Entry requirements

For elective course, semester 8, within the pharmacy programme is required 150 credits within the program, of which 60 credits chemistry or 60 credits bioscience. For students within the biomedicine and the physician programmes and for student within the Bachelor's programmes in molecular biology or biotechnology, 135 credits within the programme including 60 credits biology are required. Students who are admitted to the Master's programme in drug development are qualified to read the course. Other education is assessed individually. Knowledge in English equivalent what is required for general entry claims to Swedish first-cycle programmes.

Learning outcomes

After examination, the student should be able to:

• present the physical processes behind the radionuclide technologies PET and SPECT

• describer the most common methods for radioactive labelling of trace molecules

• plan and evaluate experiments using the most common in the vitro methodologies within MI (bindings experiments on cells or tissue homogenates and autoradiography)

• design and evaluate in vivo studies for visualisation of biological processes using radio-labelled tracers

• understand the bases of quantification of biological processes by means of MI

• discuss how MI can be applied in drug development

• discuss the clinical role of PET and SPECT in modern medicine

Content

Molecular imaging (MI) is essentially a multidisciplinary field. For deeper understanding of the method, it is required that the course illustrates all parts of the process from the physics behind the instruments to radio- labelling of molecules validation of these in vitro and in vivo.. The course will also exemplify the questions which are suitable answered by MI. The course covers radiochemistry in tracer development, preclinical methods for in vitro validation of molecular traces, preclinical in vivo imaging using PET and SPECT tracers, image analysis and image processing tools, quantification and modelling of tracer kinetics, PET, PET as a tool for drug development and the clinical use of PET, e.g. within neurology, oncology, cardiology, metabolic diseases and psychiatry.

Instruction

The teaching is given as lectures, laboratory sessions and seminars. All parts will be given in English.

Compulsory parts of the course: Course introduction, laboratory sessions and seminars.

Assessment

Individual written examination is arranged at the end of the course. Laboratory sessions and seminars are compulsory, and attendance on these is required for examination. A chance to finalise a failed compulsory part can be arranged only at the next course occasion and only in case of a vacancy. Each student has the right to six examinations (one examination and five re-examinations).

If there are special reasons for doing so, an examiner may make an exception from the method of assessment indicated and allow a student to be assessed by another method. An example of special reasons might be a certificate regarding special pedagogical support from the University's disability coordinator.