Jacob M. Hooker is an American

chemist A chemist (from Greek ''chēm(ía)'' alchemy; replacing ''chymist'' from Medieval Latin ''alchemist'') is a graduated scientist trained in the study of chemistry, or an officially enrolled student in the field. Chemists study the composition of ...

and expert in

molecular imaging Molecular imaging is a field of medical imaging that focuses on imaging molecules of medical interest within living patients. This is in contrast to conventional methods for obtaining molecular information from preserved tissue samples, such as h ...

, specifically in the development and application of combined

MRI Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is a medical imaging technique used in radiology to generate pictures of the anatomy and the physiological processes inside the body. MRI scanners use strong magnetic fields, magnetic field gradients, and rad ...

and

PET A pet, or companion animal, is an animal kept primarily for a person's company or entertainment rather than as a working animal, livestock, or a laboratory animal. Popular pets are often considered to have attractive/ cute appearances, inte ...

. He is the Lurie FamilyProfessor of Radiology specializing in

Autism Research ''Autism Research'' is a bimonthly peer-reviewed medical journal covering research on autism and other pervasive developmental disorders. It was established in 2008 and is the official journal of the International Society for Autism Research. It ...

Harvard Medical School Harvard Medical School (HMS) is the medical school of Harvard University and is located in the Longwood Medical and Academic Area, Longwood Medical Area in Boston, Massachusetts. Founded in 1782, HMS is the third oldest medical school in the Un ...

. He also serves as a Phyllis and Jerome Lyle Rappaport MGH Research Scholar, director of radiochemistry at the Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging and scientific director at the Lurie Center for Autism at

Massachusetts General Hospital Massachusetts General Hospital (Mass General or MGH) is a teaching hospital located in the West End neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts. It is the original and largest clinical education and research facility of Harvard Medical School/Harvar ...

Life and education

He grew up outside of

Asheville Asheville ( ) is a city in Buncombe County, North Carolina, United States. Located at the confluence of the French Broad and Swannanoa rivers, it is the county seat of Buncombe County. It is the most populous city in Western North Carolina a ...

North Carolina North Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, South Carolina to the south, Georgia (U.S. stat ...

and attended Enka High School. Hooker received a B.S. in Textile Chemistry and Chemistry from North Carolina State University in 2002 and later earned a Ph.D. in Chemistry from the University of California, Berkeley Hooker then completed postdoctoral training under the mentorship of Joanna Fowler at the

Brookhaven National Laboratory Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL) is a United States Department of Energy national laboratories, United States Department of Energy national laboratory located in Upton, New York, a hamlet of the Brookhaven, New York, Town of Brookhaven. It w ...

, as a Goldhaber Distinguished Fellow, developing new neuroscience-oriented imaging methods and protocols.

Career

Hooker relocated to

Boston,Massachusetts Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

in 2009 at the initiation of his independent research career at the

Martinos Center The Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, usually referred to as just the "Martinos Center," is a major hub of biomedical imaging technology development and translational research. The Center is part of the Department of Radiology ...

. He co-designed and built a

cyclotron A cyclotron is a type of particle accelerator invented by Ernest Lawrence in 1929–1930 at the University of California, Berkeley, and patented in 1932. Lawrence, Ernest O. ''Method and apparatus for the acceleration of ions'', filed: Januar ...

and

radiopharmacy Nuclear pharmacy, also known as radiopharmacy, involves preparation of radioactive materials for patient administration that will be used to diagnose and treat specific diseases in nuclear medicine. It generally involves the practice of combining ...

facility housing a Siemens Eclipse HP Cyclotron, completed early 2011. At

, Hooker co-founded and co-directs an imaging facility that combines functional MRI and

positron emission tomography Positron emission tomography (PET) is a functional imaging technique that uses radioactive substances known as radiotracers to visualize and measure changes in metabolic processes, and in other physiological activities including blood flow, r ...

(PET) for the neurochemical study of the

Human Brain The human brain is the central organ (anatomy), organ of the nervous system, and with the spinal cord, comprises the central nervous system. It consists of the cerebrum, the brainstem and the cerebellum. The brain controls most of the activi ...

. He holds associate appointments at the Broad Institute and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). From 2017 to 2021, Hooker co-founded Eikonizo Therapeutics and later Sensorium Therapeutics. He is also Editor-in-Chief of ACS Chemical Neuroscience. Hooker has been a Scientific Advisor for Delix Therapeutics, Psy Therapeutics, Inc., and Fuzionaire Diagnostics. He is also chief science advisor to Rocket Science Health.

Research

His research focus centers on the themes of neuroepigenetic,

radiochemistry Radiochemistry is the chemistry of radioactive materials, where radioactive isotopes of elements are used to study the properties and chemical reactions of non-radioactive isotopes (often within radiochemistry the absence of radioactivity leads t ...

methods development and

neuroimaging Neuroimaging is the use of quantitative (computational) techniques to study the neuroanatomy, structure and function of the central nervous system, developed as an objective way of scientifically studying the healthy human brain in a non-invasive ...

methods development, particularly leveraging

(PET). Hooker has published over 200 papers in the domains of: MSTAT

PET Radiotracer Development

Hooker has developed PET radiotracers for measuring biochemistry in the human brain. For example, in 2016, Hooker's team created the first detailed images of how certain brain enzymes, known as Class-I histone deacetylases (HDACs), function in living humans. These enzymes play a key role in regulating genes and are linked to various brain disorders. By visualizing their activity, the research opened new doors to understanding how changes in these enzymes might contribute to conditions like schizophrenia, Alzheimer's disease, and autism, potentially leading to more targeted treatments.

Radiochemistry

Hooker has made contributions to the advancement of

methods for

PET imaging Positron emission tomography (PET) is a functional imaging technique that uses radioactive substances known as radiotracers to visualize and measure changes in metabolic processes, and in other physiological activities including blood flow, re ...

. For example, in 2011, Hooker collaborated with the Tobias Ritter lab to demonstrate the use of a palladium-IV complex in switching fluoride behavior in chemical reactions. This research was one of many other significant advances in radiochemistry and molecular imaging applications and decarboxylation with manganese catalysts.

Research on autism

As the scientific director of the Lurie Center for Autism at

, Hooker's work focuses on identifying specific subtypes of autism, which could pave the way for more precise diagnoses and treatments.

Neuroimaging methods

Hooker and his team were able to develop a method for brain glucose monitoring that produced something more like a movie, reporting changes in glucose use in response to multiple stimuli during a single PET scan. The lab is now expanding the concept of dynamic, functional PET imaging to measure real-time neurotransmitter release in the living human brain.

Other areas of exploration

At Harvard, Hooker's research lab, in collaboration with the Steve Haggarty lab, is exploring novel plant-based and entheogenic psychedelics, Their work includes projects such as investigating the potential of

psychedelics Psychedelics are a subclass of hallucinogenic drugs whose primary effect is to trigger non-ordinary mental states (known as psychedelic experiences or "trips") and a perceived "expansion of consciousness". Also referred to as classic halluci ...

in therapeutic applications.

Recognition

In 2010, He received the

Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers The Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE) is the highest honor bestowed by the United States federal government on outstanding scientists and engineers in the early stages of their independent research careers. T ...

. In 2016, Hooker was named as a Phyllis and Jerome Lyle Rappaport MGH Research Scholar which acknowledges 'forward thinking researchers with the funding they need to take their work into uncharted territories'. In 2015, He was featured in the inaugural Talented 12 list by

Chemical & Engineering News ''Chemical & Engineering News'' (''C&EN'') is a weekly news magazine published by the American Chemical Society (ACS), providing professional and technical news and analysis in the fields of chemistry and chemical engineering.Living people 21st-century American chemists North Carolina State University alumni University of California, Berkeley alumni Neuroimaging researchers Year of birth missing (living people) Recipients of the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers