Meet the Principal Investigator
Martin Pomper, M.D., Ph.D.
Professor & Chair
Martin G. Pomper, M.D., Ph.D., is a Professor and Chair of Radiology at UT Southwestern Medical Center and serves in both the Neuroradiology and Nuclear Medicine Divisions. He holds the Effie and Wofford Cain Distinguished Chair of Diagnostic Imaging.
He received undergraduate, graduate (organic chemistry) and medical degrees from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Postgraduate medical training was in radiology at Johns Hopkins University.
Dr. Pomper focuses his research on molecular imaging and therapy for cancer and central nervous system disorders. His work has resulted in nearly 500 peer-reviewed publications in scientific journals, and a number of patents and presentations at professional conferences throughout the world.
While his work has involved molecular-genetic imaging, nanomedicine, and generation of new positron emission tomography (PET)-based agents for neuroinflammation, his greatest effort has been in the discovery and development of small molecules targeting the prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA). He created the first small molecules for imaging PSMA, and the first commercial PSMA-targeted PET agent (PYLARIFY®). His group also created the first PSMA-targeted imaging and therapeutic (theranostic) agents incorporating a radiometal. Compounds of the same chemical class have been approved by the FDA and are used worldwide to help manage patients with prostate cancer.
Meet the Team
Il Minn, Ph.D.
Associate Professor
IL Minn Ph.D., is an Associate Professor of Radiology at UT Southwestern Medical Center and a member of its Nuclear Medicine Division with a focus on its research mission.
Dr. Minn's research focuses on elucidating the biology of human cancers and translating these insights into the development of new molecular theranostic tools, including imaging agents, in vitro diagnostics, various screening platforms, and therapeutic drugs. By leveraging multidisciplinary approaches encompassing synthetic biology, molecular imaging, radiotherapy, and nanotechnology, my work aims to bridge fundamental cancer biology with clinical application. A comprehensive understanding of cancer biology is critical for identifying novel molecular targets and designing effective reagents, thereby enhancing the probability of clinical success. Ongoing research efforts focus on molecular-genetic reporter systems for cancer theranostics, real-time imaging agents for monitoring therapeutic immune cells, multimodal imaging probes for image-guided surgery, cancer organoid platforms for theranostic agent evaluation, and radiopharmaceutical therapies.
Wojciech Lesniak, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor
Wojciech G. Lesniak, Ph.D., is an Assistant Professor of Radiology at UT Southwestern Medical Center and a member of its Nuclear Medicine Division with focus on its research mission.
Dr. Lesniak focuses his research on the development of molecular imaging and theranostic agents for diagnosing and treating cancer and central nervous system diseases. He is particularly interested in imaging-guided cancer-targeted drug delivery, which provides crucial information to enhance therapeutic responses. By integrating advanced imaging modalities with targeted drug delivery systems, he aims to improve the precision and efficacy of treatments, ultimately contributing to personalized medicine approaches in oncology and neurology. His work has resulted in more than 90 peer-reviewed publications in scientific journals and presentations at professional conferences throughout the world.
Dr. Lesniak is an active member of several professional organizations, including the Material Research Society, the World Molecular Imaging Congress, and the Controlled Release Society.
Ji Hyung Jun
Senior Research Associate, Ph.D.
Ji Hyung is a Senior Research Associate in the Department of Radiology at UT Southwestern Medical Center. Her research focuses on molecular imaging using mouse models.
Nitika Sharma
Senior Research Associate, Ph.D.
Nitika is a synthetic chemist. Her work focuses on the design and synthesis of small-molecule therapeutics and diagnostic agents for cancer and neurodegenerative disease.
Her publications list : Nitika Sharma - Google Scholar
Marzieh Mazinani
Research Associate, M.S.
Marzieh is a Research Associate in the Department of Radiology at UT Southwestern Medical Center, where her research focuses on cancer immunotherapy and molecular imaging. Before joining UT Southwestern, she was a visiting scholar at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine.
Hwanhee (Joy) Nam
Research Associate, M.S.
Hwanhee is a Research Associate in the Department of Radiology at UT Southwestern Medical Center. Her research focuses on molecular theranostics, particularly in the areas of immunotherapy and targeted imaging.
Clarissa Pham
Graduate Student Researcher, Medical Scientist Training Program (MSTP)
Clarissa is a biochemistry graduate student in the MSTP. She completed her undergraduate at UCLA. Her research focuses on developing theranostic agents for cancer.
