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SUMMARY

Multi-million euro project to ‘speed up and reduce cost’ of drug making process

PET3D is a new €4million training scheme that will tackle a European shortage of scientists who can use special imaging techniques that could speed up and reduce the cost of life-saving drug development. The 4-year Marie Curie European Networks project, funded by the European Commission will train 15 PhD students in world class, innovative research using Positron Emission Tomography (PET) imaging. PET imaging is most commonly used as a diagnostic technique – radioactive ‘tracer’ molecules are injected into patients and PET is used to observe the functioning of the body and identify signs of abnormalities, such as tumours, Alzheimer’s disease and heart conditions. PET imaging can also be used to ascertain the effectiveness of a drug before it goes into Phase 3 of development, so could put the brakes on ineffective drugs earlier and before large amounts of money are spent on further testing. PET imaging can play a pivotal role in drug design/development by providing at a much earlier stage reliable answers to key questions:

• What and where is the disease?
• Is the disease accurately targeted by the therapy?
• Is the treatment effective?

Answering these questions will facilitate the development of better drugs at an earlier stage and in a much more sustainable manner. However, there is a world shortage in scientists with the necessary expertise to become research leaders in this area. All the major pharmaceutical companies use PET to develop drugs but the shortage means it is very difficult for companies and universities to recruit.

The PET3D consortium is addressing this shortage and will provide top-quality training to the next generation of translational PET imaging scientists. The PET3D project will cover all the main therapeutic areas with 15 cutting-edge research projects in oncology, cardiovascular, central nervous system.