In vitro binding of radiocesium to Prussian Blue coated strips and Prussian Blue containing hemoperfusion columns as a potential tool for the treatment of persons internally contaminated with radiocesium.

Cellulose or nylon strips coated with three different Prussian Blue salts were prepared with cellulose nitrate as binding material. These strips were evaluated for their usefulness for the development of an extracorporal clearance device for radiocesium, a radionuclide often released after accidents in nuclear installations (for example in Chernobyl). Extracorporeal clearance can be used to enhance the elimination of radiocesium from internally contaminated persons. The stability of these strips and their binding characteristics for radiocesium were investigated. In all studies strips coated with Fe4[Fe(CN)6]3 proved to be the most suitable for further development of an extracorporeal clearance device: the strips are stable, have a high binding capacity for radiocesium, and can be sterilized. On the basis of these results, hemoperfusion colums containing Fe4[Fe(CN)6]3-coated strips were developed and tested. In in vitro experiments these columns proved to be successful in removing radiocesium from a pasteurized plasma solution (clearance was approximately 100 ml/min). The binding capacity of these columns is relatively high. In 4 h the columns are able to bind approximately 0.3 TBq of radiocesium. They are a promising development for the enhancement of the removal of radiocesium from the human body. They can also be used for the decontamination of other fluids of chemical or biological origin. Further research is, however, still necessary.