Missouri university awarded $6.3M to develop novel PET tracers

The Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis (WUSTL) was awarded a five-year, $6.3 million grant to establish a new research center to develop and test novel PET tracers.

The PET Radiotracer Translation and Resource Center will be part of WUSTL’s Mallinckrodt Institute of Radiology, and will collaborate with groups across the country to develop tracers to address signs of inflammation and oxidative stress seen in diseases such as atherosclerosis, various cancers, Multiple Sclerosis and Alzheimer’s disease, according to the original grant application.

“The objective of the Center is to provide these radiotracers and others currently available to interested collaborators around the country with the goal of using them in biomedical research to improve human health,” wrote Robert J. Gropler, MD, professor of radiology at WUSTL, in the original grant application.

Gropler received the grant from the National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering of the National Institutes of Health (NIH).

""

Matt joined Chicago’s TriMed team in 2018 covering all areas of health imaging after two years reporting on the hospital field. He holds a bachelor’s in English from UIC, and enjoys a good cup of coffee and an interesting documentary.

Around the web

"Using AI for tasks like CAC detection can help shift medicine from a reactive approach to the proactive prevention of disease," one researcher said.

Former American Society of Echocardiography president and well-known cardiac ultrasound pioneer Roberto Lang, MD, died at the age of 73. He helped develop 3D echo technology that is now used by care teams on a daily basis.

Imaging and radiology are in a transition right now as more departments and practices are choosing to bring their 3D labs in-house.