Non-ionizing Metabolic Imaging for predicting the effect of and guiding Therapeutic Interventions

Introduction

MITI will develop and mature a novel, ground-breaking technology for high precision non-ionizing metabolic imaging, enabling fast and non-invasive detection of the markers of metabolic processes e.g., cell proliferation and energy metabolism.

Benefits of the Technology

Using the results of metabolic imaging, medical specialists will be able to establish the effectiveness of therapies and determine the specific disease months sooner than is possible with currently available technologies. This will increase patient well-being and reduce the costs of healthcare as unsuccessful therapies can be stopped and replaced earlier by more effective (personalized) therapies.

Market Potential

This solution addresses an enormous market with millions of patients worldwide. MITI builds on the results of NICI in which the basic key marker molecules for metabolic imaging on MRI platforms were successfully discovered (1H, 2H, 31P, and 23Na), including the capability to detect these by inserts on 7T MRI platforms.

Project Components

MITI comprises:

1. The further development and testing of a basic double tuned metabolic imaging set (detecting 1H and one of the following molecules: 2H, 31P, or 23Na).
2. Validation of the basic technology to detect metabolic markers in specific use cases:
   • Cell proliferation metabolism after treatment of lung tumors and pancreatic cancer with liver metastases.
   • Cardiac drug mechanisms.
   • Energy metabolism of muscle dystrophy.
3. Development of an advanced quadruple tuned metabolic imaging set that will broaden the spectrum of metabolic processes that can be successfully viewed in parallel.

Future Plans

The results of the use cases will be used for power calculations for clinical trials to be conducted after MITI. The MITI partners aim to commercialize the technology, directly after MITI by providing it to clinicians in research centers and within 3 years after MITI to general medical centers.