Nanomedicine Explored at Molecular Imaging Summit

Abstract

Nanotechnology is a rapidly evolving field with tremendous opportunities for applying technology in highly targeted ways. But for nanotechnology to be truly translated into meaningful benefits for patients, basic research in the laboratory must be supported by evidencebased medicine and predictable regulatory pathways. 1 Molecular imaging plays a pivotal role in the assessment of health and environmental impacts of nanomaterials. One of the key goals of the Society of Nuclear Medicine’s Center for Molecular Imaging Innovation and Translation (CMIIT, formerly the Molecular Imaging Center of Excellence) is to highlight and explore emerging technologies that may be novel, experimental, and possibly controversial. Summits hosted by CMIIT serve a key role in the community by bringing together the appropriate experts to explore all facets of these emerging technologies, and therefore, a summit to discuss nanomedicine and molecular imaging was organized. That summit was held at the SNM Midwinter meeting, Albuquerque, NM, on Jan. 31 and Feb. 1, 2010. The 2-day summit brought together academic, government, and industry experts from a spectrum of disciplines to explore a topic that may have great application for diagnosing and treating disease in the future. The keynote lecture on day 1, given by Vicki Colvin, PhD, Kenneth S. Pitzer-Schlumberger professor of chemistry and professor of chemical and biomolecular engineering at Rice University, described the environmental and health effects of nanomaterials. Dr. Colvin emphasized that nanotechnology-enabled systems offer great promise for solving difficult environmental and biological problems. She explained how their small size, high surface areas, and unique properties all provide opportunity for use-driven science and engineering research. This keynote address was the opening of two exciting sessions that day, which included nanomaterials and life