The Problem

The development of a biomarker for hypoxic tissues is essential both for diagnostic formulation and treatment planning for most cancer patients.

Although the current PET radiotracers are non-invasive imaging modality techniques of tumor hypoxia, they are not being used routinely due to slow uptake by hypoxic.

Cu(II)-tracers have been suggested to become one of the most promising PET agents for hypoxia imaging. However, one of the main drawback of Cu(II)-ATSM compounds is that they can also dissociate Cu(II) in normal and hypoxia cell, causing to chelation of Cu(II) by SOD and cytochrome C, and other rich proteins causing to:

• Unwanted cellular reactions resulting in toxicity
• Low signal to background ratio of the radiotracer
• Specificity problems

The Commercial Benefit

Our product is a new 64Cu based radiotracer for hypoxia, based on molecular level understanding of the cellular transfer mechanism, rate, stability, and oxidation/reduction behavior. The novelty of this work is that it uses basic and fundamental knowledge on the cellular copper cycle, and generates a new compound that competes with the normal copper cycle, and its transfer mechanism is known and tracked in detail.

In a nutshell, our cutting-edge innovation is significantly superior to any other current radiotracers for hypoxia as:

• Its uptake ratio by the cell is high
• It is highly sensitive to the oxidation environment

Market Potential

The global medical imaging devices market is expected to generate revenue of $46.65 billion by 2023, growing at a CAGR of 5.47% during the forecast period. The introduction of innovative systems such as fusion imaging enabled CT/PET devices will contribute to the development of the medical imaging market during the forecast period.

PET-CT Scanner Device Market accounted for $1,454 million in 2016 and is estimated to reach $2,108 million by 2023, growing at a CAGR of 5% during the analysis period. There is a high prevalence of diseases worldwide, hence an increase in the need of diagnosis.

Team: Primary Inventor

Prof. Sharon Ruthstein

• Prof. Ruthstein graduated with Honors her master's studies in the Chemistry Department at Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel.
• Prof. Sharon Ruthstein achieved her Ph.D. with Honors under the supervision of Prof. Daniella Goldfarb.
• After graduating from the Weizmann Institute in 2008, Prof. Ruthstein became an EMBO Postdoctoral Fellow at the University of Pittsburgh, where she worked under the supervision of Prof. Sunil Saxene
• Prof. Ruthstein joined the Department of Chemistry at Bar Ilan University in October 2011.
• Her research is aiming to exploit biological pathways in human and bacteria cells, which involve metal ions, using pulsed Electron Paramagnetic Resonance Spectroscopy (EPR).

Keywords

• Sharon Ruthstein
• Copper complexes
• Radiotracer
• Hypoxia
• Cancer
• Neurological diseases
• Copper homeostasis