Shared Facilities

Current Projects

20 Research Projects:
PI(s) SF(s) Project Topic Funding Agency Details
Hak Soo Choi, John V. Frangioni, Summer L. Gibbs-Strauss  LSAIF, TSA NDTR  Animal Model Systems Animal Imaging, Contrast Agent Chemistry, Physiology and ADME-Tox, Targeting Ligand Development, Tumor Biology and Cytotherapy  TSA, NCI Details
Hak Soo Choi, John V. Frangioni, Summer L. Gibbs-Strauss  LSAIF, TCIF  BioD/PK/Clearance Clinical Imaging, Contrast Agent Chemistry, Targeting Ligand Development  NCRR, NIBIB, NCI, NIBIB, NIBIB, NIBIB Details
John V. Frangioni    Cell Biology and Subcellular Localization Molecular & Cellular Biology, Tumor Biology and Cytotherapy  NCI, HHMI, AACR Details
Hak Soo Choi, John V. Frangioni, Summer L. Gibbs-Strauss  LSAIF, TSA NDTR  Cytotoxic and Radio Therapy Tumor Biology and Cytotherapy  TSA, Lewis, Ellison Details
Hak Soo Choi, John V. Frangioni, Summer L. Gibbs-Strauss    FLARE™ and NIR Contrast Agents Clinical Imaging, Contrast Agent Chemistry, Targeting Ligand Development  NIBIB, NIBIB, NCI, DDCF, NCI, NCI, NIBIB, DOE, NIBIB, NHLBI, NIBIB Details
John V. Frangioni    FLARE™ and NIR Imaging Systems Clinical Imaging, Imaging System Engineering  MTTC, NCI, NCI, DOE, NCI Details
Hak Soo Choi, John V. Frangioni, Summer L. Gibbs-Strauss  TSA NDTR  High-Throughput Drug Discovery Targeting Ligand Development  TSA, NCI, Ellison, Gorin Details
John V. Frangioni  LSAIF  MRI Agents and Technology Animal Imaging, Clinical Imaging, Contrast Agent Chemistry  NHLBI, Ellison Details
Hak Soo Choi, John V. Frangioni    Nanoparticles and Polymers Animal Imaging, Contrast Agent Chemistry, Physiology and ADME-Tox, Targeting Ligand Development, Tumor Biology and Cytotherapy  NCI, NIBIB Details
John V. Frangioni, Summer L. Gibbs-Strauss    Near-Infrared Fluorescence Histology Clinical Imaging  NCI Details
Sylvain Gioux    NIR Endogenous Imaging   Details
Hak Soo Choi, John V. Frangioni, Summer L. Gibbs-Strauss  LSAIF  Normal Tissue/Organ Targeted Agents Contrast Agent Chemistry, Targeting Ligand Development  GE, NIBIB, NIBIB, NCI, NCI, NIBIB, NIBIB, NIBIB Details
Sylvain Gioux    Novel Optical Imaging Methods   Details
John V. Frangioni    Phage Display and Protein Expression Molecular & Cellular Biology  DDCF, NCI, NCI Details
John V. Frangioni    Radioscintigraphic Imaging Systems Clinical Imaging, Imaging System Engineering  Lewis, NCI, Ellison Details
John V. Frangioni  LSAIF, TCIF  Radiotracer Development Animal Imaging, Contrast Agent Chemistry, Physiology and ADME-Tox, Targeting Ligand Development, Tumor Biology and Cytotherapy  NCRR, NCRR, Lewis, NCI, DDCF, Ellison Details
Hak Soo Choi, John V. Frangioni    Sentinel Lymph Node Mapping Animal Imaging, Clinical Imaging  NCI, NIBIB, NCI, NCI Details
John V. Frangioni    Stem Cells and Gene Therapy Animal Imaging, Clinical Imaging  CIMIT, CIMIT, NHLBI Details
Hak Soo Choi    Tissue Engineering Molecular & Cellular Biology  Details
Hak Soo Choi, John V. Frangioni, Summer L. Gibbs-Strauss  LSAIF, TCIF  Tumor and Disease Targeted Agents Targeting Ligand Development  NCRR, NCRR, Lewis, NIBIB, NCI, DDCF, NCI, NCI, DOE, Ellison, NIBIB Details
Description:The discovery of new diagnostic and therapeutic agents for human disease requires well designed animal model systems. The Center for Molecular Imaging employs state-of-the-art molecular and cellular biology to produce novel animal models for a wide variety of human diseases. These models are used to optimize the next generation of disease-specific contrast agents.
Description:When a disease-targeted diagnostic or therapeutic agent is injected into the human bloodstream, it undergoes biodistribution, that is, goes everywhere, binding to the target, clearance from blood and normal tissues, metabolism, and eventually elimination from the body. Understanding how chemical structure and physiology influence these phases of drug behavior is of paramount importance for designing improved techniques. For over a decade, the Center for Molecular Imaging has applied advanced molecular imaging technology to understand the critical relationship between drug design and drug behavior.
Description:The quantum of the human body is the cell. Therefore, the quantum of disease is the cell. The Center for Molecular Imaging utilizes modern microscopic imaging techniques to probe cellular processes and to define the subcellular localization of key proteins and small molecules.
Description:At the Center for Molecular Imaging, we believe that Seeing is Curing™. If we are able to see cancer and other diseases using targeted small molecule, and learn how to better target disease using the techniques of molecular imaging, then we should be able to kill cancer by replacing the “light bulb” with a “bomb.” Many sub-projects are focused on developing the next generation of disease-targeted molecular therapies, which have improved therapeutic window by virtue of lowered background, non-specific binding.
Description:A major focus of the Center for Molecular Imaging is on the development of exogenous contrast agents for optical imaging exploit near-infrared (NIR) fluorescent light. Although invisible to the human eye, NIR light can penetrate several millimeters into living tissue, and also provides relatively high sensitivity, high specificity, and low autofluorescence. We develop general purpose NIR fluorophores with optimal in vivo properties as well as those targeted to either normal cells, tissues, and organs, or various diseased tissue, such as cancer.
Description:A major focus of the Center for Molecular Imaging is on the development of clinically-viable optical imaging systems that exploit near-infrared (NIR) light. Although invisible to the human eye, NIR light can penetrate several millimeters into living tissue, thus providing physicians and surgeons with the ability to visualize sub-surface anatomy and/or tissue function in real-time. This is particularly important during surgery, where NIR light can be used to find tumors and their margins, avoid blood vessels and nerves, and measure oxygenation, metabolism, and hydration
Description:At the present time, the world has few effective small molecules that bind with high affinity and specificity to cancer and other human diseases. The Center for Molecular Imaging has invested heavily in the development of robotic chemistry techniques to speed the rate at which new targeting ligands are discovered and new therapeutic combinations are discovered.
Description:Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is a technique used daily in clinical medicine to diagnose and stage human disease. By employing high frequency radiofrequency waves, and the human body’s propensity to have small magnetic moments, MRI can see inside the body without the need for ionizing radiation. The Center for Molecular Imaging is pioneering novel methods for improving MRI sensitivity, resolution, and specificity, including the use of hyperpolarized contrast and tissue-targeted contrast, and the development of novel pulse sequences.
Description:Biocompatible nanoparticles and polymers offer certain advantages over small molecules including payload capacity, multi-functionality, and effect size. The Center for Molecular Imaging has an intense research effort focused on understanding the behavior of nanoparticles when injected into the body and on optimizing key parameters for in vivo imaging and treatment.
Description:In order to find cancer from biopsy and surgical samples, pathologists presently utilize a stain called hematoxylin and eosin (H&E), which was developed in the 1800s. The Center for Molecular Imaging has discovered, patented, and is now optimizing a new technology that adds multiple channels of quantitative imaging information to a standard H&E slide. The technique exploits the invisibility of near-infrared light and is being used to develop fully automated computer-guided cancer detection as well as ultra-sensitive (single cell) detection of diseases on pathological specimens.
Description:
Description:During surgery, it is often necessary to find and avoid normal tissues and organs, such as blood vessels, nerves, and endocrine glands to prevent long-term complications. Several programs in the Center for Molecular Imaging are directed at developing optical contrast agents and radiotracers for the detection of normal tissues and organs with high sensitivity and specificity.
Description:
Description:Molecular biology is at the heart of modern medical research. The Center for Molecular Imaging has developed, and is developing, peptide phage display and peptide expression technology to support our in vitro and in vivo studies.
Description:Given the high sensitivity provided by disease-specific radiotracers, the development of novel radioscintigraphic imaging systems is a high priority. The Center for Molecular Imaging focuses on two types of devices, those that are used in the operating room to give surgeons the ability to highlight tumors and sentinel lymph nodes during surgery, and those that improve sensitivity and resolution of PET radiotracers for certain tissues and organs.
Description:Single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) and positron emission tomography (PET) are the only whole body techniques for finding cancer and other diseases with high sensitivity. Central to their effectiveness are disease-specific radiotracers, which bind to the disease of interest after injection into the bloodstream. The Center for Molecular Imaging spans the spectrum from discovery of new agents in the PIs’ laboratories, through animal validation in the Longwood Small Animal Imaging Facility (Longwood SAIF), and ultimately to first-in-human clinical testing of promising candidates in the Translational Cancer Imaging Facility (TCIF).
Description:Sentinel lymph node (SLN) mapping is the standard of care in breast cancer and melanoma, and is being investigated for use in many other cancers. The Center for Molecular Imaging has pioneered the development of both inorganic/organic hybrid (e.g., quantum dots) and organic lymphatic tracers for SLN mapping and in some cases have translated the new technology to first-in-human trials.
Description:The future of treatment for many serious diseases, including cardiovascular disease, Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, and stroke promises to be based on stem cell and/or gene therapy. Being able to track and quantify cell-based therapy anywhere in the body is a critical unmet need, and the Center for Molecular Imaging is committed to improving the limit of detection for in vivo imaging.
Description:The future treatment of many human diseases will undoubtedly require the growth of new tissues and/or organs from patient stem cells. Presently, however, there is an incomplete understanding of how to coax stem cells to proliferate in certain microenvironments then differentiate into the desired tissue. At the Center for Molecular Imaging, we are utilizing the latest advances in molecular imaging to study stem cells, their microenvironment, and the influence of each on the other in the hopes of developing improved engineered tissue to treat human disease.
Description:The promise of molecular imaging includes novel diagnostic agents that are able to detect and quantify human disease at unprecedented levels. This includes targeted agents that can find cancer wherever it is hiding in the body, or discover an impending heart attack before it happens. Most of the effort in the Center for Molecular Imaging is focused on targeted small molecules, which exhibit rapid biodistribution, rapid clearance and elimination, and if engineered correctly, high binding affinity.