Chapter 8.3. MRI in Practical Drug Discovery

Abstract

Drug discovery and development is a resource intensive and risky process. Compound failure rates remain high and principally occur in the most expensive clinical stages of pharmaceutical research. There is therefore considerable interest in the application of new technologies that will enable earlier and more accurate predictions to be made on future success of candidate drugs. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and other imaging modalities offer several advantages over existing analytical techniques, including improved subtlety. MRI is non-invasive and allows longitudinal studies to be performed such that mechanisms of disease and evaluation of drug candidates is possible in vivo over long time periods. MRI provides multidimensional images with excellent soft-tissue contrast, to a high spatial and temporal resolution. It is a versatile technique, generating anatomical, functional, cellular and molecular data. MRI technologies are well positioned to provide translational information between preclinical and clinical data, helping to narrow the gap between studies in animals and man. MRI is increasingly being used throughout the drug discovery and development process, including in the development of animal models and biomarkers dissection of disease mechanisms, evaluation of drug targets and candidates, and assessment of drug release mechanisms. Acceptance of MRI and other imaging technologies in pharmaceutical research has been slow due to their expense, relatively low throughput and need for standardisation. However, the advantages they carry over traditional techniques are increasingly being recognised. Future developments in MRI technology will further enhance their applicability.