Molecular imaging provides a powerful technique which promises to detect the earliest stages of disease initiation and progression, allowing for timely intervention and better delivery of care. It is referred to as 'in-vivo histology' as it's all done within the natural environment of the body.

What exactly is molecular imaging?

Any cell in your body undergoes a transformation of some kind during the early stages of disease, for example a normal cell that is about to transform into a pre-cancerous or cancerous state. Molecular imaging provides the means to look at the surface or inside the cell to see how it is different, how it is working, or to visualize defects that may have been caused by a disease or clinical condition.

Detection of these early changes allows clinicians the ability to spot early disease progression, and guide therapy to intervene at a pre-symptomatic stage.

A current challenge in molecular imaging includes the limitation to "see" sufficient targeted cells inside tiny areas of tissue. AION's solution is a nano-scale platform visible in clinical settings with the potential to provide real-time signals of developing pathological change.

Potential applications of molecular imaging agents

• Image high risk patients as a follow-up to screening in cardiology, oncology and neurology
• Track effectiveness of pharmaceuticals
• Evaluation of patient response to therapy
• Increase the speed of the pre-clinical and trial process for experimental drugs, making it possible to see the therapeutic response of biopharmaceuticals in mice before testing on humans

Example of a potential AION molecular imaging candidate

AION is in a unique position to exploit the commercial potential of this industry through the development of molecular imaging agents based on its porous silicon. Using this platform, AION is developing hybrid molecular imaging probes designed for the early detection and monitoring of a range of significant diseases, with visualization on several key modalities. Modified pSi can be loaded with a wide variety of selective agents, including "smart" probes and ligands, which will facilitate targeted imaging of specific sites within the body. This combines porous silicon's unique capabilities to act as both the signaling component and probe carrier, significantly reducing the complexity of the molecular imaging agent.

A molecular imaging probe