The primary aim of Dr. James's lab is to improve the diagnosis and treatment of brain diseases by developing translational molecular imaging agents for visualizing neuroimmune interactions underlying conditions such as Alzheimer’s disease, multiple sclerosis, and stroke.

Dr. James's group is researching how the brain and its resident immune cells interact with the peripheral immune system at very early, through to late, stages of disease. Their approach involves the characterization and validation of clinically relevant immune cell biomarkers, followed by the design of novel positron emission tomography (PET) radiotracers specifically targeting these biomarkers. After preclinical validation, they translate promising imaging probes to the clinic to enable precision targeting of immunomodulatory therapeutics and real-time monitoring of treatment response.