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Simplified quantification of small animal [18F]FDG PET studies using a standard arterial input function

European Journal of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging volume 33, pages 948–954 (2006)Cite this article

Abstract

Purpose

Arterial input function (AIF) measurement for quantification of small animal PET studies is technically challenging and limited by the small blood volume of small laboratory animals. The present study investigated the use of a standard arterial input function (SAIF) to simplify the experimental procedure.

Methods

Twelve [18F]fluorodeoxyglucose ([18F]FDG) PET studies accompanied by serial arterial blood sampling were acquired in seven male Sprague-Dawley rats under isoflurane anaesthesia without (every rat) and with additional (five rats) vibrissae stimulation. A leave-one-out procedure was employed to validate the use of a SAIF with individual scaling by one (1S) or two (2S) arterial blood samples.

Results

Automatic slow bolus infusion of [18F]FDG resulted in highly similar AIF in all rats. The average differences of the area under the curve of the measured AIF and the individually scaled SAIF were 0.11±4.26% and 0.04±2.61% for the 1S (6-min sample) and the 2S (4-min/43-min samples) approach, respectively. The average differences between the cerebral metabolic rates of glucose (CMRglc) calculated using the measured AIF and the scaled SAIF were 1.31±5.45% and 1.30±3.84% for the 1S and the 2S approach, respectively.

Conclusion

The use of a SAIF scaled by one or (preferably) two arterial blood samples can serve as a valid substitute for individual AIF measurements to quantify [18F]FDG PET studies in rats. The SAIF approach minimises the loss of blood and should be ideally suited for longitudinal quantitative small animal [18F]FDG PET studies.

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Acknowledgements

The authors gratefully acknowledge the valuable technical support provided by Suleman Surti, Richard Freifelder and Joel Karp at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA. P.T.M. was supported by a grant from the German Society of Clinical Neurophysiology and Functional Imaging (DGKN). This work was funded in part by a grant from the National Institutes of Health to P.D.A. (R01-NS048315).

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Affiliations

  1. Department of Neurology, University Hospital Aachen, Pauwelsstrasse 30, 52074, Aachen, Germany

    Philipp T. Meyer

  2. Department of Radiology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, USA

    Valentina Circiumaru & Daniel H. Thomas

  3. Department of Radiology, Thomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia, USA

    Christopher A. Cardi, Harshali Bal & Paul D. Acton

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  1. Philipp T. Meyer
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  2. Valentina Circiumaru
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  3. Christopher A. Cardi
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  5. Harshali Bal
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  6. Paul D. Acton
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Correspondence to Philipp T. Meyer.

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Meyer, P.T., Circiumaru, V., Cardi, C.A. et al. Simplified quantification of small animal [18F]FDG PET studies using a standard arterial input function. Eur J Nucl Med Mol Imaging 33, 948–954 (2006). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00259-006-0121-7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00259-006-0121-7

Keywords

  • Positron emission tomography
  • Molecular imaging
  • Cerebral metabolism
  • Quantification