Medical Physics Seminar – Monday, February 21, 2011
A Simultaneous Dual-Tracer PET Investigation of Dopaminergic Neuromodulation
Jeffrey Moirano (student of Dr. James Holden)
Research Assistant, Department of Medical Physics, UW-School of Medicine & Public Health, Madison, WI USA
This work aims to demonstrate the utility and feasibility of
positron emission tomography (PET) studies with two different tracers imaged
simultaneously, using the nonhuman primate dopamine system as an example
platform. A simultaneous dual tracer PET protocol was developed using both [18F]desmethoxyfallypride
and [17F]fluoromethane to image dopaminergic receptor density and
blood flow respectively. Comparing multiple measures taken during the same
physiological state can yield greater understanding of the functional system than
can be achieved with sequential scans.