The audience of over 400 participants at the Kobe International Conference Center heard presentations on research into labeling chemistry and molecular probes; the recent revolution in drug discovery and PET diagnosis processes; and neuroscience and imaging methodology.
The session on ‘Toward Clinical Applications’ drew special attention. In June 2008, Japan’s Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare issued guidelines for microdose clinical trials that allow researchers to administer into human subjects very small amounts of new medicines and candidate materials, tagged with biomarkers, and then noninvasively examine them using various technologies, including PET, MRI and ultrasound. The guidelines have important implications for work on drug discovery, and the discussions at the conference focused on ways to improve research standards and overcome various barriers, such as regulatory and ethical issues, that exist in research.
The field of molecular imaging unites molecular biology and in vivo imaging into a multidisciplinary field that includes chemistry, life sciences, physics, engineering, computer science, medicine and pharmaceutical sciences. It plays an important role as a bridge between molecular, integrated systems, and basic and clinical research. The recent paradigm shift in drug discovery means molecular imaging is sure to become a core research area in evidence-based medicine.
