Creating New Tools for Radioligand Therapy

Sheryl Roberts, PhD: My research interests are molecular imaging and biology. My background is organic chemistry. My research involves developing chemical tools, radiotracers or molecules labeled with radioactive isotopes for imaging, for positron emission tomography (PET) imaging and theranostics (therapy and diagnostics). I started this research during my time at Memorial Sloan Kettering. At Yale Imaging Institute, we will continue that work.

Roberts: In my lab, we create chemical tools for visualizing molecular processes, helping us to understand the mechanisms of life and disease as they happen. Radioligand therapy (RLT), which is expanding right now in academia and industry, is a cancer treatment that combines a targeting compound—a ligand—with a radioactive isotope to deliver radiation directly to cancer cells. We hope to translate new, chemical tools for RLT.

Roberts: When I was doing my postdoctoral training at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, I learned a lot about molecular imaging, radiochemistry, and PET, and that’s where my curiosity really took off. My interest in science began as a child. I read a lot, not just fiction, but chemistry books, too. I’d often be in the library. I was fascinated by what things were made of.

Roberts: The work we do really depends on having the right resources and facilities, and Yale has them. For example, the PET Center lets us continue to push theranostics forward. In RLT, we use the technique to study cancer, so having Yale Cancer Center right here is incredibly valuable. Just as important, you get to work at the Yale Biomedical Imaging Institute alongside colleagues who’ve helped build it into a world-class imaging research hub and who are deeply familiar with the field I work in.

Roberts: Basically, my goal is to do fun science. For me, that’s really about curiosity. If you follow the curiosity, the work becomes very driven—you’re asking big questions, trying creative ideas, and enjoying the process of discovery. I like when people work together. Fortunately, our work sits at the intersection of chemistry, theranostics, and cancer biology, so collaboration comes naturally. The goal is to translate what we develop to patients—ideally, in a way that benefits many who need it.

Roberts: I’ve been on the East Coast before and the weather in Michigan is the same as here, so that is not a problem. The people were nice there, and I’m sure it will be the same here. As I’m eager to get back to the wet lab, one of the things I'm most excited about is the facility and available resources, which should help us get the lab up and running again.