March 11th, 2014
MILabs is pleased to announce that the Netherlands Cancer Institute (NKI) will install a MILabs U-SPECT+/CT system in their new Mouse Cancer Clinic, a new cutting-edge pre-clinical research center, which is part of the NWO funded Mouse Clinic for Cancer and Aging research (MCCA). The U-SPECT+/CT has been selected as the most suitable system for their research due to its ultra-high (quarter-mm) resolution, its unique capabilities to perform ultra-fast total body pharmacokinetic imaging and its compatibility with other imaging modalities.
The system will be used for a broad range of key research projects featuring the development and use of advanced mouse models for cancer, particularly mammary tumorigenesis. The utilization of the system will be led by Professor Jos Jonkers, head of the Division of Molecular Pathology and Prof. Sven Rottenberg, group leader in the Division of Molecular Oncology and head of the Mouse Cancer Clinic. Jos Jonkers is a recent recipient of the prestigious VICI Grant from the Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research (NWO) to investigate drugs that can be effective against novel ‘Achilles heels’ in BRCA1 mutated breast tumors.
The multimodal compatibility of the U-SPECT+/CT will feature extensively in its utilization as the NKI imaging facility housing this system will be equipped with the complete range of preclinical imaging systems including PET, MRI, optical and ultrasound imaging. The NKI plans for this facility to be a nodal imaging center by making its resources available to other researchers in the academic and pharmaceutical sectors of the Netherlands. MILabs is very excited to have the opportunity to work with this reputed institution and team of investigators and for the U-SPECT+/CT system to be instrumental in pioneering advanced oncology research.
About Netherlands Cancer Institute (NKI)
The Netherlands Cancer Institute – Antoni van Leeuwenhoek Hospital (NKI-AVL) is a Comprehensive Cancer Centre, combining hospital and research laboratories under one roof, in a single independent organization. Established on October 10, 1913, it currently accommodates approximately 650 scientists and scientific support personnel. The Antoni van Leeuwenhoek Hospital has 53 medical specialists, 180 beds, an out-patients clinic that receives 30,600 patients each year, 5 operating theaters and 9 irradiation units. The NKI is the only dedicated cancer center in The Netherlands and maintains an important role as a national and international center of scientific and clinical expertise, development and training.
About Mouse Clinic for Cancer and Aging research (MCCA)
The ageing population in developed countries leads to rapid increase in cancer incidence and other aging-related disorders. To accelerate cancer and aging research and to contribute to the theme of ‘healthy aging’, the Netherlands Cancer Institute (NKI) and the European Research Institute for the Biology of Aging (ERIBA) have established a Mouse Clinic for Cancer and Aging research (MCCA). The MCCA will accelerate development of realistic mouse models that may be used for developing new therapies against cancer and aging-related diseases. In 2012, the NKI and ERIBA received an 18.6M€ subsidy from the National Roadmap for Large-Scale Research Facilities of the Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research (NWO) to upgrade and expand the MCCA.
About MILabs
MILabs provides high-end preclinical molecular imaging solutions (SPECT/PET/CT/MR) for biomedical and pharmaceutical research. Today these systems contribute worldwide to the development of new diagnostic solutions and therapies for diseases such as cancer, cardiac and neurodegenerative diseases, depression and diabetes. U-SPECT+/CT provides the fastest, most sensitive and highest resolution small-animal SPECT currently available. Recently MILabs introduced VECTor+ and VECTor+/CT providing extremely user friendly, fully integrated and simultaneous ultra-high resolution SPECT/PET. In collaboration with RS2D, MILabs has also introduced MR+, a dedicated, integrated preclinical MRI systems at clinical field strengths.
