Molecular targeting and therapeutics laboratory

In this chemistry lab scientists are creating, purifying and validating molecules that can then be developed into imaging drugs and drug delivery systems, contrast agents that are used with imaging devices to see inside body structures and vaccines.



A main aim is to develop innovative approaches in which molecular “signatures” of disease can be detected and visualized. This will enable scientists to design new image-guided therapeutics, such as medical microbubbles and drug-coated nanostructures, that target these molecular signatures or pathways, and then track the effectiveness of the therapeutics once they have entered into the body.

Discoveries made in the lab may then move into our good manufacturing practice facility, which enables scientists to produce pure and safe biological agents that can be tested in patients.

This rapidly evolving field bridges the worlds of chemistry, biology and imaging, and has many potential applications in radiology, cardiology and neurology.