Anatomic and Molecular Brain Imaging: Application of Cortical Thickness Mapping assessed by MRI to Functional (18F)-Flumazenil-PET Examinations

正电子发射断层扫描(PET)分子成像是研究活体组织功能的最有选择性和最敏感的方法之一。技术设备的新发展，特别是图像处理和研究量化方面的进步，使研究较小尺寸的结构成为可能，尽管PET的空间分辨率有限。定量测量的准确性受到混合组织采样和部分体积的影响，特别是在小结构中，当存在皮质萎缩时，这种影响会增加。此外，局部解剖学因素(例如，皮质厚度的差异或皮质随时间的变化)被证明影响患者和正常对照组的PET示踪剂结合[1]，这强调了在功能成像数据分析中结合解剖学和功能的重要性。磁共振成像(MRI)的最新进展使以毫米为单位的“皮质厚度”的量化成为可能[2，3]，这是一种解剖学信息，可用作校正PET数据的参考。本研究的主要目的是以氟马西尼为例，加强和验证由个人MRI评估的皮质厚度图在功能性PET检查中的应用，该药物与正常对照组和中风患者的中央苯二氮卓类受体(CBZR)-伽马丁酸(GABAA)受体复合体结合。此外，将在世界领先的神经功能成像部门之一获得对PET研究进行量化的新方法。所学到的专业知识将在慕尼黑大学用于进一步的调查和研究，这些研究计划用这些技术进行和分析。

Molecular imaging with Positron emission tomography (PET) is one of the most selective and sensitive methods for investigating tissue function in vivo. New developments in technical equipment and particularly advances in image-processing and study-quantification enable investigation of smaller-sized structures, even though the spatial resolution of PET is limited. The accuracy of quantitative measurements is influenced by mixed tissue sampling and partial volume, especially in small structures and which is increased in the presence of cortical atrophy. In addition regional anatomical factors (e.g. differences in cortical thickness or cortical changes across time) were shown to influence PET-tracer-binding in patients and normal controls [1], which underlines the importance of combining anatomy and function in the analysis of functional imaging data. Recent advances in magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) have made it possible to quantify “cortical thickness" in millimetres [2,3], an anatomical information which can then be used as reference for correction of PET-data. The main objective of this investigation is to enhance and validate a new application of cortical thickness mapping assessed by individual MRI to functional PET examinations using the example of flumazenil, which binds to the central benzodiazepine receptor (cBZR)-gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABAA) receptor complex in normal controls and in stroke patients. Besides this, new methods for quantification of PET-investigations will be acquired at one of the world-leading department for functional imaging in Neurology. The learned expertise, are to be implemented at the University of Munich for further investigations and studies which are planed to be performed and analyzed with these techniques.