InfrafrontierGR/Phenotypos

The micro PET/CT facility at BRFAA allows biological processes to be monitored as a function of time, providing a better and more quantitative understanding of pathophysiological processes in-situ.

 

Such an approach has the following benefits:

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a) Data obtained are in the context of the whole organism and in a digitized form allowing accurate analysis and quantification

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b) Performance of longitudinal (interventional) studies: as sacrifice of animals is not required at different time points during longitudinal studies, the same animal can be re-imaged, thereby increasing the statistical power of the study due to a decrease in inter-animal variation as each subject often acts essentially as its own control

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c) As non-invasive imaging modalities are already employed in the clinic, ready translation of developed preclinical protocols to the clinical arena is possible. But also a reverse translation from clinical to preclinical level offers a benefit in mimicking clinical cases in animal models and therefore refining clinical diagnosis as well as investigating the biological pathways involved in disease development.

 

PET allows in vivo imaging of different parameters (e.g. glucose metabolism, cell proliferation, apoptosis, angiogenesis, hypoxia, microcalcification, inflammation etc.) whilst at the same time, utilization of the CT component of the hybrid PET/CT scanner provides precise anatomic localization of the biological or molecular signal obtained from PET in the target organs.

 

Expert advice and assistance in the set-up of experimental imaging studies can be provided by the facility’s experienced personnel.