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Advancing our understanding of the brain through the development and application of molecular imaging agents

About Us

The Martinos Center Chemical Neuroscience program operates using an academic cooperative research model comprising faculty who share the philosophy that diseases of the human brain are uniquely human. Our collective mission is to advance the study of the living human brain through the development and application of new molecular imaging technologies. The cooperative faculty and their associated labs bring unique expertise to translation of technology from basic chemistry through human imaging and subsequent applications to understand human brain function during health and disease. Each lab has its own focus areas and we work together to augment one another’s capabilities. By leveraging resources collectively, our cooperative model provides efficiencies typically lacking in academic research. We hope that we can bring new insights into the human brain that ultimately help drive neurotherapeutic strategies.

Elements of Our Research

  • Radiochemistry Methodology

    Radiochemistry Methodology

  • Medicinal Chemistry

    Medicinal Chemistry

  • Biochemistry

    Biochemistry

  • Cell Biology

    Cell Biology

  • Pharmacology

    Pharmacology

  • Translational Imaging

    Translational Imaging

  • Human (Disease) Imaging

    Human (Disease) Imaging

  • Imaging Methodology

    Imaging Methodology

Faculty Team

Ph.D. Chemistry

Jacob Hooker

Ph.D. Chemistry
Ph.D. Neuroscience

Nicole Zürcher Wimmer

Ph.D. Neuroscience
Ph.D. Molecular imaging

Changning Wang

Ph.D. Molecular imaging
Ph.D. Medical Physics

Hsiao-Ying (Monica) Wey

Ph.D. Medical Physics
Ph.D. Organic Chemistry

Michael Placzek

Ph.D. Organic Chemistry

Press & News

Changning Wang Wins Ken Griffin Alpha-synuclein Imaging Competition

Home Team Research News Publications Opportunities Join ChemNeuro Participate Changning Wang Wins Ken Griffin Alpha-synuclein Imaging Competition Changning Wang won the Ken Griffin Alpha-synuclein Imaging Competition and received substantial funding from The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research (MJFF). The team plans to identify new leads using a high-throughput screen of a large DNA-encoded […]

Jacob Hooker Named a Distinguished Investigator by The Academy for Radiology & Biomedical Imaging Research

Home Team Research News Publications Opportunities Join ChemNeuro Participate Jacob Hooker Named a Distinguished Investigator by The Academy for Radiology & Biomedical Imaging Research Congratulations to Jacob Hooker, one of thirty-nine investigators recognized as a Distinguished Investigator by The Academy for Radiology & Biomedical Imaging Research. This award is given to individuals who have made […]

Changning Wang Receives Alzheimer’s Drug Discovery Foundation Award

Home Team Research News Publications Opportunities Join ChemNeuro Participate Changning Wang Receives Alzheimer’s Drug Discovery Foundation Award Changning Wang received an award from Alzheimer’s Drug Discovery Foundation, under the Neuroimaging and CSF Biomarker Development Program. This funded project is to develop novel PET imaging probes for Receptor-interacting serine/threonine-protein kinase 1 (RIPK1). RIPK1 is a critical signaling protein in […]