Supramolecular Chemistry in Biomedical Imaging

Book excerpt: There have been many great advances in the field of biomedical imaging in recent years, with supramolecular chemistry playing a key role in the evolution of modern imaging techniques. Non-covalent supramolecular interactions are fundamental to countless biological processes, from host–guest binding to the stabilisation of complex structures. Supramolecular chemistry techniques can be employed to create probes that can be targeted to either exploit or disrupt these interactions, giving the potential for both diagnostic and therapeutic effects. Furthermore, in techniques such as contrast enhanced MRI, controlling the interactions between solvent molecules and the imaging agent is crucial to the development of the technique. With rapid growth in the synthesis and study of molecular imaging agents, the understanding of their associated techniques has sometimes lagged behind. Supramolecular Chemistry in Biomedical Imaging will fill this gap by clarifying the state of current understanding and the nature of the underlying problems inherent to addressing problems in biology. It will cover both the techniques used in imaging and the molecular and supramolecular systems used to exploit them. This publication targets academics coming to the field from mainstream supramolecular chemistry, research graduates and undergraduates interested in supramolecular chemistry, synthesis or imaging agents and imaging techniques for biomedical applications.