VisEn's Announces Multi-Species FMT Imaging Expansion Module and Presents Advanced Data on New Fluorescence Agents at AACR 101st Annual Meeting

BEDFORD, Mass., April 16 /PRNewswire/ -- VisEn Medical Inc., a leader in fluorescence imaging solutions from research through medicine, announced today that it has expanded its leading FMT imaging platform with an FMT™ Multi-Species Imaging Module, to extend FMT imaging and related applications into larger preclinical animal models.  VisEn also announced that it will be presenting new study results from its recently-launched Cat B 750 FAST™ and Annexin-Vivo™ fluorescence imaging agents at the AACR (American Association of Cancer Research) 101st Annual Meeting, highlighting translational imaging advances in leading oncology research.  The AACR Annual Meeting is being held in Washington, DC from April 17 – 21, 2010.

FMT Multi-Species Imaging Module:

VisEn's new FMT Multi-Species Imaging Module enables FMT quantitative imaging in an expanded range of larger preclinical animal models, including rats, hamsters and guinea pigs, thereby further extending FMT imaging research into areas typically studied in larger animals. These areas include metabolic, toxicology and biodistribution studies, as well as certain vaccines, and obesity, bone and hypertension studies.  The Multi-Species Imaging Module is designed to be compatible with all of VisEn's fluorescence imaging agents, and will be available later in 2010.  

Advanced Application Data Presented on VisEn's Cat B 750 FAST™ and Annexin-Vivo™ Imaging Agents for Oncology Research:

VisEn will present advanced data at the AACR Annual Meeting on its recently-launched Cat B 750 FAST™ and Annexin-Vivo™ fluorescence imaging agents, including studies titled "In vivo near-infrared fluorescent quantification of therapy-induced apoptosis using Annexin-Vivo 750," and "Fast-activating Cathepsin B optical agent for quantitative in vivo imaging of tumor and therapeutic response."

Jeffrey Peterson, Ph.D., VisEn's Vice President of Applied Biology, said, "We developed an Annexin red imaging agent, Annexin-Vivo 750, which targets Annexin V, a well-characterized biomarker for apoptosis. The results presented at the AACR Annual Meeting highlight how Annexin-Vivo 750 enables the rapid in vivo assessment of therapeutic efficacy in key cancer models. In addition, the agent is increasingly being used in researching a variety of other pathological conditions involving apoptosis including stroke, atherosclerosis, myocardial ischemia, and liver toxicity."

The second imaging agent to be profiled at the AACR Annual Meeting, Cat B 750 FAST, utilizes VisEn's FAST activatable agent platform to target Cathepsin (Cat) B, a lysosomal cysteine protease highly over-expressed in cancers and premalignant lesions and associated with cancer growth, neo-vascularization and metastasis. "This recent study illustrates the potential of VisEn's Cat B 750 FAST agent and of the FMT quantitative tomography platform to non-invasively quantify the underlying biology of tumorigenic processes in real time, and distinguishes an increase in Cat B and tumor-associated macrophage activity following cytotoxic therapy treatment," said Peterson. "Quantification of Cat B activity in the tumor environment is a valuable biomarker for the detection of cancer and metastases, as well as the development and monitoring of anti-cancer therapies."

To learn more about VisEn's in vivo fluorescence imaging technologies, please contact VisEn at [email protected] or visit booth # 1346 and 1348 at the AACR Annual Meeting.

Both posters will be presented on Tuesday, April 20th, 2010 between 2:00 - 5:00 PM in Exhibit Hall A-C, Poster Section 27 at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center, Washington, DC.

About VisEn Medical Inc.

VisEn's in vivo fluorescence imaging technologies, including its RED Fluorescence Agent Portfolio and its Fluorescence Molecular Tomography (FMT™) Imaging Systems, provide robust fluorescence molecular imaging performance in identifying, characterizing and quantifying ranges of disease biomarkers and therapeutic efficacy in vivo.  VisEn's FMT systems and agents are used by leading research institutions and pharmaceutical companies worldwide in applications including oncology, arthritis, cardiovascular disease, skeletal disorders, and pulmonary disease.  The Company also works with large pharmaceutical and clinical partners to design ranges of tailored molecular imaging agents and applications designed for their specific preclinical and clinical research areas.

Additional information can be found at www.visenmedical.com.

SOURCE VisEn Medical Inc.