BETATRAIN

European Training Network for Excellence in Molecular Imaging in Diabetes

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 Obiettivo del progetto (Objective)

'Currently, 180 million people suffer from diabetes worldwide and this number is expected to double until 2030. Diabetes-related healthcare costs may rise to 40% of the total healthcare budget in high incidence countries. Despite these daunting numbers, our knowledge about the pathophysiology of T1D and T2D remains limited and many questions about the relation of the of the beta cell mass, the beta cell function and the metabolism of different tissues remain unanswered. In order to address these urgent questions, great hope has been put on the development of novel tracers, and functional and molecular imaging methods, which only recently have become available for in vivo diabetes imaging. However, it remains difficult to build up top level expertise as few, if any, European institutions are able to offer a profound combined molecular imaging/diabetes training, a shortcoming that continues to hamper the progress of the field. As a consequence, most available molecular imaging techniques are insufficiently characterised for clinical use in diabetes. To address this challenge, we propose a training network (“BetaTrain”) to connect academic/private sector partners from 5 leading European FP7 consortia with top level expertise in beta cell/diabetes imaging. Like this, BetaTrain will not only provide a unique multidisciplinary intersectoral training opportunity to young scientists in the field, but will also address the urgent challenges in our combat against diabetes. In order to non-invasively characterize beta cells and other relevant tissues in animal models and humans suffering from diabetes, it will be necessary to combine different molecular imaging techniques to provide information complementary to that obtained by other imaging, laboratory, and functional tests. The scientific training program of BetaTrain will therefore characterise, cross-calibrate and map these technologies/tracers in order to create the basis for personalised diagnosis and therapy in diabetes.'

Introduzione (Teaser)

Leading European scientists join forces to advance the application of molecular imaging in diabetes diagnosis and treatment.

Descrizione progetto (Article)

The global incidence of diabetes will exceed 500 million by 2035, incurring a heavy economic burden on healthcare systems. Yet our perception of the pathophysiology and the course of disease remains limited. It is undoubtedly clear that novel diagnostic and therapeutic solutions are urgently needed.

To address this challenge, scientists on the EU-funded 'European training network for excellence in molecular imaging in diabetes' (http://www.betatrain.eu/home.htm (BETATRAIN)) project propose to utilise cutting-edge imaging technologies. BETATRAIN brings together European experts from different FP7 projects focused on imaging and diabetes (BETAIMAGE, ENCITE, VIBRANT, IMIDIA, MADEIRA). These experienced researchers will deliver training to young scientists on how to use imaging methods for the diagnosis and treatment of diabetes.

Researchers have found that imaging of beta cells in vitro and in vivo (by PET or SPECT) can be performed by targeting the glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor. Additional studies in diabetes models have shown that targeting the dopamine receptors or using fluorescent antibodies are equally effective. These methods are currently being compared for their ability to record mass, function and metabolic state of beta cells.

Considerable part of the work is devoted to the analysis of the obtained images. For this purpose, project participants have developed new reconstruction algorithms to be used with radiotracer imaging and are extending their efforts to SPECT images. They are also testing new ligands, radiotracers and nanoparticles for MRI imaging of transplanted islets.

Collectively, the BETATRAIN work will deliver a set of biomarkers fully exploitable for imaging purposes in personalised medicine approaches. Project partners are confident that imaging of beta cells will play a pivotal role in the future diagnosis and treatment of diabetes.