Pharmacological Imaging

Question 1

Molecular Imaging

Answer 1

SPECT and PET

You can model data into quantitative measures.

Question 2

MRI

Answer 2

multimodal.
One scanner = lots of different types of measures.
Structure - look at long term effects of drugs.
Functional - cognition and see how drugs effect those.
Pharmacological MRI - can be predictive.
Brain connectivity.
Relaxation component mapping.
MR Spectroscopy
Tractography.

Question 3

PET uses

Answer 3

Measure endogenous system - receptor density/availability/NT levels.
Effects of exogenous drugs - Occupancy, endogenous NT release.
Chart neurochemistry of disease.
Does scans silently.
Via an annihilation process.

Question 4

PET needs

Answer 4

Cyclotron - to make radioactive isotopes automatically - hot cell.
Once enough you can inject into a person.

Question 5

PET example

Answer 5

DA synapse has incoming neuron. Axon terminal DA vesicle released. DA neurons that project into cortex from ventral tegmentum. High projections into subcortical areas.
Image DA neurons with DA transporter. Allows in early unmedicated PD that signal strength in caudate and putamen.