Dr. Wellington Pham

Wellington's lab uses synthetic and colloidal chemistry to develop novel molecular probes for investigating disease mechanisms through emerging imaging technologies. His research spans three areas: cell therapy in transgenic and preclinical mouse models, nanotechnology-based vaccine delivery platforms for cancer treatment, and synthetic probes for Alzheimer's disease imaging, designed to reach the brain and identify disease biomarkers.

His recent work connects directly to vision research. In collaboration with Prof. Joanne Matsubara, his lab is developing a fluorescence nanobody probe to visualize amyloid flow in the retina, aimed at early AD diagnosis. Alongside this optical imaging work, he develops PET radioligands such as [¹¹C]ergothioneine, which targets oxidative stress, and [¹⁸F]PB0822, which targets glutaminyl cyclase activity.

Asked about collaboration, Wellington pointed to the value of cross-disciplinary teamwork, noting that the partnership with the Matsubara Lab has shown how synergy across biomedical research disciplines strengthens efforts to detect AD early.

Featured Publication:
Dr. Wellington Pham is the author of Principles of Molecular Probe Design and Applications, published by Springer Nature (2022, ISBN 978-981-19-5738-3). The book covers the mechanisms behind molecular probe design and their applications in medical diagnosis for preclinical animal models via optical, MRI, and PET imaging, and is intended as teaching material and reference for graduate students and practitioners in molecular imaging.