveries about the human body, development of pharmaceuticals and the emergence of diagnostic tests and therapeutic treatments.
When I worked at DuPont in the Iodination Dept., I always felt like I was part of a bigger picture. Researchers at various pharmaceutical companies depended on me for providing them with quality iodinated products that would aide them in their research and development. I was always so proud to be part of that process. So radioactivity has never been frightening to me. To me, it has meant progress, innovation, discovery and breakthrough. Better understanding of the human body and cures for diseases have been made possible because of work with radioactivity. This is why I still want to provide expertise in this area of science through my consulting business. I feel that this field of chemistry is still a vital part of science and I feel very strongly about wanting to be associated with that.
Thanks for stopping by! I hope you learned something new today. Please leave a comment if you wish and check in again soon for future posts. Until next time!
"I never see what has been done; I only see what remains to be done."--Marie Curie
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