scholarly journals Development of a non-radiometric method for measuring the arterial input function of a 11C-labeled PET radiotracer

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
H. Umesha Shetty ◽  
Sami S. Zoghbi ◽  
Cheryl L. Morse ◽  
Aneta Kowalski ◽  
Jussi Hirvonen ◽  
...  

Abstract Positron emission tomography (PET) uses radiotracers to quantify important biochemical parameters in human subjects. A radiotracer arterial input function (AIF) is often essential for converting brain PET data into robust output measures. For radiotracers labeled with carbon-11 (t1/2 = 20.4 min), AIF is routinely determined with radio-HPLC of blood sampled frequently during the PET experiment. There has been no alternative to this logistically demanding method, neither for regular use nor validation. A 11C-labeled tracer is always accompanied by a large excess of non-radioactive tracer known as carrier. In principle, AIF might be obtained by measuring the molar activity (Am; ratio of radioactivity to total mass; Bq/mol) of a radiotracer dose and the time-course of carrier concentration in plasma after radiotracer injection. Here, we implement this principle in a new method for determining AIF, as shown by using [11C]PBR28 as a representative tracer. The method uses liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry for measuring radiotracer Am and then the carrier in plasma sampled regularly over the course of a PET experiment. Am and AIF were determined radiometrically for comparison. The new non-radiometric method is not constrained by the short half-life of carbon-11 and is an attractive alternative to conventional AIF measurement.

2011 ◽  
Vol 31 (11) ◽  
pp. 2189-2198 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lisa Willats ◽  
Soren Christensen ◽  
Henry K Ma ◽  
Geoffrey A Donnan ◽  
Alan Connelly ◽  
...  

In bolus-tracking perfusion magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), temporal dispersion of the contrast bolus due to stenosis or collateral supply presents a significant problem for accurate perfusion quantification in stroke. One means to reduce the associated perfusion errors is to deconvolve the bolus concentration time-course data with local Arterial Input Functions (AIFs) measured close to the capillary bed and downstream of the arterial abnormalities causing dispersion. Because the MRI voxel resolution precludes direct local AIF measurements, they must be extrapolated from the surrounding data. To date, there have been no published studies directly validating these local AIFs. We assess the effectiveness of local AIFs in reducing dispersion-induced perfusion error by measuring the residual dispersion remaining in the local AIF deconvolved perfusion maps. Two approaches to locating the local AIF voxels are assessed and compared with a global AIF deconvolution across 19 bolus-tracking data sets from patients with stroke. The local AIF methods reduced dispersion in the majority of data sets, suggesting more accurate perfusion quantification. Importantly, the validation inherently identifies potential areas for perfusion underestimation. This is valuable information for the identification of at-risk tissue and management of stroke patients.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Naoyuki Obokata ◽  
Chie Seki ◽  
Takeshi Hirata ◽  
Jun Maeda ◽  
Hideki Ishii ◽  
...  

AbstractPurposePhosphodiesterase (PDE) 7 is a potential therapeutic target for neurological and inflammatory diseases, although in-vivo visualization of PDE7 has not been successful. In this study, we aimed to develop [11C]MTP38 as a novel positron emission tomography (PET) ligand for PDE7.Methods[11C]MTP38 was radiosynthesized by 11C-cyanation of a bromo precursor with [11C]HCN. PET scans of rat and rhesus monkey brains and in-vitro autoradiography of brain sections derived from these species were conducted with [11C]MTP38. In monkeys, dynamic PET data were analyzed with an arterial input function to calculate the total distribution volume (VT). The non-displaceable binding potential (BPND) in the striatum was also determined by a reference tissue model with cerebellar reference. Finally, striatal occupancy of PDE7 by an inhibitor was calculated in monkeys according to changes in BPND.Results[11C]MTP38 was synthesized with radiochemical purity ≥ 99.4% and molar activity of 38.6 ± 12.6 GBq/μmol. Autoradiography revealed high radioactivity in the striatum and its reduction by non-radiolabeled ligands, in contrast with unaltered autoradiographic signals in other regions. In-vivo PET after radioligand injection to rats and monkeys demonstrated that radioactivity was rapidly distributed to the brain and intensely accumulated in the striatum relative to the cerebellum. Correspondingly, estimated VT values in the monkey striatum and cerebellum were 3.59 and 2.69 mL/cm3, respectively. The cerebellar VT value was unchanged by pretreatment with unlabeled MTP38. Striatal BPND was reduced in a dose-dependent manner after pretreatment with MTP-X, a PDE7 inhibitor. Relationships between PDE7 occupancy by MTP-X and plasma MTP-X concentration could be described by Hill’s sigmoidal function.ConclusionWe have provided the first successful preclinical demonstration of in-vivo PDE7 imaging with a specific PET radioligand. [11C]MTP38 is a feasible radioligand for evaluating PDE7 in the brain and is currently being applied to a first-in-human PET study.


2004 ◽  
Vol 24 (6) ◽  
pp. 600-611 ◽  
Author(s):  
Koichi Sato ◽  
Kiyoshi Fukushi ◽  
Hitoshi Shinotoh ◽  
Shinichiro Nagatsuka ◽  
Noriko Tanaka ◽  
...  

The applicability of two reference tissue-based analyses without arterial blood sampling for the measurement of brain regional acetylcholinesterase (AChE) activity using N-[11C]methylpiperidin-4-yl propionate ([11C]MP4P) was evaluated in 12 healthy subjects. One was a linear least squares analysis derived from Blomqvist's equation, and the other was the analysis of the ratio of target-tissue radioactivity relative to reference-tissue radioactivity proposed by Herholz and coworkers. The standard compartment analysis using arterial input function provided reliable quantification of k3 (an index of AChE activity) estimates in regions with low (neocortex and hippocampus), moderate (thalamus), and high (cerebellum) AChE activity with a coefficient of variation (COV) of 12% to 19%. However, the precise k3 value in the striatum, where AChE activity is the highest, was not obtained. The striatum was used as a reference because its time-radioactivity curve was proportional to the time integral of the arterial input function. Reliable k3 estimates were also obtained in regions with low-to-moderate AChE activity with a COV of less than 21% by striatal reference analyses, though not obtained in the cerebellum. Shape analysis, the previous method of direct k3 estimation from the shape of time-radioactivity data, gave k3 estimates in the cortex and thalamus with a somewhat larger COV. In comparison with the standard analysis, a moderate overestimation of k3 by 9% to 18% in the linear analysis and a moderate underestimation by 2% to 13% in the Herholz method were observed, which were appropriately explained by the results of computer simulation. In conclusion, simplified kinetic analyses are practical and useful for the routine analysis of clinical [11C]MP4P studies and are nearly as effective as the standard analysis for detecting regions with abnormal AChE activity.


2013 ◽  
Vol 33 (7) ◽  
pp. 1058-1065 ◽  
Author(s):  
Martin Schain ◽  
Simon Benjaminsson ◽  
Katarina Varnäs ◽  
Anton Forsberg ◽  
Christer Halldin ◽  
...  

A metabolite corrected arterial input function is a prerequisite for quantification of positron emission tomography (PET) data by compartmental analysis. This quantitative approach is also necessary for radioligands without suitable reference regions in brain. The measurement is laborious and requires cannulation of a peripheral artery, a procedure that can be associated with patient discomfort and potential adverse events. A non invasive procedure for obtaining the arterial input function is thus preferable. In this study, we present a novel method to obtain image-derived input functions (IDIFs). The method is based on calculation of the Pearson correlation coefficient between the time-activity curves of voxel pairs in the PET image to localize voxels displaying blood-like behavior. The method was evaluated using data obtained in human studies with the radioligands [ 11 C]flumazenil and [ 11 C]AZ10419369, and its performance was compared with three previously published methods. The distribution volumes ( VT) obtained using IDIFs were compared with those obtained using traditional arterial measurements. Overall, the agreement in VT was good (~3% difference) for input functions obtained using the pairwise correlation approach. This approach performed similarly or even better than the other methods, and could be considered in applied clinical studies. Applications to other radioligands are needed for further verification.


2009 ◽  
Vol 30 (1) ◽  
pp. 196-210 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jean-Dominique Gallezot ◽  
Nabeel Nabulsi ◽  
Alexander Neumeister ◽  
Beata Planeta-Wilson ◽  
Wendol A Williams ◽  
...  

[11C]P943 is a new radioligand recently developed to image and quantify serotonin 5-Hydroxytryptamine (5-HT1B) receptors with positron emission tomography (PET). The purpose of this study was to evaluate [11C]P943 for this application in humans, and to determine the most suitable quantification method. Positron emission tomography data and arterial input function measurements were acquired in a cohort of 32 human subjects. Using arterial input functions, compartmental modeling, the Logan graphical analysis, and the multilinear method MA1 were tested. Both the two tissue-compartment model and MA1 provided good fits of the PET data and reliable distribution volume estimates. Using the cerebellum as a reference region, BPND binding potential estimates were computed. [11C]P943 BPND estimates were significantly correlated with in vitro measurements of the density of 5-HT1B receptors, with highest values in the occipital cortex and pallidum. To evaluate noninvasive methods, two- and three-parameter graphical analyses, Simplified Reference Tissue Models (SRTM and SRTM2), and Multilinear Reference Tissue Models (MRTM and MRTM2) were tested. The MRTM2 model provided the best correlation with MA1 binding-potential estimates. Parametric images of the volume of distribution or binding potential of [11C]P943 could be computed using both MA1 and MRTM2. The results show that [11C]P943 provides quantitative measurements of 5-HT1B binding potential.


1988 ◽  
Vol 8 (1_suppl) ◽  
pp. S31-S37 ◽  
Author(s):  
James L. Lear

The cerebral uptake of [99mTc]– d,l-hexamethylpropyleneamine oxime complex (HM-PAO) was compared to LCBF determined simultaneously with [14C]iodoantipyrine (IAP) using double radionuclide quantitative digital autoradiography. Awake male rats were given intravenous injections of a mixture of 50 μCi IAP and 15 mCi of HM-PAO and killed 20 s after tracer activity had first reached the brain. Two separate autoradiograms were produced from each 20 μm brain section. The autoradiograms were digitized, corrected for cross-contamination, and then converted into images of individual tracer concentration. The diffusible tracer model was used to convert the IAP concentration images into LCBF images. Regional HM-PAO concentration was found not to be linearly related to LCBF as determined with the IAP, and therefore a simple microsphere type model was inadequate in relating HM-PAO uptake to LCBF. A better HM-PAO uptake–LCBF correlation was obtained when the HM-PAO arterial input function was corrected for very rapidly produced, non-cerebrally extracted, metabolites and a kinetic model was used that considered the rate of intracerebral metabolism of HM-PAO to a retained metabolite. Even using this model, however, some differences between HM-PAO uptake and LCBF occurred in certain brain regions. Because these differences were small and the HM-PAO uptake pattern has been shown to be constant for many minutes, HM-PAO can probably be used to estimate LCBF in patients with single positron emission computed tomography (SPECT) imaging.


1991 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. 492-501 ◽  
Author(s):  
Takashi Yokoi ◽  
Iwao Kanno ◽  
Hidehiro Iida ◽  
Shuichi Miura ◽  
Kazuo Uemura

We developed a new technique of weighted integration for the measurement of local cerebral blood flow (LCBF) and the blood-tissue partition coefficient ip) using dynamic positron emission tomography (PET) and H152O. The weighted integration in the new technique is carried out on the equation of the first time integration of the Kety–Schmidt differential equation. Practically, serially accumulated images with sequentially prolonged accumulation times are weighted by two arbitrary functions. The weighting functions do not have to be differentiated because of the exclusion of the differential term in the starting equation. Consequently, the method does not require data at the end of the scan. The technique was applied to H152O dynamic PET performed on four normal subjects, and was verified to provide a better signal-to-noise ratio than the previously developed integrated projection (IP) technique. Computer simulations were carried out to investigate the effects of statistical noise, tissue heterogeneity, and time delay and dispersion in arterial input function. The simulation showed that the new technique provided about a 1.4 times lower statistical error in both LCBF and p at 50 ml 100 g−1 min−1 compared to the IP technique, and it should be noted that the new technique was less sensitive to the shape of the weighting functions. The new technique provides a new strategy with respect to the statistical error for estimation of LCBF and p.


1992 ◽  
Vol 12 (5) ◽  
pp. 881-884 ◽  
Author(s):  
Grace L.-Y. Chan ◽  
K. Scott Morrison ◽  
James E. Holden ◽  
Thomas J. Ruth

This article describes a simplified method for the determination of the l-[18F]6-fluorodopa (FDOPA) fraction time course that takes advantage of the strong correlation between the radioactivity ratio (metabolites/FDOPA) and time. Serial arterial blood samples are collected for assay of plasma total radioactivities following an intravenous injection of FDOPA into carbidopa-pretreated subjects. In addition, a single plasma sample, collected late in the study and analyzed for FDOPA fraction, is sufficient to determine accurately the time course of the FDOPA concentration in plasma. The validated straight-line method greatly simplifies blood analysis for routine positron emission tomography FDOPA studies.


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