Imaging Inflammation with Positron Emission Tomography

Abstract

The impact of inflammation on the outcome of many medical conditions such as cardiovascular diseases, neurological disorders, infections, cancer, and autoimmune diseases has been widely acknowledged. However, in contrast to neurological, oncologic, and cardiovascular disorders, imaging plays a minor role in research and management of inflammation. Imaging can provide insights into individual and temporospatial biology and grade of inflammation which can be of diagnostic, therapeutic, and prognostic value. There is therefore an urgent need to evaluate and understand current approaches and potential applications for imaging of inflammation. This review discusses radiotracers for positron emission tomography (PET) that have been used to image inflammation in cardiovascular diseases and other inflammatory conditions with a special emphasis on radiotracers that have already been successfully applied in clinical settings.

Medical imaging of pulmonary disease in SARS-CoV-2-exposed non-human primates

“…In NHPs, PET-CT deploying radiotracers other than 18 F-FDG may provide additional insight into specific pathophysiological processes related to COVID-19 to fulfill more hallmarks of the ideal PET radiotracer for imaging inflammation, such as specificity and diagnostic value [92]. Some of these PET radiotracers have already been examined in small animal models of COVID-19, and studies in NHPs are ongoing.…”

“…The inflammation-specific peptide DOTATATE [paired with gallium-68 ( 68 Ga) or copper-64 ( 64 Cu)], a radiotracer with specificity for somatostatin receptor 2 (SSTR2), was developed to improve the diagnosis of neuroendocrine tumors [94]. However, because SSTR2 is expressed by several inflammatory cells, DOTATA TE is being investigated as a potential tracer for evaluation of several conditions, including cardiovascular [95] and infectious diseases [96], and appears to be particularly advantageous for imaging cardiac inflammation [92]. In one case report, DOTATATE was detected in an axillary lymph node after COVID-19 vaccination [97,98].…”

The Role of Nuclear Medicine Imaging with 18F-FDG PET/CT, Combined 111In-WBC/99mTc-Nanocoll, and 99mTc-HDP SPECT/CT in the Evaluation of Patients with Chronic Problems after TKA or THA in a Prospective Study

“…Fluorine-18 fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography ( 18 F-FDG-PET), which is primarily used for the localization of malignancy, has also demonstrated utility for the detection of infection or inflammation. FDG is a glucose analog that is primarily taken up by high-glucose-consuming cells, including inflammatory cells such as neutrophils and monocytes [62]. The nonspecific mechanism of 18 F-FDG uptake has been shown to be beneficial in terms of its high sensitivity and high negative predictive value but has a limitation of low specificity for imaging inflammation and infection.…”

Comparison of tissue biomarkers in arterial and vein (arteriovenous fistula) aneurysms

“…CCR2 positron emission tomography is a potential novel biomarker for the non-invasive evaluation of AAA inflammation, which may assist in the predictions of related rupture. 10 However, CCR2 examination has not been performed on vascular and arterial aneurysms. 10 Granzyme K (GZMK) has a role in inflammation control.…”