NorthStar Announces MURR Production Approval

NorthStar Medical Radioisotopes announced yesterday that it has received approval from the University of Missouri Research Reactor to begin routine production of molybdenum-99 at the MURR facility, enabling the company to establish a weekly production schedule and increase its output. The milestone will help NorthStar transition from development to a routine production process in order to boost its output at MURR to as much as 200 6-day curies per process, the company said. Once NorthStar submits its final regulatory amendment to the Food and Drug Administration—anticipated by the end of the year– the company anticipates ultimately producing up to 3,000 6-day Ci at MURR. “Approval to routinely operate our aliquoting line is a major milestone toward becoming the first commercial producer of Mo-99 in the United States in more than 25 years and giving health care professionals nationwide reliable access to the Tc-99m they need to provide patients accurate diagnoses and conduct important research,” said James Harvey, NorthStar senior vice president and chief science officer, in a statement.