Pharmaco-imaging

Pharmaco-imaging is the marriage between imaging and pharmacology that provides additional information that could not otherwise be obtained using traditional techniques. It also allows for a more precise, faster and direct translation of data from a preclinical to clinical context. The development of techniques useful for pharmaco-imaging are fully integrated in Oncodesign’s R&D axes.

Pharmaco-imaging is also useful for optimizing combination treatments of novel compounds or compounds already in clinical trials.

In a preclinical scenario we are able to associate imaging biomarkers that will facilitate the use of novel combinations in the clinic. The parameters that can be analyzed include the optimal standard-of-care agent, the best schedule, the right sequence and the pharmacologically-active doses of the combination.

Oncodesign has developed expertise in preclinical imaging using Magnetic Resonance Imaging (µMRI) and Positron Emission Tomography (µPET).

MRI

• Our µMRI scanner (4.7T Brüker Pharmascan) is under SPF conditions, which allows us to perform longitudinal imaging studies of tumor-bearing animals. We can measure the growth of deep-seated and orthotopic tumors and evaluate the activity of treatment without the need of satellite animals, since each animal is its own control.
• The effect of treatment on blood flow or vessel permeability and functionality can be assessed by studying the diffusion of contrast agents. These techniques, which are already used in the clinic, can improve, facilitate and strengthen the therapeutic development of compounds. As such, the clinician will receive a novel compound to test in Phase I with an associated MRI parameter to be monitored.

µPET

• µPET is used to study changes in tumor growth, activity and physiology in response to treatment. Clinical radiotracers, such as ¹⁸FDG or ¹⁸FLT, can be used to characterize the metabolic activity of tumors and the proliferation of tumor cells.
• Other radiotracers can be also useful for imaging hypoxia (¹⁸FAZA) and inflammation (radiolabelled RGD peptide) or assessing the biodistribution of therapeutic agents (radiolabelling of compounds with ¹¹C or antibodies with ⁶⁴Cu).
• Our collaboration with the University of Tübingen provides us with expertise in radiochemistry and µPET image acquisition and analysis.