Wolfson Molecular Imaging Centre

Last updated

Exterior of the Wolfson Molecular Imaging Centre. WMICexterior.jpg
Exterior of the Wolfson Molecular Imaging Centre.

The University of Manchester Wolfson Molecular Imaging Centre (WMIC) is a purpose-built molecular imaging research facility. Based on the site of the Christie Hospital in Manchester, the Centre aims to develop clinical research and development in medical imaging in areas of oncology, neuroscience and psychiatry research.

Contents

Facilities and equipment

The centre is equipped with cyclotron and radiochemistry facilities including: a hot cell laboratory, 2 advanced high-resolution PET scanners, supporting chemical analysis laboratories and data analysis facilities. [1] [2] There is also a 1.5T MRI scanner in the centre. [3]

The Wolfson Molecular Imaging Centre is part of the Imaging Facilities of the University of Manchester. The Imaging Facilities also own a 3T MRI scanner at the Manchester Clinical Research Facility and in 2015 a GE SIGNA PET-MR scanner was installed at St Mary's Hospital, funded by the Medical Research Council as part of the Dementias Platform UK initiative (DPUK). [4] [5] [6]

History

Detailed planning for the centre began late in 2000, following funding from the Wolfson Foundation, Cancer Research UK, the Christie Hospital Trust Charitable Fund and the University of Manchester. [7] [8] The centre began its programme of clinical research work in June 2006 when it performed its first clinical PET body scan on a volunteer. [9] [10]

In February 2020 it was announced that the radiochemistry facility at the centre would close at the end of 2020. [11]

In 2021 part of the radiochemistry facility began to be used by the Medicines Discovery Catapult. [12] [13]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Positron emission tomography</span> Medical imaging technique

Positron emission tomography (PET) is a functional imaging technique that uses radioactive substances known as radiotracers to visualize and measure changes in metabolic processes, and in other physiological activities including blood flow, regional chemical composition, and absorption. Different tracers are used for various imaging purposes, depending on the target process within the body.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Medical imaging</span> Technique and process of creating visual representations of the interior of a body

Medical imaging is the technique and process of imaging the interior of a body for clinical analysis and medical intervention, as well as visual representation of the function of some organs or tissues (physiology). Medical imaging seeks to reveal internal structures hidden by the skin and bones, as well as to diagnose and treat disease. Medical imaging also establishes a database of normal anatomy and physiology to make it possible to identify abnormalities. Although imaging of removed organs and tissues can be performed for medical reasons, such procedures are usually considered part of pathology instead of medical imaging.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience</span> Research institution in London, England

The Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience (IoPPN) is a leading centre for mental health and neuroscience research, education and training in Europe. It is dedicated to understanding, preventing and treating mental illness, neurological conditions, and other conditions that affect the brain. The IoPPN is a faculty of King's College London, England, and was previously known as the Institute of Psychiatry (IoP).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Neuroimaging</span> Set of techniques to measure and visualize aspects of the nervous system

Neuroimaging is the use of quantitative (computational) techniques to study the structure and function of the central nervous system, developed as an objective way of scientifically studying the healthy human brain in a non-invasive manner. Increasingly it is also being used for quantitative research studies of brain disease and psychiatric illness. Neuroimaging is highly multidisciplinary involving neuroscience, computer science, psychology and statistics, and is not a medical specialty. Neuroimaging is sometimes confused with neuroradiology.

Siemens Healthineers is a German company which provides healthcare solutions and services. It was spun off from its parent company Siemens in 2017, which retains a 75% stake. Siemens Healthineers is the parent company for several medical technology companies and is headquartered in Erlangen, Germany.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Atkinson Morley Hospital</span> Hospital in Copse Hill, England

Atkinson Morley Hospital (AMH) was located at Copse Hill near Wimbledon, South-West London, England from 1869 until 2003. Initially a convalescent hospital, it became one of the most advanced brain surgery centres in the world, and was involved in the development of the CT scanner. Following its closure, neuroscience services were relocated to the new Atkinson Morley Wing of St George's Hospital, Tooting.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cambridge Biomedical Campus</span>

The Cambridge Biomedical Campus is the largest centre of medical research and health science in Europe. The site is located at the southern end of Hills Road in Cambridge, England.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Mallard</span> English physicist (1927–2021)

John Rowland Mallard OBE FRSE FREng was an English physicist and professor of Medical Physics at the University of Aberdeen from 1965 until his retirement in 1992. He was known for setting up and leading the team that developed the first magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) full body scanner and, in particular, positron emission tomography (PET). He was born in Kingsthorpe, Northampton, England.

Abass Alavi is an Iranian-American physician-scientist specializing in the field of molecular imaging, most notably in the imaging modality of positron emission tomography (PET). In August 1976, he was part of the team that performed the first human PET studies of the brain and whole body using the radiotracer [18F]Fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG). Alavi holds the position of Professor of Radiology and Neurology, as well as Director of Research Education in the Department of Radiology at the University of Pennsylvania. Over a career spanning five decades, he has amassed over 2,300 publications and 60,000 citations, earning an h-index of 125 and placing his publication record in the top percentile of scientists.

The Wolfson Brain Imaging Centre (WBIC) is a UK Biomedical Imaging Centre, located at Addenbrooke's Hospital, Cambridge, England, on the Cambridge Bio-Medical Campus at the southwestern end of Hills Road. It is a division of the Department of Clinical Neurosciences of the University of Cambridge.

Nuclear medicine physicians, also called nuclear radiologists or simply nucleologists, are medical specialists that use tracers, usually radiopharmaceuticals, for diagnosis and therapy. Nuclear medicine procedures are the major clinical applications of molecular imaging and molecular therapy. In the United States, nuclear medicine physicians are certified by the American Board of Nuclear Medicine and the American Osteopathic Board of Nuclear Medicine.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Saint Boniface Hospital</span> Hospital in Manitoba , Canada

Saint Boniface Hospital is Manitoba's second-largest hospital, located in the Saint Boniface neighbourhood of Winnipeg. Founded by the Sisters of Charity of Montreal in 1871, it was the first hospital in Western Canada. The hospital was incorporated in 1960, and as of 2020 has 436 beds and 30 bassinets.

Preclinical imaging is the visualization of living animals for research purposes, such as drug development. Imaging modalities have long been crucial to the researcher in observing changes, either at the organ, tissue, cell, or molecular level, in animals responding to physiological or environmental changes. Imaging modalities that are non-invasive and in vivo have become especially important to study animal models longitudinally. Broadly speaking, these imaging systems can be categorized into primarily morphological/anatomical and primarily molecular imaging techniques. Techniques such as high-frequency micro-ultrasound, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and computed tomography (CT) are usually used for anatomical imaging, while optical imaging, positron emission tomography (PET), and single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) are usually used for molecular visualizations.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">PET-MRI</span>

Positron emission tomography–magnetic resonance imaging (PET–MRI) is a hybrid imaging technology that incorporates magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) soft tissue morphological imaging and positron emission tomography (PET) functional imaging.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Renaissance School of Medicine at Stony Brook University</span> Medical school of Stony Brook University

The Renaissance School of Medicine (RSOM) is the graduate medical school of Stony Brook University located in the hamlet of Stony Brook, New York on Long Island. Founded in 1971, RSOM is consistently ranked the top public medical school in New York according to U.S. News & World Report. RSOM is one of the five Health Sciences schools under the Stony Brook Medicine healthcare system.

QS Enterprises Ltd in Queen Square, Central London is a wholly owned trading subsidiary of the University College London Hospitals Charity. It was the first health sector social enterprise of its kind in the United Kingdom and remains one of the few independent organisations working for the direct benefit of an NHS institution. Since 1985, QS Enterprises Ltd has donated in excess of £25 million to the Charity for the benefit of the hospitals that make up the University College London Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Andreas Kjær (scientist)</span> Danish physician-scientist

Andreas Kjær is a Danish physician-scientist and European Research Council (ERC) advanced grantee. He is professor at the University of Copenhagen and chief physician at Rigshospitalet, the National University Hospital of Denmark. He is board certified in Nuclear Medicine and his research is focused on molecular imaging with PET and PET/MRI and targeted radionuclide therapies (theranostics) in cancer. His achievements include development of several new PET tracers that have reached first-in-human clinical use. He has published more than 400 peer-review articles, filed 10 patents, supervised more than 40 PhD students and received numerous prestigious scientific awards over the years. He is a member of the Danish Academy of Technical Sciences

Jason S. Lewis is a British radiochemist whose work relates to oncologic therapy and diagnosis. His research focus is a molecular imaging-based program focused on radiopharmaceutical development as well as the study of multimodality small- and biomolecule-based agents and their clinical translation. He has worked on the development of small molecules as well as radiolabeled peptides and antibodies probing the overexpression of receptors and antigens on tumors.

Franklin Imo Aigbirhio, is a Nigerian-born British chemist and academic specialising in biomedical imaging research. Since 2014 he has been the Professor of Molecular Imaging Chemistry at the University of Cambridge.  

Neil Vasdev is a Canadian and American radiochemist and expert in nuclear medicine and molecular imaging, particularly in the application of PET. Radiotracers developed by the Vasdev Lab are in preclinical use worldwide, and many have been translated for first-in-human neuroimaging studies. He is the director and chief radiochemist of the Brain Health Imaging Centre and director of the Azrieli Centre for Neuro-Radiochemistry at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH). He is the Tier 1 Canada Research Chair in Radiochemistry and Nuclear Medicine, the endowed Azrieli Chair in Brain and Behaviour and Professor of Psychiatry at the University of Toronto. Vasdev has been featured on Global News, CTV, CNN, New York Times, Toronto Star and the Globe and Mail for his innovative research program.

References

  1. "Radiochemistry facilities". Imaging Facilities. University of Manchester. Retrieved 18 September 2019.
  2. "Positron Emission Tomography (PET)". Imaging Facilities. University of Manchester. Retrieved 18 September 2019.
  3. "Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MR)". Imaging Facilities. University of Manchester. Retrieved 18 September 2019.
  4. "New scanner for Manchester to help uncover causes of dementia". University of Manchester. 3 November 2015. Retrieved 18 September 2019.
  5. Fitzgerald, Todd (3 November 2015). "£5m scanner will put Manchester at forefront of dementia research". Manchester Evening News.
  6. "CMFT and University of Manchester unveil new PET-MR scanner". Central Manchester University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust. Archived from the original on 15 July 2017.
  7. "Funding to date". WMIC. Archived from the original on 5 September 2006.
  8. "Wolfson Molecular Imaging Centre, Manchester". Parliamentary Debates (Hansard) . House of Lords. 2 July 2003. col. WA112–WA113.
  9. "Wolfson Molecular Imaging Centre News". University of Manchester. Archived from the original on 18 August 2007.
  10. "Alzheimer's patient volunteers for first scan". University of Manchester. 27 November 2006. Archived from the original on 18 January 2007.
  11. "Proposed closure of imaging radiochemistry". StaffNet. University of Manchester. 28 February 2020.
  12. "Medicines Discovery Catapult relaunches Wolfson Radiochemistry facility in Manchester". Medicines Discovery Catapult. 5 August 2021.
  13. "Medicines Discovery Catapult relaunches Wolfson Radiochemistry facility in Manchester". Lifescience Industry News. 13 August 2021.

53°25′51″N2°13′52″W / 53.43083°N 2.23111°W / 53.43083; -2.23111