Bracco is present in the OTC sector with well-known brand names. Recently Bracco initiated a new line of research aimed at using monoclonal antibody fragments for targeting of in vivo diagnostic imaging agents. To this effect it instituted collaborations with groups at the Universities of Siena and Rome. A biochemical laboratory staffed with Bracco personnel was placed at the San Raffaele Biomedical Science Park. It is dedicated to the identification of suitable products and their preparation under regulatory conditions that allow early phases of clinical trials.
Monoclonal antibodies hold the promise of exquisite specificity of target recognition.
Antibodies and their fragments can also be obtained with widely differing affinities, which strongly influence the their pharmacokinetic properties. For imaging applications such antibodies or their fragments must transport to the chosen biological target in the body an image signal-generating moiety, such as a radioactive atom for scintigraphy, a paramagnetic chelate or iron oxide particle for magnetic resonance imaging or a stabilized gas bubble for ultrasound imaging. Ways of conjugating such signal-generating moieties to antibodies and their fragments need to be found which maintain the affinity and specificity of the latter. While intravascular targets allow imaging agents of considerable size, including stabilized gas bubbles with diameters up to several micrometers, extravascular targets can only be reached by much smaller entities. Location of the target and the chosen signal-generating moiety are important factors determining desirable pharmacokinetic properties of the product.