A worldwide distribution agreement accelerates the market entry of ART Advanced Research Technologies pre-clinical optical molecular imaging system, SAMI, for the research and development for new therapeutic and diagnostic drugs.

The Canadian company reached an agreement with Milwaukee-based GE Medical Systems (GEMS), under which GEMS will act as exclusive worldwide distributor for SAMI. The terms were met in advance of the second annual Imaging Conference held in San Francisco last month.

ART's system is an optical fluorescence molecular imaging device developed to assist pharmaceutical companies and research laboratories to better understand disease and reduce the development cycle for new drugs. With the use of specialized laser sources and sensitive detectors, it non-invasively images tissue in-vivo and reveals the biological distribution and concentration of fluorescent-labeled markers, which are introduced into tissues as part of the testing process for new therapeutic and diagnostic drugs.

As a result, the molecular imager can help researchers and pharmaceutical companies quickly evaluate the effectiveness of a potential drug or observe its side effects on organs not targeted by the treatment.