Michael Van Dam

Dr. Michael Van Dam is a Professor and Vice Chair in the Department of Molecular & Medical Pharmacology at the David Geffen School of Medicine, UCLA. He also serves as Co-Associate Director of the Crump Institute for Molecular Imaging and Director of the Crump Cyclotron and Radiochemistry Technology Center. His research focuses on developing miniaturized technologies for radiopharmaceutical synthesis and analysis, particularly for PET imaging applications.

• Alumni: Queen’s University (B.Sc.), University of Toronto (M.Sc.), Caltech (Ph.D.)
• Affiliations: Bioengineering Department, Physics in Biology and Medicine Program, Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center
• Commercialization: Co-founder of Sofie, Inc., commercializing ELIXYS radiosynthesizers

His recent work emphasizes droplet-based microfluidics, high-throughput radiochemistry platforms, and cost-reduction strategies for radiotracer production. The lab has published extensively on automated synthesis systems and quality control innovations. Current projects aim to translate these technologies into clinical applications.

Notable research outputs include advancements in microfluidic reactors, radiosynthesis automation, and Cerenkov luminescence imaging. The team actively explores methods to replace traditional HPLC with rapid TLC for radiopharmaceutical analysis.

• 64 reactions/hour throughput demonstrated
• Over 20 granted patents in radiochemistry devices
• Key applications in oncology, neurology, and cardiology