Targets of functional imaging

Metabolism

• Oxygen
  • Oxygen consumption using [¹⁵O]O₂ in the brain, heart, skeletal muscle, and BAT
  • Oxygen consumption using [1-¹¹C]acetate
  • Hypoxia
• Glucose
  • Glucose consumption
  • Transport
  • Phosphorylation
  • Perfusion-metabolism mismatch
  • GLP-1R
  • Insulin
• Lactate
  • Lactate uptake and metabolism using [¹¹C]lactate
• Amino-acids
  • Protein synthesis rate
• Fatty acids
  • FA uptake using [¹¹C]palmitate
  • FA uptake using [¹⁸F]FTHA
• Cellular growth
  • [¹¹C]Thymidine, [¹⁸F]FLT and related nucleosides are markers of DNA synthesis
  • Labeled amino-acids as markers of protein synthesis
  • Folates
  • Transferrin
• Enzyme activity
• Angiogenesis
• Cell death
• Biologics and biosimilars: immuno-PET, peptides, oligonucleotides

Perfusion (blood flow)

• Brain
• Cerebral perfusion pressure and mean transit time
• Myocardial muscle using radiowater, Rb-82, [¹³N]ammonia, and [¹⁸F]Flurpiridaz
• Lungs
• Skeletal muscle
• Tumours
• Kidneys
• Liver
• Pancreas
• White and brown adipose tissue

Neurotransmitter systems

• Adenosine
• Adrenergic system
• Endocannabinoid system
• Cholinergic system
• Dopamine
• GABAergic system
• Glutamatergic system
• Histaminergic system
• Opioid system
• P2 purinoceptors
• Serotonergic system
• Sigma receptors

• B_max and K_D
• Synaptic density
• Enzymes
• Transporters
• Neurotransmitter release

Infection and inflammation

• Reactive oxygen species (ROS)
• Leukocytes
• TSPO
• VAP-1
• Somatostatin receptors
• Perfusion
• Blood volume
• Arthritis
• Multiple sclerosis

Protein deposits (proteinopathies)

• α-synuclein
• Amyloid β
• Tau proteins

Organs and tissues

• Brain
• Spinal cord
• Heart
• Kidneys
• Adrenal glands
• Thyroid glands
• Liver
• Pancreas
• Spleen
• Lungs
• Bone and bone marrow
• Skeletal muscle
• Brown adipose tissue
• White adipose tissue
• Skin
• Urinary bladder
• Prostate

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References:

Alam IS, Arshad MA, Nguyen Q, Aboagye EO. Radiopharmaceuticals as probes to characterize tumour tissue. Eur J Nucl Med Mol Imaging 2015; 42: 537-561. doi: 10.1007/s00259-014-2984-3.

Cumming P, Vasdev N. The assay of enzyme activity by positron emission tomography. Neuromethods 2012; 71: 111-135. doi: 10.1007/7657_2012_53.

Holland JP, Cumming P, Vasdev N. PET radiopharmaceuticals for probing enzymes in the brain. Am J Nucl Med Mol Imaging 2013; 3(3): 194-216. PMID: 23638333.

Neumann K, Flavell R, Wilson DM. Exploring metabolism in vivo using endogenous ¹¹C metabolic tracers. Semin Nucl Med. 2017; 47: 461-473. doi: 10.1053/j.semnuclmed.2017.05.003.

Sosuke Miyoshi, Keisuke Mitsuoka, Shintaro Nishimura and Stephan A. Veltkamp (2011). Radioisotopes in Drug Research and Development: Focus on Positron Emission Tomography, Radioisotopes - Applications in Bio-Medical Science, Prof. Nirmal Singh (Ed.), ISBN: 978-953-307-748-2, InTech, doi: 10.5772/22728.

Vāvere AL, Scott PJH. Clinical applications of small-molecule PET radiotracers: current progress and future outlook. Semin Nucl Med. 2017; 47: 429-453. doi: 10.1053/j.semnuclmed.2017.05.001.

Wong DF, Gründer G, Brasic JR. Brain imaging research: Does the science serve clinical practice? Int Rev Psychiatry 2007; 19(5): 541-558. PMID: 17896234.

Tags: Analysis, Tracer

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Updated at: 2020-02-24
Created at: 2007-10-22
Written by: Vesa Oikonen