Technological platforms for molecular imaging: A vision of the future

"In vivo" imaging is a tool able to conduct studies on living subjects over time and hence of great importance in pre-clinical research, clinical trials and clinical practice. Investigation of the molecular basis of disease through the study of biological processes involved in the onset and in the progression of pathology is mainly conducted with research on laboratory animals. A fundamental improvement in our understanding of diseases will result by the application of the new molecular imaging tools to humans. The technological evolution plays an important role in this field through the development of instrumentation able to depict the temporal and the spatial distribution of molecular probes with enough resolution and sensitivity. This article highlights recent advances in technological platforms for molecular imaging with an emphasis on tomographic systems that use positron-emitting radionuclides (PET), magnetic fields (MRI) and X-ray (CT). Current and possible future imaging systems, both clinical and pre-clinical, including combined systems, will be discussed.