DEVELOPMENT OF A MR COMPATIBLE PET SCANNER

描述（改编自申请人摘要）：申请人提出， 建立一个小型、低成本、单层正电子发射断层扫描（PET） 可以放置在常规磁共振成像内的扫描器 (MRI)允许同时采集PET图像和MRI的系统， 功能性MRI（fMRI）或磁共振波谱（MRS）数据。 的MR 兼容的PET探测器环将位于MRI磁体内部， 由小的氧正硅酸镥（LSO）闪烁体元件组成， 将使用多包层光纤读出。 这些光纤将 将闪烁光传输到多通道光电倍增管， 将驻留在射频（RF）屏蔽的 外壳距离PET探测器环数米。 数据实用 把光子探测器及其相关的电子设备 直接在MR磁体内部，并通过仔细的RF屏蔽消除了任何 由于PET电子设备导致MR图像中的伪影。 系统将 结合填充有MR造影剂基准环， PET成像切片的定位和与MR的直接配准 图像. 这种MR兼容的PET扫描仪成本相对较低，易于使用， 设置并适应各种MR系统。 这种类型的系统 有许多有趣的和基本的应用。 它可以用来 同时获取功能和解剖信息， 可忽略的配准误差，允许MR图像用于区域 感兴趣的定义和可能的PET的部分容积校正 问题研究 在脑成像研究中，它可以用来直接比较功能磁共振成像， 使用完全相同的刺激进行15 O-水PET研究， 成像环境。 它还允许PET的直接时间相关性 数据与MRS，提供额外的信息，在研究复杂的 代谢系统 本申请中概述的原型系统将 大到足以成像大多数非人类灵长类动物的大脑。 如果 如果成功，该设计最终可能会扩展到 人脑成像

DESCRIPTION (Adapted from Applicant's Abstract): The applicants proposed to build a small, low-cost, single slice positron emission tomography (PET) scanner which can be placed inside a conventional magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) system to permit simultaneous acquisition of PET images with MRI, functional MRI (fMRI) or magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) data. The MR compatible PET detector ring will reside inside the MRI magnet and will consist of small lutetium oxyorthosilicate (LSO) scintillator elements which will be read out using multi-clad optical fibers. These optical fibers will transfer the scintillation light to multi-channel photomultiplier tubes and readout electronics which will reside in a radiofrequency (RF) shielded enclosure several meters from the PET detector ring. The data practical difficulties of putting photon detectors and their associated electronics directly inside the MR magnet, and with careful RF shielding eliminates any artifacts in the MR images due to the PET electronics. The system will incorporate a fiducial ring filled with MR contrast agent to allow precise location of the PET imaging slice and direct registration with the MR images. This MR compatible PET scanner will be relatively low in cost, easy to set up and adaptable to a wide range of MR systems. This type of system has many interesting and fundamental applications. It can be used to acquire functional and anatomical information simultaneously, with negligible registration error, allowing the MR images to be used for region of interest definition and possibly partial volume correction of the PET studies. In brain mapping research, it can be used to directly compare fMRI studies with 15O-water PET studies using exactly the same stimulus and imaging environment. It will also permit direct temporal correlation of PET data with MRS, providing additional information in studies of complex metabolic systems. The prototype system outlined in this application would be large enough to image the brains of most non-human primates. If successful, it is possible that the design could ultimately be extended to human brain imaging.