LaStaFium — Late-Stage Functionalization for ¹⁸F-labeled drug research.


Making Early Human Drug Development More Predictable

LaStaFium is developing a technology platform of late stage fluorination reactions for the rapid synthesis of ¹⁸F-labeled small-molecule analogues, enabling more accessible and practical Phase 0 and PET studies.

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The Problem

A Critical Gap in Drug Development

Promising drug candidates still fail late because traditional preclinical models cannot reliably predict distribution, exposure, pharmacokinetics, or tissue penetration in humans. Phase 0 studies — using ¹⁸F-labeled compounds and PET imaging — can deliver real human data before large clinical trials begin.

But there is a fundamental bottleneck: making the right ¹⁸F-labeled molecule. ¹⁸F has a short half-life, and radiolabeling demands a fundamentally different approach from conventional synthetic chemistry. For many candidates, finding a viable labeling route is slow, difficult, and highly specialised.

Why this matters

What is the drug distibution?

Does it reach the intended tissue (brain, tumor)?

Is human PK consistent with the development hypothesis?

Can we decide earlier — before costly Phase I programs?


Our Approach

Late-Stage Functionalization + High-Throughput Chemistry

Rather than relying on a single synthetic route, LaStaFium's platform enables parallel testing of hundreds of reaction conditions — transforming ¹⁸F radiolabeling from a bespoke chemistry problem into a systematic, platform-based discovery process.

Automated Chemistry

Robotic and miniaturised workflows designed for rapid, reproducible experimentation at scale. Procedures are applicable for 18F hot-sytheses.

High-Throughput Screening

Parallel evaluation of a broad range of reaction conditions to identify viable labeling routes efficiently. We increse the probablity of finding the reaction that works.

State-of-the-art chemical reactions

Novel chemical sythesis methods such as electrochemistry, photochemistry. We use human curated, lab-tested database of reactions, updated with novel literature reports.

PET-Ready Molecules

Generating ¹⁸F-labeled analogues for preclinical studies and Phase 0 in GMP standard.

Every molecule presents a different chemistry problem. Our flexible experimental platform is built around this reality — exploring many chemical possibilities efficiently, with capacity designed to scale with demand.

Vision

Make Phase 0 a More Accessible Part of Drug Development

The future of drug discovery requires faster, more precise decision-making before entering large clinical programmes. LaStaFium is removing one of the key technological barriers limiting broader use of ¹⁸F-based Phase 0 research: the synthesis of the radiolabeled compound itself.

Better Chemistry

A scalable, automated platform built to handle the diversity of modern drug candidates and radiolabeling challenges.

Better Information

Human pharmacokinetic and biodistribution data at an earlier stage — before expensive Phase I commitments.

Better Decisions

Earlier, higher-confidence go/no-go decisions that reduce late-stage attrition and accelerate development timelines.

Are you developing a drug candidate that could benefit from ¹⁸F labeling or PET research? Are you interested in partnering with LaStaFium?

LaStaFium — Late-Stage Functionalization for ¹⁸F-labeled drug research.