SEELIFE: Advanced Biomedical Imaging Technologies from Preclinical Research to Precision Medicine

Event organized by the Italian National Research Council (CNR).

Opened in 2025, SEELIFE is a biomedical imaging laboratory of the CNR in Pisa and part of the European Euro-BioImaging network. It integrates advanced PET/CT and SPECT/CT technologies to develop innovative tracers, study molecular processes, and advance translational research, diagnostics, and precision medicine.

Session Overview

The growing availability of biomarkers and molecular targets is opening new perspectives for the development of radiopharmaceuticals and innovative solutions for advanced diagnostics and precision medicine. In this context, molecular imaging represents a fundamental tool to study in vivo physiological and pathological processes and to characterize specific metabolic and receptor alterations, acting as a strategic catalyst for both academic research and the biopharmaceutical and nutraceutical industries.

This presentation will showcase the activities of the SEELIFE laboratory at the Institute of Clinical Physiology of the National Research Council (CNR-IFC) in Pisa, highlighting its scientific and technological support for industrial compound development. The translational pathway leading from molecular design to synthesis, characterization, and in vivo preclinical validation will be outlined. In this framework, the availability of complex experimental models, ranging from small to large animals, ensures high translational relevance and robust predictive power.

Particular emphasis will be placed on biodistribution, pharmacokinetic, and pharmacodynamic studies—essential both for radiopharmaceutical characterization and for the quantitative in vivo assessment of the efficacy, absorption, and mechanisms of action of advanced nutraceutical formulations using isotopic labels. Furthermore, automated radiosynthesis platforms and molecular recognition-based analytical quality control methodologies will be presented, demonstrating how high standards of reproducibility and compliance are maintained. Integrating PET and SPECT radionuclides (fluorine-18, carbon-11, gallium-68, copper-64, and technetium-99m), SEELIFE stands out as a premier partner to accelerate the industrial development pipeline, leveraging multidisciplinary expertise to address key clinical and technological challenges.

Speakers

• Dr. Emma Baglini, PhD, National Research Council (CNR) – Institute of Clinical Physiology (IFC), Pisa – SEELIFE Laboratory
• Dr. Riccardo Di Leo, PhD, National Research Council (CNR) – Institute of Clinical Physiology (IFC), Pisa – SEELIFE Laboratory

 The event will be held in Italian

 English translation available (see below)