News for hackers. Stuff that matters.
Re:Why cancer cells waste so much energy by dnautics on Friday January 15, 2021 @11:07AM (#25792404)
[1] Say replacing the hydrogens in glucose with tritium

That's part of the problem. Think you can come up with a synthesis of glucose that replaces the nonlabile hydrogens with tritium, is doable on the days scale, repurifiable for human consumption and mass producable on-site at a hospital?

For reference ($900/20Ci): https://www.perkinelmer.com/product/glucose-d-3-3h-hplc-puri...

Re:Why cancer cells waste so much energy by smartscience on Friday January 15, 2021 @11:48AM (#25792872)
I'd be willing to have a crack at this if I thought it could help (my background is in nuclear methods for materials characterisation). But I've a feeling that the difference in uptake between cancerous and normal tissue might not be large enough to make this especially useful. Fluorine-18 labelled glucose is used in PET imaging, but not for treatment as far as I'm aware. On the other hand, if a compound can be found that is more selective for the cancer in question, making it radioactive may offer a further improvement.
Re:Why cancer cells waste so much energy by whatshisface on Friday January 15, 2021 @12:00PM (#25793047)
Isotope labeling for imaging requires only a low isotope purity. One radioactive glucose in a vast sea of normal glucose is just fine, because as I'm sure you know the energies of the emitted particles make a very distinct marker.
Re:Why cancer cells waste so much energy by eutectic on Friday January 15, 2021 @11:36AM (#25792710)
What about an enzymatic synthesis? Or even partial biosynthesis.
Re:Why cancer cells waste so much energy by IfOnlyYouKnew on Friday January 15, 2021 @12:07PM (#25793150)
Just grow some sprouts in it?

(Not an endorsement of the idea)