Reston, Va. - An in-depth overview of the fundamentals of small animal imaging modalities attracted a record number of attendees to 2012 In Vivo Imaging: An Introductory Workshop. More than 100 physicians, scientists and scientific laboratory professionals and graduate students from academia, government, and industry attended the workshop, which was held March 20-21 at Johns Hopkins University and was hosted by Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, the University of Virginia and the Society of Nuclear Medicine (SNM).

"Our goal with the workshop was to allow individuals to be conversant with the full range of topics involved in molecular imaging-chemistry, physics, biochemistry-because it is such an inherently multi-disciplinary field," said Martin G. Pomper, MD, PhD, one of the organizers of 2012 In Vivo Imaging: An Introductory Workshop. "With increasing use of small animal imaging to facilitate a wide range of biomedical research, providing these training opportunities to the community is key."

The program was designed to improve participants' knowledge of using molecular imaging for in vivo biomedical applications, focusing on key topics of instrumentation, data acquisition and reconstruction, imaging probes, imaging targets and applications, small animal handling, data analysis, and techniques for imaging infectious disease models. Modalities covered in the workshop included magnetic resonance imaging and magnetic resonance spectroscopy, positron emission tomography, single photon emission computed tomography, optical imaging, ultrasound, X-ray computed tomography, photoacoustic imaging and multimodality imaging.

"The 2012 In Vivo Imaging: An Introductory Workshop was a great opportunity to see applications of cutting-edge imaging technology. It has also been a nice way to interact with various imaging specialists," said workshop attendee Sarah McLaughlin, a biological technician at the Cancer Center Research Laboratories at West Virginia University.

Two interactive training sessions were also offered as part of the workshop. The Hands-On Training Workshop provided attendees the opportunity to work side-by-side with experienced professionals, observe instrument handling and participate in data acquisition analysis. The Advanced Imaging Analysis Workshop, sponsored by Caliper, a PerkinElmer Company, reviewed advanced imaging techniques using real datasets.

"With preclinical molecular imaging, we can 'see' and evaluate the physiologic processes in real time in a biologically relevant milieu whether it is for an oncology, infectious disease, cardiology or neurology application," noted Sridhar Nimmagadda, PhD, one of the workshop's organizers. "Information gained from preclinical imaging is essential to developing imaging that is successful in clinical use and ultimately benefits patients."

To learn more about SNM offerings on preclinical imaging, visit www.snm.org/preclinical.

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About SNM-Advancing Molecular Imaging and Therapy

SNM is an international scientific and medical organization dedicated to raising public awareness about what molecular imaging is and how it can help provide patients with the best health care possible. SNM members specialize in molecular imaging, a vital element of today's medical practice that adds an additional dimension to diagnosis, changing the way common and devastating diseases are understood and treated.

SNM's more than 17,000 members set the standard for molecular imaging and nuclear medicine practice by creating guidelines, sharing information through journals and meetings and leading advocacy on key issues that affect molecular imaging and therapy research and practice. For more information, visit www.snm.org.

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