small animal PET/CT

小动物正电子发射断层扫描（PET）是临床前研究中一种重要的无创成像方式。疾病过程可以在动物模型中研究，治疗效果可以通过量化代谢变化来监测。少量放射性物质被注入，辐射被高灵敏度的探测器从外部记录下来。专用的小动物PET设备可以生成亚毫米空间分辨率的图像。除了开发新的PET放射药物外，研究重点还包括神经变性、神经肿瘤学、前庭系统和心脏病学。由于同样的成像原理也适用于人类，因此将PET成像方案直接转化为临床是很简单的。目前的PET系统需要替换为最先进的PET系统，该系统与x射线CT设备相结合，进一步为各个合作研究小组提供成像平台。

Positron emission tomography (PET) for small animals is an important non invasive imaging modality in preclinical research. Disease course can be studied in the animal model and therapy effects can be monitored by quantification of e.g. metabolic changes. A small amount of radioactive substance is injected and the radiation is externally registered by highly sensitive detectors. Dedicated small animal PET devices can generate images with sub-millimeter spatial resolution. In addition to the development of new PET radiopharmaceuticals, research focuses on neuro-degeneration, neuro-oncology, vestibular system, and cardiology. Since the same imaging principle is applied in humans, direct translation of PET imaging protocols into the clinic is straightforward. The current PET system needs to be replaced by a state-of-the-art PET system, which is combined with an x-ray CT device, to further provide an imaging platform for various cooperating research groups.