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Thwaites DI, Prokopovich DA, Garrett RF, Haworth A, Rosenfeld A, Ahern V. The rationale for a carbon ion radiation therapy facility in Australia. J Med Radiat Sci 2024; 71 Suppl 2:59-76. [PMID: 38061984 PMCID: PMC11011608 DOI: 10.1002/jmrs.744] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/08/2023] [Accepted: 11/17/2023] [Indexed: 04/13/2024] Open
Abstract
Australia has taken a collaborative nationally networked approach to achieve particle therapy capability. This supports the under-construction proton therapy facility in Adelaide, other potential proton centres and an under-evaluation proposal for a hybrid carbon ion and proton centre in western Sydney. A wide-ranging overview is presented of the rationale for carbon ion radiation therapy, applying observations to the case for an Australian facility and to the clinical and research potential from such a national centre.
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Affiliation(s)
- David I. Thwaites
- Institute of Medical Physics, School of PhysicsUniversity of SydneySydneyNew South WalesAustralia
- Department of Radiation OncologySydney West Radiation Oncology NetworkWestmeadNew South WalesAustralia
- Radiotherapy Research Group, Institute of Medical ResearchSt James's Hospital and University of LeedsLeedsUK
| | | | - Richard F. Garrett
- Australian Nuclear Science and Technology OrganisationLucas HeightsNew South WalesAustralia
| | - Annette Haworth
- Institute of Medical Physics, School of PhysicsUniversity of SydneySydneyNew South WalesAustralia
- Department of Radiation OncologySydney West Radiation Oncology NetworkWestmeadNew South WalesAustralia
| | - Anatoly Rosenfeld
- Centre for Medical Radiation Physics, School of PhysicsUniversity of WollongongSydneyNew South WalesAustralia
| | - Verity Ahern
- Department of Radiation OncologySydney West Radiation Oncology NetworkWestmeadNew South WalesAustralia
- Westmead Clinical School, Faculty of Medicine and HealthUniversity of SydneySydneyNew South WalesAustralia
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2
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Experimental Setup for Irradiation of Cell Cultures at L2A2. QUANTUM BEAM SCIENCE 2022. [DOI: 10.3390/qubs6010010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/01/2023]
Abstract
Laser–plasma proton sources and their applications to preclinical research has become a very active field of research in recent years. In addition to their small dimensions as compared to classical ion accelerators, they offer the possibility to study the biological effects of ultra-short particle bunches and the correspondingly high dose rates. We report on the design of an experimental setup for the irradiation of cell cultures at the L2A2 laboratory at the University of Santiago de Compostela, making use of a 1.2 J Ti: Sapphire laser with a 10 Hz repetition rate. Our setup comprises a proton energy separator consisting of two antiparallel magnetic fields realized by a set of permanent magnets. It allows for selecting a narrow energy window around an adaptable design value of 5 MeV out of the initially broad spectrum typical for Target Normal Sheath Acceleration (TNSA). At the same time, unwanted electrons and X-rays are segregated from the protons. This part of the setup is located inside the target vessel of the L2A2 laser. A subsequent vacuum flange sealed with a thin kapton window allows for particle passage to external sample irradiation. A combination of passive detector materials and real-time monitors is applied for measurement of the deposited radiation dose. A critical point of this interdisciplinary project is the manipulation of biological samples under well-controlled, sterile conditions. Cell cultures are prepared in sealed flasks with an ultra-thin entrance window and analysed at the nearby Fundación Pública Galega Medicina Xenómica and IDIS. The first trials will be centred at the quantification of DNA double-strand breaks as a function of radiation dose.
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Tinganelli W, Luoni F, Durante M. What can space radiation protection learn from radiation oncology? LIFE SCIENCES IN SPACE RESEARCH 2021; 30:82-95. [PMID: 34281668 DOI: 10.1016/j.lssr.2021.06.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/19/2021] [Revised: 06/15/2021] [Accepted: 06/17/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
Protection from cosmic radiation of crews of long-term space missions is now becoming an urgent requirement to allow a safe colonization of the moon and Mars. Epidemiology provides little help to quantify the risk, because the astronaut group is small and as yet mostly involved in low-Earth orbit mission, whilst the usual cohorts used for radiation protection on Earth (e.g. atomic bomb survivors) were exposed to a radiation quality substantially different from the energetic charged particle field found in space. However, there are over 260,000 patients treated with accelerated protons or heavier ions for different types of cancer, and this cohort may be useful for quantifying the effects of space-like radiation in humans. Space radiation protection and particle therapy research also share the same tools and devices, such as accelerators and detectors, as well as several research topics, from nuclear fragmentation cross sections to the radiobiology of densely ionizing radiation. The transfer of the information from the cancer radiotherapy field to space is manifestly complicated, yet the two field should strengthen their relationship and exchange methods and data.
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Affiliation(s)
- Walter Tinganelli
- GSI Helmholtzzentrum für Schwerionenforschung, Biophysics Department, Darmstadt, Germany
| | - Francesca Luoni
- GSI Helmholtzzentrum für Schwerionenforschung, Biophysics Department, Darmstadt, Germany; Technische Universität Darmstadt, Institut für Physik Kondensierter Materie, Darmstadt, Germany
| | - Marco Durante
- GSI Helmholtzzentrum für Schwerionenforschung, Biophysics Department, Darmstadt, Germany; Technische Universität Darmstadt, Institut für Physik Kondensierter Materie, Darmstadt, Germany.
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4
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Bláha P, Feoli C, Agosteo S, Calvaruso M, Cammarata FP, Catalano R, Ciocca M, Cirrone GAP, Conte V, Cuttone G, Facoetti A, Forte GI, Giuffrida L, Magro G, Margarone D, Minafra L, Petringa G, Pucci G, Ricciardi V, Rosa E, Russo G, Manti L. The Proton-Boron Reaction Increases the Radiobiological Effectiveness of Clinical Low- and High-Energy Proton Beams: Novel Experimental Evidence and Perspectives. Front Oncol 2021; 11:682647. [PMID: 34262867 PMCID: PMC8274279 DOI: 10.3389/fonc.2021.682647] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/18/2021] [Accepted: 05/17/2021] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Protontherapy is a rapidly expanding radiotherapy modality where accelerated proton beams are used to precisely deliver the dose to the tumor target but is generally considered ineffective against radioresistant tumors. Proton-Boron Capture Therapy (PBCT) is a novel approach aimed at enhancing proton biological effectiveness. PBCT exploits a nuclear fusion reaction between low-energy protons and 11B atoms, i.e. p+11B→ 3α (p-B), which is supposed to produce highly-DNA damaging α-particles exclusively across the tumor-conformed Spread-Out Bragg Peak (SOBP), without harming healthy tissues in the beam entrance channel. To confirm previous work on PBCT, here we report new in-vitro data obtained at the 62-MeV ocular melanoma-dedicated proton beamline of the INFN-Laboratori Nazionali del Sud (LNS), Catania, Italy. For the first time, we also tested PBCT at the 250-MeV proton beamline used for deep-seated cancers at the Centro Nazionale di Adroterapia Oncologica (CNAO), Pavia, Italy. We used Sodium Mercaptododecaborate (BSH) as 11B carrier, DU145 prostate cancer cells to assess cell killing and non-cancer epithelial breast MCF-10A cells for quantifying chromosome aberrations (CAs) by FISH painting and DNA repair pathway protein expression by western blotting. Cells were exposed at various depths along the two clinical SOBPs. Compared to exposure in the absence of boron, proton irradiation in the presence of BSH significantly reduced DU145 clonogenic survival and increased both frequency and complexity of CAs in MCF-10A cells at the mid- and distal SOBP positions, but not at the beam entrance. BSH-mediated enhancement of DNA damage response was also found at mid-SOBP. These results corroborate PBCT as a strategy to render protontherapy amenable towards radiotherapy-resilient tumor. If coupled with emerging proton FLASH radiotherapy modalities, PBCT could thus widen the protontherapy therapeutic index.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pavel Bláha
- Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare (INFN), Sezione di Napoli, Naples, Italy
| | - Chiara Feoli
- Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare (INFN), Sezione di Napoli, Naples, Italy
| | - Stefano Agosteo
- Energy Department, Politecnico di Milano, and INFN, Sezione di Milano, Milan, Italy
| | - Marco Calvaruso
- Istituto di Bioimmagini e Fisiologia Molecolare-Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche (IBFM-CNR), Cefalù, Italy.,Laboratori Nazionali del Sud (LNS), INFN, Catania, Italy
| | - Francesco Paolo Cammarata
- Istituto di Bioimmagini e Fisiologia Molecolare-Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche (IBFM-CNR), Cefalù, Italy.,Laboratori Nazionali del Sud (LNS), INFN, Catania, Italy
| | | | - Mario Ciocca
- Medical Physics Unit & Research Department, Centro Nazionale di Adroterapia Oncologica (CNAO) & INFN, Sezione di Pavia, Pavia, Italy
| | | | - Valeria Conte
- Laboratori Nazionali di Legnaro (LNL), INFN, Legnaro, Italy
| | | | - Angelica Facoetti
- Medical Physics Unit & Research Department, Centro Nazionale di Adroterapia Oncologica (CNAO) & INFN, Sezione di Pavia, Pavia, Italy
| | - Giusi Irma Forte
- Istituto di Bioimmagini e Fisiologia Molecolare-Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche (IBFM-CNR), Cefalù, Italy.,Laboratori Nazionali del Sud (LNS), INFN, Catania, Italy
| | - Lorenzo Giuffrida
- Extreme Light Infrastructure (ELI)-Beamlines Center, Institute of Physics (FZU), Czech Academy of Sciences, Prague, Czechia
| | - Giuseppe Magro
- Medical Physics Unit & Research Department, Centro Nazionale di Adroterapia Oncologica (CNAO) & INFN, Sezione di Pavia, Pavia, Italy
| | - Daniele Margarone
- Extreme Light Infrastructure (ELI)-Beamlines Center, Institute of Physics (FZU), Czech Academy of Sciences, Prague, Czechia
| | - Luigi Minafra
- Istituto di Bioimmagini e Fisiologia Molecolare-Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche (IBFM-CNR), Cefalù, Italy.,Laboratori Nazionali del Sud (LNS), INFN, Catania, Italy
| | - Giada Petringa
- Laboratori Nazionali del Sud (LNS), INFN, Catania, Italy.,Extreme Light Infrastructure (ELI)-Beamlines Center, Institute of Physics (FZU), Czech Academy of Sciences, Prague, Czechia
| | - Gaia Pucci
- Istituto di Bioimmagini e Fisiologia Molecolare-Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche (IBFM-CNR), Cefalù, Italy.,Department of Biological, Chemical and Pharmaceutical Sciences and Technologies (STeBiCeF), Università di Palermo, Palermo, Italy
| | - Valerio Ricciardi
- Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare (INFN), Sezione di Napoli, Naples, Italy.,Department of Mathematics & Physics, Università L. Vanvitelli, Caserta, Italy
| | - Enrico Rosa
- Radiation Biophysics Laboratory, Department of Physics "E. Pancini", Università di Napoli Federico II, Naples, Italy
| | - Giorgio Russo
- Istituto di Bioimmagini e Fisiologia Molecolare-Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche (IBFM-CNR), Cefalù, Italy.,Laboratori Nazionali del Sud (LNS), INFN, Catania, Italy.,The Sicilian Center of Nuclear Physics and the Structure of Matter (CSFNSM), Catania, Italy
| | - Lorenzo Manti
- Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare (INFN), Sezione di Napoli, Naples, Italy.,Radiation Biophysics Laboratory, Department of Physics "E. Pancini", Università di Napoli Federico II, Naples, Italy
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Francis Z, Incerti S, Zein SA, Lampe N, Guzman CA, Durante M. Monte Carlo Simulation of SARS-CoV-2 Radiation-Induced Inactivation for Vaccine Development. Radiat Res 2021; 195:221-229. [PMID: 33411888 DOI: 10.1667/rade-20-00241.1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/29/2020] [Accepted: 12/16/2020] [Indexed: 11/03/2022]
Abstract
Immunization with an inactivated virus is one of the strategies currently being tested towards developing a SARS-CoV-2 vaccine. One of the methods used to inactivate viruses is exposure to high doses of ionizing radiation to damage their nucleic acids. While gamma (γ) rays effectively induce lesions in the RNA, envelope proteins are also highly damaged in the process. This in turn may alter their antigenic properties, affecting their capacity to induce an adaptive immune response able to confer effective protection. Here, we modeled the effect of sparsely and densely ionizing radiation on SARS-CoV-2 using the Monte Carlo toolkit Geant4-DNA. With a realistic 3D target virus model, we calculated the expected number of lesions in the spike and membrane proteins, as well as in the viral RNA. Our findings showed that γ rays produced significant spike protein damage, but densely ionizing charged particles induced less membrane damage for the same level of RNA lesions, because a single ion traversal through the nuclear envelope was sufficient to inactivate the virus. We propose that accelerated charged particles produce inactivated viruses with little structural damage to envelope proteins, thereby representing a new and effective tool for developing vaccines against SARS-CoV-2 and other enveloped viruses.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ziad Francis
- Saint Joseph University, U.R. Mathématiques et Modélisation, Beirut, Lebanon
| | - Sebastien Incerti
- Université de Bordeaux, CNRS/IN2P3, UMR5797, Centre d'Études Nucléaires de Bordeaux Gradignan, France
| | - Sara A Zein
- Université de Bordeaux, CNRS/IN2P3, UMR5797, Centre d'Études Nucléaires de Bordeaux Gradignan, France
| | - Nathanael Lampe
- Université de Bordeaux, CNRS/IN2P3, UMR5797, Centre d'Études Nucléaires de Bordeaux Gradignan, France
| | - Carlos A Guzman
- Helmholtz Zentrum für Infektionsforschung (HZI), Department of Vaccinology and Applied Microbiology, Braunschweig, Germany
| | - Marco Durante
- GSI Helmholtzzentrum für Schwerionenforschung, Biophysics Department, Darmstadt, Germany.,Technische Universität Darmstadt, Institute of Condensed Matter Physics, Darmstadt, Germany
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