Rational design of sequestering agents for plutonium and other actinides

An overview is given of a research which is the result of many years of collaborative effort in inorganic chemistry, synthetic organic chemistry, and actinide biology. This collaboration has advanced areas of nutritional science, clinical medicine, and radiation protection. Each of these areas will benefit from further studies in this field and the development of new and improved ligands for the treatment of actinide poisoning, whether from accidents or weapons use. Focus is on the most common actinides and those deemed most likely to be present in nuclear fuel and wastes, namely plutonium, thorium, americium, uranium, and neptunium.