$6.3 Million Grant Funds Center for PET Tracer Development - Mallinckrodt Institute of Radiology

In September, Mallinkcrodt Institute of Radiology (MIR) secured a five-year, $6.3 million grant for the PET Radiotracer Translation and Resource Center (PET-RTRC). The center develops and disseminates a broad portfolio of PET radiotracers used in preclinical and human imaging studies throughout the nation. The P41 grant — from the National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering, part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) — is the first of its kind to focus in this area.

The center will serve as headquarters and home for research and development; collaboration sites around the country will be an integral part of operations. MIR’s expertise with radiotracer design and development will be leveraged to shorten preclinical timelines and facilitate preclinical studies of new radiotracers designed to expand the understanding of diseases.

“What these centers are designed to do is develop new technologies, using the expertise around the country to speed that development,” says Gropler. “And then you have the infrastructure to distribute the tracers around the country to interested users, as well as train them in how to use them.”

Securing funding for a center like this is highly competitive, but Gropler says MIR’s persistence and reputation sealed the deal. “When people think of PET and where it started, who has the most expertise, and who’s doing the most development, Washington University rises to the top every time.”