# Core D: Translational Imaging Core

> **NIH NIH P50** · UT SOUTHWESTERN MEDICAL CENTER · 2024 · $128,635

## Abstract

Project Summary
The Translational Imaging Core (TIC) is a technologically advanced state-of-the-art radiology Core characterized
by the breadth of its scope and versatility. Its adaptability to the needs of the SPORE is illustrated by the prior
and current SPORE proposals. In Years 1 – 5, the TIC developed and deployed novel tools to support
investigators centering on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). We advanced novel applications of
multiparametric MRI in kidney cancer to evaluate a broad range of areas central to the projects including tumor
aggressiveness, angiogenesis, and heterogeneity. For the renewal, the TIC will support SPORE investigators
through the development of innovative radiotracers to query oncogenic drivers and tumor/microenvironment
interactions using positron emission tomography (PET). For Project 1, we have developed a novel radiotracer,
[18F]PT2385, to visualize what is arguably the most important driver of clear cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC),
the HIF2α protein. Of note, we showed that PT2385, a first-in-class HIF2α inhibitor, exclusively binds HIF2α.
This offers a unique opportunity to turn this drug into a radiotracer that, for the first time, enables visualization of
HIF2α in patients. In July 2021, we obtained an investigational new drug (IND) approval from the Food and Drug
Administration (FDA; IND 156933). In Project 2, the TIC will support the In Vivo Metabolism Lab with pre-clinical
MRI imaging of patient-derived tumorgrafts and enable new research directions through the generation of PET
imaging methods to query tumor metabolism using nutrient-derived radiotracers. For instance, PET imaging with
L-[5-11C]glutamine provides a noninvasive method for real-time monitoring of glutamine metabolism and
assessment of the impact of drug inhibitors. For Project 3, the TIC has generated a PET radiotracer to enable
a deeper understanding of the interplay between the tumor and its microenvironment, particularly the interaction
between tumor cells and the immune system. The TIC turned the therapeutic anti-PD-L1 antibody, atezolizumab,
into a specific imaging biomarker for PD-L1. After evaluation in our tumorgraft platform, we conducted dosimetry
studies and obtained an IND in 2019. Since then, we have successfully initiated the first immunoPET (iPET) trial
in the U.S. of 89Zr-labeled atezolizumab in patients with locally advanced and metastatic kidney cancer
(NCT04006522). The TIC goals are: Aim 1: To develop and evaluate a novel radiotracer, [18F]PT2385, to monitor
expression of the most important driver of ccRCC, HIF2α (Project 1). Aim 2: To enable real-time evaluation of
novel immunotherapy combinations through iPET (Project 3). Aim 3: To expand metabolic experiments with
novel metabolic radiotracers and support the In Vivo Metabolism Lab with preclinical imaging (Project 2). Aim
4: To empower SPORE investigators with novel image-based services. We will offer image-based targeted tissue
procurement, expert image analysis,...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10890797
- **Project number:** 5P50CA196516-08
- **Recipient organization:** UT SOUTHWESTERN MEDICAL CENTER
- **Principal Investigator:** Ivan Pedrosa
- **Activity code:** P50 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2024
- **Award amount:** $128,635
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2016-08-01 → 2027-07-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10890797

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10890797, Core D: Translational Imaging Core (5P50CA196516-08). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-22 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10890797. Licensed CC0.

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