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Integrated Diagnostic Imaging, Radiomics and Connectomics OR Biobanking

IRCCS SDN SpA, Italy

IRCCS SDN SpA – Direzione Scientifica

Main Areas of Interest

Integrated Diagnostic Imaging and Laboratory

• Imaging Processing Centre NAPLAB (NeuroAnatomy and image Processing LABoratory), focused on connectomics, and radiomics,

• Laboratory of Statistics and Bioinformatics

• Radiopharmaceutical for novel PET molecular-targeting radiotracer synthesis

• Nanotechnology laboratory for the development of new contrast agents at lower toxicity and higher pathology specificity

• Laboratory of Advanced Preclinical Imaging for the identification, validation and transfer of novel biomarkers as well as assessment of pharmacological treatments in terms of bio-distribution and efficacy

• Biobank

Techniques You Will Learn

Techniques the applicant can learn - Acquisition, analysis and correlation of clinical, laboratory, imaging and bioinformatics data

The SDN Institute is a multi-specialist institute that has been operating for over 40 years in the fields of laboratory and diagnostic imaging.

The primary objective of IRCCS SDN is to satisfy, with professionalism and high-quality service, the entire diagnostic process of the patient guaranteeing constant but discreet assistance and providing a technologically advanced environment, which is constantly integrated and updated.

Besides the clinical care activities, SDN carries scientific research and dissemination activities in the field of in vivo and in vitro diagnostics, focused on the application and integration of diagnostic methods in preclinical and clinical mainly in oncological, cardiovascular, neurological and metabolic-functional diseases.

This activity was recognized by the Ministry of Health by a decree dated 11 January 2007 that, in 2014 first, in 2016 and in 2019 then, has confirmed to the Institute the qualification of SDN Institute for Hospitalization and Health Care (IRCCS) for " Integrated Diagnostics for Imaging and Laboratory" discipline.

The IRCCS qualification provides that, in addition to excellence in the clinical care activity, there is a strong commitment to translational research activities in all areas of diagnostics. The aim is to provide the National Health Service data and guidelines in order to make them more effective and innovative tools and procedures for the diagnosis and follow-up.

All the facilities and related equipment are at the disposal of healthcare activities as well as those for scientific research. Their number and their quality allow for experimentation and carrying out of research projects with highly innovative content and attract the interest of public and private entities. The concentration of such technologies and expertise allow the SDN Institute to excel in the field of integrated diagnostics and to attract many patients from all over central and southern Italy.

The SDN Institute is constantly striving to enhance the quality of procedures and, therefore, voluntarily submits to external audits of its standards by national (quality management system "ISO 9001") and international organizations (Joint Commission International, European Union of Medical Specialists (UEMS) and European Board of Nuclear Medicine (EBNM)).

To supporting research activity, highly innovative core facilities are operating also partly open to external users:

Imaging Processing Centre
Laboratory of Statistics and Bioinformatics
Radiopharmaceutical
Nanotechnology laboratory
Biobank, part of BBMRI (Biobanking and BioMolecular Resources Research Infrastructure) for the establishment of an Expert Center, ATMA-CE, a technological Hub as Expert Center to Accelerate Clinical Research, focussed on radiomics and validation of imaging biomarkers.

For the implementation of experimental research and clinical programs, the SDN Institute has for many years, developed formal and informal agreements with universities, IRCCS, public and private, national and international, institutions and organizations, to encourage scientific cooperation in the fields related to its research activities, for example, to exchange researchers and share research of mutual interest.

The Institute also participates actively in the following programs: European Institute for Biomedical Imaging Research, EuroBioImaging - a large-scale infrastructure project of pan-European research of the European Strategy Forum on Research Infrastructure (ESFRI), ADNI - Alzheimer’s Disease Neuroimaging Initiative, KIC Innostar, Italian node for "Healthy living and active aging"; EATRIS - European Advanced Translational Research Infrastructure in Medicine, BBMRI – Biobanking and BioMolecular Resources Research Infrastructure, research infrastructure involving biobanks and biological resource centers – European Expert Center (ATMA) and Network promoted by the Ministry of Health

Curriculum

Curriculum : Can be customized

The Institute for Hospitalization and Healthcare (IRCCS) SDN is an Italian approved multi-specialized healthcare laboratory and diagnostic provider that has been operating in the electrophysiology, imaging diagnostics and nuclear medicine sectors for more than 40 years. The main purpose of the IRCCS SDN is to satisfy the whole patient’s diagnostic workout by means of an advanced high-tech environment (e.g., equipped with high-field MR, MR/PET, HD-EEG, HD-EEG/fMRI), steadily integrated and up-to-date.

Besides clinical care services, SDN offers the opportunity to perform advanced scientific research (i.e. functional MR and tractography) aimed at high-precision pre-surgical planning and neurological functional sparing. In addition, SDN supports research activities and scientific dissemination of in vivo and in vitro diagnostics, with methodological application and integration in the preclinical as well as clinical contexts, with a particular interest in neurological, neurosurgical, and psychiatric diseases.

The Italian Ministry of Health recognized SDN as an IRCCS for “Integrated Diagnostics for Imaging and Laboratory” also in neurological disciplines on January 11, 2007, and confirmed such qualification in 2014 and again in 2016.

In particular, the IRCCS SDN, together with its local collaborators, including hospital and academic units, is steadily involved in the research on Alzheimer’s disease and other types of dementia, in which FDG-PET and cerebral PET with beta-amyloid tracers are used with simultaneous advanced MR acquisitions in an effort to reduce acquisition time and tracer injected dosage, improving patients’ compliance. Furthermore, the institute is involved in the study of other neurodegenerative diseases such as Parkinson disease, multiple sclerosis, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, in an attempt to clarify the pathological mechanisms and to identify early imaging bio-markers for prompt diagnosis and prognosis. Recently, the IRCCS SDN was granted a project on patients with disorders of consciousness aimed at improving clinical diagnosis and identify imaging parameters for prediction of functional recovery using MR/PET.

The SDN Institute is constantly striving to enhance the quality of procedures and therefore voluntarily submits to external audits of its standards by national (quality management system “ISO 9001”) and international organizations (Joint Commission International, European Union of Medical Specialists (UEMS) and European Board of Nuclear Medicine (EBNM)).

To support research activity, innovative core facilities are operating also partly open to external users:

• Imaging Processing Centre NAPLAB (NeuroAnatomy and image Processing LABoratory), focused on connectomics, i.e. the study of how distinct brain regions interact among them; radiomics, i.e. the identification of complex quantitative parameters from digital medical images, and the definition of novel diagnostic, prognostic and treatment-response markers in neurodegenerative diseases.

• Laboratory of Statistics and Bioinformatics

• Radiopharmaceutical for novel PET molecular-targeting radio-tracer synthesis

• Nanotechnology laboratory for the development of new contrast agents at lower toxicity and higher pathology specificity

• Biobank involved in the preservation of biological samples, including tissues, serum, plasma, mononuclear cells, urine and feces for being analyzed and correlated with clinical history and imaging diagnostics in loco. The Biobank is part of the Biobanking and BioMolecular Resources Research Infrastructure (BBMRI) for the establishment of an Expert Center, ATMA-CE, a technological Hub focussed on radiomics and validation of imaging biomarkers.

For many years now, the IRCCS SDN had several formal and informal agreements with academies, private and public healthcare providers and organizations at both national and international levels for the implementation of experimental research and clinical programs. This was pursued for encouraging scientific cooperation through research personnel exchanging, and sharing scientific knowledge in neurodegenerative disease and the other above-mentioned fields.

The Institute also actively participates in the following programs: HBP Italy – Human Brain Project Italy, ADNI – Alzheimer’s Disease Neuroimaging Initiative, EIBIR – European Institute for Biomedical Imaging Research, EuroBioImaging – a large-scale infrastructure project of pan-European research of the ESFRI (European Strategy Forum on Research Infrastructure), KIC Innostar, Italian node for “Healthy living and active aging”; EATRIS – European Advanced Translational Research Infrastructure in Medicine, BBMRI – Biobanking and BioMolecular Resources Research Infrastructure,research infrastructure involving biobanks and biological resource centers – European Expert Center (ATMA) and Network promoted by the Ministry of Health.

Accommodation

Nearby suggested accommodation - There are a lot of accomodation nearby SDN Institute (visit airBnB.it or booking.com)

Fees and Program Logistics

This program has the following durations available:

Duration	Fee
2 weeks	$875.00
4 weeks	$1,500.00
8 weeks	$2,750.00
12 weeks	$3,750.00

This program allows Merit Applications. If you successfully are awarded a merit application - Trialect will take care of all bench and service fees, but you will have to take care of travel and accommodation. All applications will be scrutinized under the merit category. Considering 50 million health professionals around the world, the chances of getting selected under the merit category would be very low.

Who Can Apply

All are eligible

Host Details

Host Name: Prof. Marco Salvatore

Affiliation: IRCCS SDN SpA, Italy

Address: Via F. Crispi, 8 - Via E. Gianturco, 113 - Naples, Italy

Website URL: https://www.reteneuroscienze.it/en/Istituto/irccs-sdn-istituto-di-ricerca/

Disclaimer:It is mandatory that all applicants carry workplace liability insurance, e.g., https://www.protrip-world-liability.com (Erasmus students use this package and typically costs around 5 € per month - please check) in addition to health insurance when you join any of the onsite Trialect partnered fellowships.