GE Healthcare has announced the first patient dosed in the Phase III clinical trial for a Positron Emission Tomography (PET) radiopharmaceutical imaging agent which aims toassist in the evaluation of adult patients with suspected Parkinsonian syndromes, support research and improve patient care.Already a global leader with DaTscan ([123I]-ioflupane), used in Single-Photon Emission Computed Tomography (SPECT) imaging across more than 40 countries worldwide, GE Healthcare is now planning to bolster its portfolio with two pipeline radiopharmaceuticals, one for PET and one for SPECT. This multi-center Phase III clinical trial of a PET radiopharmaceutical is underway in France. In addition to offering a potentially shorter patient workflow, the clinical trial is comparing PET for striatal dopamine transporter visualization with DaTscan.

PET technology offers higher spatial resolution than SPECT, which may result in a clearer image to aid visual interpretation and diagnosis. This PET radiopharmaceutical was originally developed by Zionexa, a French company specializing in innovative radiopharmaceuticals which was acquired by GE Healthcare's Pharmaceutical Diagnosticsbusiness last year. A next stage clinical study for a SPECT dopamine transporter imaging agent will also be underway this year in the United States.

Licensed from Boston-based brain imaging specialist, LikeMinds, it has the potential to reduce overall procedure time, to optimize imaging center workflow and help improve patient comfort. GE Healthcare has obtained exclusive global rights to the product.