PAST: RPS COMMUNITY OF PRACTICE: Carbon-11, beyond MeI

“Carbon-11, beyond MeI”

Dr Stuart McCluskey, Head Of Radiopharmaceutical Sciences at Austin Health

Meeting Date/Time: October 28, 2025, 1400 ESDT

Dear Colleagues
It gives me great pleasure to announce the ninth lecture for 2025, a presentation by Dr Stuart McCluskey.
Yours sincerely
Andrew Katsifis
Chair ACPSEM-Specialty Group

Abstract
Carbon-11 is an isotope with huge potential utility in PET radiolabelling of small molecules. The vast knowledge of carbon chemistry coupled with the stringent time requirements has opened the door to some incredible radiochemistry methodologies. These methods have allowed development of radiopharmaceuticals that would be otherwise inaccessible, and which will continue to play an important role within our field. This talk ‘Carbon-11, Beyond MeI’ looks into some of the lesser-known labelling strategies from a hands-on practical perspective, the chemistry behind them, their limitations and advantages.

Introducing Dr Stuart McCluskey
Stuart McCluskey obtained his PhD in Chemistry from Imperial College London under Prof. Nick Long, working on the development and preclinical characterisation of PET labelled lipophilic cation cardiac tracers. After a brief stint as a Post-doc with Prof. Oliver Howes carrying out clinical implementation of an adenosine 2A PET tracer and radiosynthesis support for preclinical activities, he started working as a full-time R&D radiochemist for Invicro (now Perceptive). A significant portion of this role was F-18 and C-11 labelling feasibility, often requiring  implementation and utilisation of diverse radiochemical strategies. In 2025 Stuart emigrated to Australia with his wife to work at Austin Health, heading up the Radiopharmaceutical Sciences team under Prof. Andrew Scott.