Biotage starts molecular imaging research

UPPSALA, Sweden—Inspired by the research of John Valliant at Canada's McMaster University, Swedish life sciences company Biotage recently announced that it has entered into joint research and development work at McMaster with the goal of opening a new business area for the company—molecular imaging.

"We believe we can have a bit of a jump start entering into the imaging business," says Torben Jørgensen, president and CEO of Biotage. "Some of the instruments in our current product line may with little development efforts be adjusted for use in imaging."

In particular, Biotage is looking to develop imaging products for both SPECT/CT and PET/CT—market segments the company sees as having significant growth potential. The idea, according to Jørgensen, is to leverage the company's current expertise in the areas of microwave synthesis, purification and evaporation to create not only tools, but also related reagents and work processes.

At McMaster, Biotage is looking to draw upon the work of Valliant, especially his work in PET. Valliant and his team are developing novel methods for incorporating positron-emitting radionuclides into new pharmaceuticals, with the intention of using PET imaging as a method for performing non-invasive evaluation of pharmaceuticals in both animals and humans.

Jorgensen says that he sees opportunities for Biotage's molecular imaging products in both drug discovery and clinical diagnostics.

According to Kelvin Hammond, VP of business development for Biotage, "Biotage is uniquely positioned to exploit these market segments. We see very interesting collaboration possibilities in this field that will help to drive further development of Biotage's business."