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Sample records for brain striatal phantom

  1. Simultaneous 99mTc and 123I dual-isotope brain striatal phantom single photon emission computed tomography: validation of 99mTc-TRODAT-1 and 123I-IBZM simultaneous dopamine system brain imaging.

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    Kao, Pan-Fu; Wey, Shiaw-Pyng; Yang, An-Shoei

    2009-11-01

    [2[[2-[[[3-(4-chlorophenyl)-8-methyl-8-azabicyclo[3,2,1]-oct-2-yl]-methyl](2-mercaptoethyl)-amino]ethyl]amino]ethanethiolato(3-)-N2,N2',S2,S2]oxo-[1R-exo-exo)])-[99mTc]-technetium (99mTc-TRODAT-1) and 123I-iodobenzamide (123I-IBZM) are radiotracers for brain dopamine pre- and postsynaptic neuron imaging. The purpose of this study was to evaluate imaging parameters and crossed energy interference using simultaneous single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) 99mTc and 123I data acquisition. A five-compartment brain striatal phantom was filled with 99mTc and/or 123I radioactive solutions with different striatal-to-background ratios, ranging from 3:1 to 9:1. SPECT data were acquired with energy window settings of 15% for the centered window at 140 keV for 99mTc and a 10% asymmetric window at 159 keV for 123I. The experiments were carried out using either individual (99mTc or 123I only) or both radionuclides. The striatal-to-background ratios and energy crossed interference between 99mTc and 123I were calculated. The phantom SPECT images demonstrated that the energy crossed interferences from 123I to 99mTc, and vice versa, were 22 +/- 12.4% and 0.4 +/- 1.0%, respectively. A net interference of 7.1 +/- 4.0% for the counts in the 15% centered 99mTc window can be expected from 123I and a net interference of 1.6 +/- 3.3% for the counts in the 10% asymmetric 123I window was derived from 99mTc. The correlation of striatal-to-background ratios between single isotope and simultaneous dual-isotope was excellent (R2 = 0.99). The imaging parameters used in this simultaneous dualisotope SPECT imaging could be used in future clinical practice for imaging patients with movement disorders by using 99mTc-TRODAT-1 and 123I-IBZM. The striatal-to-background ratios were not affected by the crossed interference between 99mTc and 123I.

  2. Simultaneous 99mTC and 123I Dual-Isotope Brain Striatal Phantom Single Photon Emission Computed Tomography: Validation of 99mTC-Trodat-1 and 123I-IBZM Simultaneous Dopamine System Brain Imaging

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Pan-Fu Kao

    2009-11-01

    Full Text Available [2[[2-[[[3-(4-chlorophenyl-8-methyl-8-azabicyclo[3,2,1]-oct-2-yl]-methyl](2-mercaptoethylamino]ethyl]amino]ethanethiolato(3--N2,N2′,S2,S2]oxo-[1R-exo-exo]-[99mTc]-technetium (99mTc-TRODAT-1 and 123I-iodobenzamide (123I-IBZM are radiotracers for brain dopamine preand postsynaptic neuron imaging. The purpose of this study was to evaluate imaging parameters and crossed energy interference using simultaneous single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT 99mTc and 123I data acquisition. A five-compartment brain striatal phantom was filled with 99mTc and/or 123I radioactive solutions with different striatal-to-background ratios, ranging from 3:1 to 9:1. SPECT data were acquired with energy window settings of 15% for the centered window at 140 keV for 99mTc and a 10% asymmetric window at 159 keV for 123I. The experiments were carried out using either individual (99mTc or 123I only or both radionuclides. The striatal-to-background ratios and energy crossed interference between 99mTc and 123I were calculated. The phantom SPECT images demonstrated that the energy crossed interferences from 123I to 99mTc, and vice versa, were 22 ± 12.4% and 0.4 ± 1.0%, respectively. A net interference of 7.1 ± 4.0% for the counts in the 15% centered 99mTc window can be expected from 123I and a net interference of 1.6 ± 3.3% for the counts in the 10% asymmetric 123I window was derived from 99mTc. The correlation of striatal-to-background ratios between single isotope and simultaneous dual-isotope was excellent (R2 = 0.99. The imaging parameters used in this simultaneous dual-isotope SPECT imaging could be used in future clinical practice for imaging patients with movement disorders by using 99mTc-TRODAT-1 and 123I-IBZM. The striatal-to-background ratios were not affected by the crossed interference between 99mTc and 123I.

  3. [Development of a Striatal and Skull Phantom for Quantitative 123I-FP-CIT SPECT].

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    Ishiguro, Masanobu; Uno, Masaki; Miyazaki, Takuma; Kataoka, Yumi; Toyama, Hiroshi; Ichihara, Takashi

    123 Iodine-labelled N-(3-fluoropropyl) -2β-carbomethoxy-3β-(4-iodophenyl) nortropane ( 123 I-FP-CIT) single photon emission computerized tomography (SPECT) images are used for differential diagnosis such as Parkinson's disease (PD). Specific binding ratio (SBR) is affected by scattering and attenuation in SPECT imaging, because gender and age lead to changes in skull density. It is necessary to clarify and correct the influence of the phantom simulating the the skull. The purpose of this study was to develop phantoms that can evaluate scattering and attenuation correction. Skull phantoms were prepared based on the measuring the results of the average computed tomography (CT) value, average skull thickness of 12 males and 16 females. 123 I-FP-CIT SPECT imaging of striatal phantom was performed with these skull phantoms, which reproduced normal and PD. SPECT images, were reconstructed with scattering and attenuation correction. SBR with partial volume effect corrected (SBR act ) and conventional SBR (SBR Bolt ) were measured and compared. The striatum and the skull phantoms along with 123 I-FP-CIT were able to reproduce the normal accumulation and disease state of PD and further those reproduced the influence of skull density on SPECT imaging. The error rate with the true SBR, SBR act was much smaller than SBR Bolt . The effect on SBR could be corrected by scattering and attenuation correction even if the skull density changes with 123 I-FP-CIT on SPECT imaging. The combination of triple energy window method and CT-attenuation correction method would be the best correction method for SBR act .

  4. Regulation of dopamine synthesis and release in striatal and prefrontal cortical brain slices

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wolf, M.E.

    1986-01-01

    Brain slices were used to investigate the role of nerve terminal autoreceptors in modulating dopamine (DA) synthesis and release in striatum and prefrontal cortex. Accumulation of dihydroxyphenylalanine (DOPA) was used as an index of tyrosine hydroxylation in vitro. Nomifensine, a DA uptake blocker, inhibited DOPA synthesis in striatal but not prefrontal slices. This effect was reversed by the DA antagonist sulpiride, suggesting it involved activation of DA receptors by elevated synaptic levels of DA. The autoreceptor-selective agonist EMD-23-448 also inhibited striatal but not prefrontal DOPA synthesis. DOPA synthesis was stimulated in both brain regions by elevated K + , however only striatal synthesis could be further enhanced by sulpiride. DA release was measured by following the efflux of radioactivity from brain slices prelabeled with [ 3 H]-DA. EMD-23-448 and apomorphine inhibited, while sulpiride enhanced, the K + -evoked overflow of radioactivity from both striatal and prefrontal cortical slices. These findings suggest that striatal DA nerve terminals possess autoreceptors which modulate tyrosine hydroxylation as well as autoreceptors which modulate release. Alternatively, one site may be coupled to both functions through distinct transduction mechanisms. In contrast, autoreceptors on prefrontal cortical terminals appear to regulate DA release but not DA synthesis

  5. The subresolution DaTSCAN phantom: a cost-effective, flexible alternative to traditional phantom technology.

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    Taylor, Jonathan C; Vennart, Nicholas; Negus, Ian; Holmes, Robin; Bandmann, Oliver; Lo, Christine; Fenner, John

    2018-03-01

    The Alderson striatal phantom is frequently used to assess I-FP-CIT (Ioflupane) image quality and to test semi-quantification software. However, its design is associated with a number of limitations, in particular: unrealistic image appearances and inflexibility. A new physical phantom approach is proposed on the basis of subresolution phantom technology. The design incorporates thin slabs of attenuating material generated through additive manufacturing, and paper sheets with radioactive ink patterns printed on their surface, created with a conventional inkjet printer. The paper sheets and attenuating slabs are interleaved before scanning. Use of thin layers ensures that they cannot be individually resolved on reconstructed images. An investigation was carried out to demonstrate the performance of such a phantom in producing simplified I-FP-CIT uptake patterns. Single photon emission computed tomography imaging was carried out on an assembled phantom designed to mimic a healthy patient. Striatal binding ratio results and linear striatal dimensions were calculated from the reconstructed data and compared with that of 22 clinical patients without evidence of Parkinsonian syndrome, determined from clinical follow-up. Striatal binding ratio results for the fully assembled phantom were: 3.1, 3.3, 2.9 and 2.6 for the right caudate, left caudate, right putamen and right caudate, respectively. All were within two SDs of results derived from a cohort of clinical patients. Medial-lateral and anterior-posterior dimensions of the simulated striata were also within the range of values seen in clinical data. This work provides the foundation for the generation of a range of more clinically realistic, physical phantoms.

  6. Quality assessment of brain images by Hoffman phantom

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Karimian, A.R.; Saddad, F.; Mosalla, B.; Moradkhani, S.; Degbankhan, R.; Pouladi, M.

    2002-01-01

    The purpose of this investigation is using Hoffman brain phantom for quality assessment of brian images in SPECT system. There are the following standards for quality control in nuclear medicine: American Association of Physicists in Medicine, National Electrical Manufacturers Association, International Electromechanical Commission, International Atomic Energy Agency. Each of the above standards has the following important orders: Physical inspection, Acceptance and Reference Testing, Periodic Q C tests (Daily, Weekly, Monthly, Quarterly, Annually). The above tests are simple physics measures. To more meaningful ones based on performance of some tasks related to clinical application it is better to use from organs' phantoms, such as: brain, cardiac, etc. In this research we made a comparison between normal and abnormal states of Hoffman brain phantom. Methods of Hoffman brain phantom was filled with a solution of Tc- 99 m (5 mCi) and water (1300 cc). this results: The investigation of small abnormalities strongly related to the operating conditions and deviation from best tuning state of the system

  7. Evaluation of accuracy in target positions of multmodality imaging using brain phantom

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    Juh, R. H.; Suh, T. S.; Chung, Y. A. [The Catholic University of Korea, Seoul (Korea, Republic of)

    2002-07-01

    Determination of target positions in radiation therapy or radiosurgery is critical to the successful treatment. It is often difficult to recognize the target position only from single image modality since each image modality has unique image pattern and image distortion problem. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the accuracy of target positions with multimodality brain phantom. We obtained CT, MR, and SPECT scan images with the specially designed brain phantom. Brain phantom consists of brain for images and frame for localization. The phantom was a water fillable cylinder containing 58 axial layers of 2.0 mm thickness. Each layer allows water to permeate various regions to match gray matter to white matter of 1:1 ratio. Localization frame with 5mm inner diameter and 150/160 mm length were attached to the outside of the brain slice and inside of the phantom cylinder. The phantom was filled with 0.16 M CuSO{sub 4} solution for MRI scan, and distilled water for CT and 15mCi (555 MBq) Tc-99m for SPECT. Axial slice images and volume images including the targets and localizer were obtained for each modality. To evaluate the errors in target positions, the position of localization and target balls measured in SPECT were compared with MR and CT. Transformation parameters for translation, rotation and scaling were determined by surface matching each SPECT with MR and CT images. Multimodality phantom was very useful to evaluate the accuracy of target positions among the different types of image modality such as CT, MR and SPECT.

  8. An easy to produce and economical three-dimensional brain phantom for stereotactic computed tomographic-guided brain biopsy training in the dog.

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    Sidhu, Deepinder S; Ruth, Jeffrey D; Lambert, Gregory; Rossmeisl, John H

    2017-07-01

    To develop and validate a three-dimensional (3D) brain phantom that can be incorporated into existing stereotactic headframes to simulate stereotactic brain biopsy (SBB) and train veterinary surgeons. Experimental study. Canine brain phantoms were fabricated from osteological skull specimens, agarose brain parenchyma, and cheddar and mozzarella cheese molds (simulating meningiomas and gliomas). The neuroradiologic and viscoelastic properties of phantoms were quantified with computed tomography (CT) and oscillatory compression tests, respectively. Phantoms were validated by experienced and novice operators performing SBB on phantoms containing randomly placed, focal targets. Target yield and needle placement error (NPE) were compared between operators. Phantoms were produced in brain parenchyma, and contrast-enhancing tumors of meningeal and glial origin, respectively. The complex moduli of the agarose and cheeses were comparable to the viscoelastic properties of in vivo brain tissues and brain tumors. The overall diagnostic yield of SBB was 88%. Although NPE did not differ between novice (median 3.68 mm; range, 1.46-14.54 mm) and experienced surgeons (median 1.17 mm, range, 0.78-1.58 mm), our results support the relevance of the learning curve associated with the SBB procedure. This 3D phantom replicates anatomical, CT, and tactile features of brain tissues and tumors and can be used to develop the technical skills required to perform SBB. © 2017 The American College of Veterinary Surgeons.

  9. Extrasynaptic neurotransmission in the modulation of brain function. Focus on the striatal neuronal-glial networks

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kjell eFuxe

    2012-06-01

    Full Text Available Extrasynaptic neurotransmission is an important short distance form of volume transmission (VT and describes the extracellular diffusion of transmitters and modulators after synaptic spillover or extrasynaptic release in the local circuit regions binding to and activating mainly extrasynaptic neuronal and glial receptors in the neuroglial networks of the brain. Receptor-receptor interactions in G protein-coupled receptor (GPCR heteromers play a major role, on dendritic spines and nerve terminals including glutamate synapses, in the integrative processes of the extrasynaptic signaling. Heteromeric complexes between GPCR and ion-channel receptors play a special role in the integration of the synaptic and extrasynaptic signals. Changes in extracellular concentrations of the classical synaptic neurotransmitters glutamate and GABA found with microdialysis is likely an expression of the activity of the neuron-astrocyte unit of the brain and can be used as an index of VT-mediated actions of these two neurotransmitters in the brain. Thus, the activity of neurons may be functionally linked to the activity of astrocytes, which may release glutamate and GABA to the extracellular space where extrasynaptic glutamate and GABA receptors do exist. Wiring transmission (WT and VT are fundamental properties of all neurons of the CNS but the balance between WT and VT varies from one nerve cell population to the other. The focus is on the striatal cellular networks, and the WT and VT and their integration via receptor heteromers are described in the GABA projection neurons, the glutamate, dopamine, 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT and histamine striatal afferents, the cholinergic interneurons and different types of GABA interneurons. In addition, the role in these networks of VT signaling of the energy-dependent modulator adenosine and of endocannabinoids mainly formed in the striatal projection neurons will be underlined to understand the communication in the striatal

  10. Deep brain stimulation for phantom limb pain.

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    Bittar, Richard G; Otero, Sofia; Carter, Helen; Aziz, Tipu Z

    2005-05-01

    Phantom limb pain is an often severe and debilitating phenomenon that has been reported in up to 85% of amputees. Its pathophysiology is poorly understood. Peripheral and spinal mechanisms are thought to play a role in pain modulation in affected individuals; however central mechanisms are also likely to be of importance. The neuromatrix theory postulates a genetically determined representation of body image, which is modified by sensory input to create a neurosignature. Persistence of the neurosignature may be responsible for painless phantom limb sensations, whereas phantom limb pain may be due to abnormal reorganisation within the neuromatrix. This study assessed the clinical outcome of deep brain stimulation of the periventricular grey matter and somatosensory thalamus for the relief of chronic neuropathic pain associated with phantom limb in three patients. These patients were assessed preoperatively and at 3 month intervals postoperatively. Self-rated visual analogue scale pain scores assessed pain intensity, and the McGill Pain Questionnaire assessed the quality of the pain. Quality of life was assessed using the EUROQOL EQ-5D scale. Periventricular gray stimulation alone was optimal in two patients, whilst a combination of periventricular gray and thalamic stimulation produced the greatest degree of relief in one patient. At follow-up (mean 13.3 months) the intensity of pain was reduced by 62% (range 55-70%). In all three patients, the burning component of the pain was completely alleviated. Opiate intake was reduced in the two patients requiring morphine sulphate pre-operatively. Quality of life measures indicated a statistically significant improvement. This data supports the role for deep brain stimulation in patients with phantom limb pain. The medical literature relating to the epidemiology, pathogenesis, and treatment of this clinical entity is reviewed in detail.

  11. Quantitation of specific binding ratio in 123I-FP-CIT SPECT: accurate processing strategy for cerebral ventricular enlargement with use of 3D-striatal digital brain phantom.

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    Furuta, Akihiro; Onishi, Hideo; Amijima, Hizuru

    2018-06-01

    This study aimed to evaluate the effect of ventricular enlargement on the specific binding ratio (SBR) and to validate the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF)-Mask algorithm for quantitative SBR assessment of 123 I-FP-CIT single-photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) images with the use of a 3D-striatum digital brain (SDB) phantom. Ventricular enlargement was simulated by three-dimensional extensions in a 3D-SDB phantom comprising segments representing the striatum, ventricle, brain parenchyma, and skull bone. The Evans Index (EI) was measured in 3D-SDB phantom images of an enlarged ventricle. Projection data sets were generated from the 3D-SDB phantoms with blurring, scatter, and attenuation. Images were reconstructed using the ordered subset expectation maximization (OSEM) algorithm and corrected for attenuation, scatter, and resolution recovery. We bundled DaTView (Southampton method) with the CSF-Mask processing software for SBR. We assessed SBR with the use of various coefficients (f factor) of the CSF-Mask. Specific binding ratios of 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 corresponded to SDB phantom simulations with true values. Measured SBRs > 50% that were underestimated with EI increased compared with the true SBR and this trend was outstanding at low SBR. The CSF-Mask improved 20% underestimates and brought the measured SBR closer to the true values at an f factor of 1.0 despite an increase in EI. We connected the linear regression function (y = - 3.53x + 1.95; r = 0.95) with the EI and f factor using root-mean-square error. Processing with CSF-Mask generates accurate quantitative SBR from dopamine transporter SPECT images of patients with ventricular enlargement.

  12. Time-difference imaging of magnetic induction tomography in a three-layer brain physical phantom

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Liu, Ruigang; Li, Ye; Fu, Feng; You, Fusheng; Shi, Xuetao; Dong, Xiuzhen

    2014-01-01

    Magnetic induction tomography (MIT) is a contactless and noninvasive technique to reconstruct the conductivity distribution in a human cross-section. In this paper, we want to study the feasibility of imaging the low-contrast perturbation and small volume object in human brains. We construct a three-layer brain physical phantom which mimics the real conductivity distribution of brains by introducing an artificial skull layer. Using our MIT data acquisition system on this phantom and differential algorithm, we have obtained a series of reconstructed images of conductivity perturbation objects. All of the conductivity perturbation objects in the brain phantom can be clearly distinguished in the reconstructed images. The minimum detectable conductivity difference between the object and the background is 0.03 S m −1  (12.5%). The minimum detectable inner volume of the objects is 3.4 cm 3 . The three-layer brain physical phantom is able to simulate the conductivity distribution of the main structures of a human brain. The images of the low-contrast perturbation and small volume object show the prospect of MIT in the future. (paper)

  13. Imaging of striatal dopamine transporters in rat brain with single pinhole SPECT and co-aligned MRI is highly reproducible

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Booij, Jan; Bruin, Kora de; Win, Maartje M.L. de; Lavini, Cristina Mphil; Heeten, Gerard J. den; Habraken, Jan

    2003-01-01

    A recently developed pinhole high-resolution SPECT system was used to measure striatal to non-specific binding ratios in rats (n = 9), after injection of the dopamine transporter ligand 123 I-FP-CIT, and to assess its test/retest reproducibility. For co-alignment purposes, the rat brain was imaged on a 1.5 Tesla clinical MRI scanner using a specially developed surface coil. The SPECT images showed clear striatal uptake. On the MR images, cerebral and extra-cerebral structures could be easily delineated. The mean striatal to non-specific [ 123 I]FP-CIT binding ratios of the test/retest studies were 1.7 ± 0.2 and 1.6 ± 0.2, respectively. The test/retest variability was approximately 9%. We conclude that the assessment of striatal [ 123 I]FP-CIT binding ratios in rats is highly reproducible

  14. Oxidative metabolism and Ca2+ handling in isolated brain mitochondria and striatal neurons from R6/2 mice, a model of Huntington's disease.

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    Hamilton, James; Pellman, Jessica J; Brustovetsky, Tatiana; Harris, Robert A; Brustovetsky, Nickolay

    2016-07-01

    Alterations in oxidative metabolism and defects in mitochondrial Ca 2+ handling have been implicated in the pathology of Huntington's disease (HD), but existing data are contradictory. We investigated the effect of human mHtt fragments on oxidative metabolism and Ca 2+ handling in isolated brain mitochondria and cultured striatal neurons from the R6/2 mouse model of HD. Non-synaptic and synaptic mitochondria isolated from the brains of R6/2 mice had similar respiratory rates and Ca 2+ uptake capacity compared with mitochondria from wild-type (WT) mice. Respiratory activity of cultured striatal neurons measured with Seahorse XF24 flux analyzer revealed unaltered cellular respiration in neurons derived from R6/2 mice compared with neurons from WT animals. Consistent with the lack of respiratory dysfunction, ATP content of cultured striatal neurons from R6/2 and WT mice was similar. Mitochondrial Ca 2+ accumulation was also evaluated in cultured striatal neurons from R6/2 and WT animals. Our data obtained with striatal neurons derived from R6/2 and WT mice show that both glutamate-induced increases in cytosolic Ca 2+ and subsequent carbonilcyanide p-triflouromethoxyphenylhydrazone-induced increases in cytosolic Ca 2+ were similar between WT and R6/2, suggesting that mitochondria in neurons derived from both types of animals accumulated comparable amounts of Ca 2+ Overall, our data argue against respiratory deficiency and impaired Ca 2+ handling induced by human mHtt fragments in both isolated brain mitochondria and cultured striatal neurons from transgenic R6/2 mice. © The Author 2016. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

  15. Quality of brain perfusion single-photon emission tomography images: multicentre evaluation using an anatomically accurate three-dimensional phantom

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Heikkinen, J.; Kuikka, J.T.; Ahonen, A.; Rautio, P.

    1998-01-01

    The aim of the study was to evaluate the quality of routine brain perfusion single-photon emission tomography (SPET) images in Finnish nuclear medicine laboratories. Twelve laboratories participated in the study. A three-dimensional high resolution brain phantom (Data Spectrum's 3D Hoffman Brain Phantom) was filled with a well-mixed solution of technetium-99m (110 MBq), water and detergent. Acquisition, reconstruction and printing were performed according to the clinical routine in each centre. Three nuclear medicine specialists blindly evaluated all image sets. The results were ranked from 1 to 5 (poor quality-high quality). Also a SPET performance phantom (Nuclear Associates' PET/SPECT Performance Phantom PS 101) was filled with the same radioactivity concentration as the brain phantom. The parameters for the acquisition, the reconstruction and the printing were exactly the same as with the brain phantom. The number of detected ''hot'' (from 0 to 8) and ''cold'' lesions (from 0 to 7) was visually evaluated from hard copies. Resolution and contrast were quantified from digital images. Average score for brain phantom images was 2.7±0.8 (range 1.5-4.5). The average diameter of the ''hot'' cylinders detected was 16 mm (range 9.2-20.0 mm) and that of the ''cold'' cylinders detected, 11 mm (5.9-14.3 mm) according to visual evaluation. Quantification of digital images showed that the hard copy was one reason for low-quality images. The quality of the hard copies was good only in four laboratories and was amazingly low in the others when comparing it with the actual structure of the brain phantom. The described quantification method is suitable for optimizing resolution and contrast detectability of hard copies. This study revealed the urgent need for external quality assurance of clinical brain perfusion SPET images. (orig.)

  16. Simulating effects of brain atrophy in longitudinal PET imaging with an anthropomorphic brain phantom

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    Jonasson, L. S.; Axelsson, J.; Riklund, K.; Boraxbekk, C. J.

    2017-07-01

    In longitudinal positron emission tomography (PET), the presence of volumetric changes over time can lead to an overestimation or underestimation of the true changes in the quantified PET signal due to the partial volume effect (PVE) introduced by the limited spatial resolution of existing PET cameras and reconstruction algorithms. Here, a 3D-printed anthropomorphic brain phantom with attachable striata in three sizes was designed to enable controlled volumetric changes. Using a method to eliminate the non-radioactive plastic wall, and manipulating BP levels by adding different number of events from list-mode acquisitions, we investigated the artificial volume dependence of BP due to PVE, and potential bias arising from varying BP. Comparing multiple reconstruction algorithms we found that a high-resolution ordered-subsets maximization algorithm with spatially variant point-spread function resolution modeling provided the most accurate data. For striatum, the BP changed by 0.08% for every 1% volume change, but for smaller volumes such as the posterior caudate the artificial change in BP was as high as 0.7% per 1% volume change. A simple gross correction for striatal volume is unsatisfactory, as the amplitude of the PVE on the BP differs depending on where in the striatum the change occurred. Therefore, to correctly interpret age-related longitudinal changes in the BP, we must account for volumetric changes also within a structure, rather than across the whole volume. The present 3D-printing technology, combined with the wall removal method, can be implemented to gain knowledge about the predictable bias introduced by the PVE differences in uptake regions of varying shape.

  17. Can fruits and vegetables be used as substitute phantoms for normal human brain tissues in magnetic resonance imaging?

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Teramoto, Daisuke; Ushioda, Yuichi; Sasaki, Ayaka; Sakurai Yuki; Nagahama, Hiroshi; Nakamura, Manami; Sugimori, Hiroyuki; Sakata, Motomichi

    2013-01-01

    Various custom-made phantoms designed to optimize magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) sequences have been created and subsequently reported in Japanese Society of Radiological Technology (JSRT). However, custom-made phantoms that correctly match the T 1 -value and T 2 -values of human brain tissue (gray matter and white matter) cannot be made easily or quickly. The aim of this project was to search for alternative materials, such as fruits and vegetables, for optimizing MRI sequences. The following eight fruits and vegetables were investigated: apple, tomato, melon, apple mango (Mangifera indica), banana, avocado, peach, and eggplant. Their potential was studied for use in modeling phantoms of normal human brain tissues. MRI (T 1 - and T 2 -weighted sequences) was performed on the human brain and the fruits and vegetables using various concentrations of contrast medium (gadolinium) in the same size tubes as the custom-made phantom. The authors compared the signal intensity (SI) in human brain tissue (gray matter and white matter) with that of the fruits and the custom-made phantom. The T 1 and T 2 values were measured for banana tissue and compared with those for human brain tissue in the literature. Our results indicated that banana tissue is similar to human brain tissue (both gray matter and white matter). Banana tissue can thus be employed as an alternative phantom for the human brain for the purpose of MRI. (author)

  18. Effects of hypoxic–ischemic brain injury on striatal dopamine transporter in newborn piglets: evaluation of 11C-CFT PET/CT for DAT quantification

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Zhang Yanfen; Wang Xiaoyu; Cao Li; Guo Qiyong; Wang Xiaoming

    2011-01-01

    Introduction: Alterations of dopamine in striatal presynaptic terminals play an important role in the hypoxic–ischemic (HI) brain injury. Quantification of DAT levels in the presynaptic site using 11 C-N-2-carbomethoxy-3-(4-fluorophenyl)-tropane ( 11 C-CFT) with positron emission tomography (PET) was applied in studies for Parkinson's disease. The current study investigated the changes in striatal DAT following HI brain injury in newborn piglets using 11 C-CFT PET. Methods: Newborn piglets were subjected to occlusion of bilateral common carotid arteries for 30 min and simultaneous peripheral hypoxia. Brain DAT imaging was performed using PET/CT with 11 C-CFT as the probe in each group (including the control group and HI insult groups). Brain tissues were collected for DAT immunohistochemical (IHC) analysis at each time point post the PET/CT procedure. Sham controls had some operation without HI procedure. Results: A few minutes after intravenous injection of 11 C-CFT, radioactive signals for DAT clearly appeared in the cortical area, striatum and cerebellum of newborn piglets of sham control group and HI insult groups. HI brain insult markedly increased striatal DAT at an early period (P 11 C-CFT PET imaging data and IHC DAT staining data were highly correlated (r=0.844, P 11 C-CFT PET/CT imaging data reflected the dynamic changes of DAT in the striatum in vivo.

  19. Electrical and chemical transmission between striatal GABAergic output neurones in rat brain slices

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    Venance, Laurent; Glowinski, Jacques; Giaume, Christian

    2004-01-01

    Basal ganglia are interconnected subcortical nuclei, connected to the thalamus and all cortical areas involved in sensory motor control, limbic functions and cognition. The striatal output neurones (SONs), the major striatal population, are believed to act as detectors and integrators of distributed patterns of cerebral cortex inputs. Despite the key role of SONs in cortico-striatal information processing, little is known about their local interactions. Here, we report the existence and characterization of electrical and GABAergic transmission between SONs in rat brain slices. Tracer coupling (biocytin) incidence was high during the first two postnatal weeks and then decreased (postnatal days (P) 5–25, 60%; P25–30, 29%; n = 61). Electrical coupling was observed between 27% of SON pairs (coupling coefficient: 3.1 ± 0.3%, n = 89 at P15) and as shown by single-cell RT-PCR, several connexin (Cx) mRNAs were found to be expressed (Cx31.1, Cx32, Cx36 and Cx47). GABAergic synaptic transmission (abolished by bicuculline, a GABAA receptor antagonist) observed in 19% of SON pairs (n = 62) was reliable (mean failure rate of 6 ± 3%), precise (variation coefficient of latency, 0.06), strong (IPSC amplitudes of 38 ± 12 pA) and unidirectional. Interestingly, electrical and chemical transmission were mutually exclusive. These results suggest that preferential networks of electrically and chemically connected SONs, might be involved in the channelling of cortico-basal ganglia information processing. PMID:15235091

  20. Dedicated mobile volumetric cone-beam computed tomography for human brain imaging: A phantom study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ryu, Jong-Hyun; Kim, Tae-Hoon; Jeong, Chang-Won; Jun, Hong-Young; Heo, Dong-Woon; Lee, Jinseok; Kim, Kyong-Woo; Yoon, Kwon-Ha

    2015-01-01

    Mobile computed tomography (CT) with a cone-beam source is increasingly used in the clinical field. Mobile cone-beam CT (CBCT) has great merits; however, its clinical utility for brain imaging has been limited due to problems including scan time and image quality. The aim of this study was to develop a dedicated mobile volumetric CBCT for obtaining brain images, and to optimize the imaging protocol using a brain phantom. The mobile volumetric CBCT system was evaluated with regards to scan time and image quality, measured as signal-to-noise-ratio (SNR), contrast-to-noise-ratio (CNR), spatial resolution (10% MTF), and effective dose. Brain images were obtained using a CT phantom. The CT scan took 5.14 s at 360 projection views. SNR and CNR were 5.67 and 14.5 at 120 kV/10 mA. SNR and CNR values showed slight improvement as the x-ray voltage and current increased (p < 0.001). Effective dose and 10% MTF were 0.92 mSv and 360 μ m at 120 kV/10 mA. Various intracranial structures were clearly visible in the brain phantom images. Using this CBCT under optimal imaging acquisition conditions, it is possible to obtain human brain images with low radiation dose, reproducible image quality, and fast scan time.

  1. Effects of isomers of apomorphines on dopamine receptors in striatal and limbic tissue of rat brain

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Kula, N.S.; Baldessarini, R.J.; Bromley, S.; Neumeyer, J.L.

    1985-09-16

    The optical isomers of apomorphine (APO) and N-propylnorapomorphine (NPA) were interacted with three biochemical indices of dopamine (Da) receptors in extrapyramidal and limbic preparations of rat brain tissues. There were consistent isomeric preferences for the R(-) configuration of both DA analogs in stimulation adenylate cyclase (D-1 sites) and in competing for high affinity binding of /sup 3/H-spiroperidol (D-2 sites) and of /sup 3/H-ADTN (DA agonist binding sites) in striatal tissue, with lesser isomeric differences in the limbic tissue. The S(+) apomorphines did not inhibit stimulation of adenylate cyclase by DA. The tendency for greater activity of higher apparent affinity of R(-) apomorphines in striatum may reflect the evidently greater abundance of receptor sites in that region. There were only small regional differences in interactions of the apomorphine isomers with all three receptor sites, except for a strong preference of (-)NPA for striatal D-2 sites. These results do not parallel our recent observations indicating potent and selective antidopaminergic actions of S(+) apomorphines in the rat limbic system. They suggest caution in assuming close parallels between current biochemical functional, especially behavioral, methods of evaluating dopamine receptors of mammalian brain.

  2. Alterations in Striatal Circuits Underlying Addiction-Like Behaviors.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kim, Hyun Jin; Lee, Joo Han; Yun, Kyunghwa; Kim, Joung-Hun

    2017-06-30

    Drug addiction is a severe psychiatric disorder characterized by the compulsive pursuit of drugs of abuse despite potential adverse consequences. Although several decades of studies have revealed that psychostimulant use can result in extensive alterations of neural circuits and physiology, no effective therapeutic strategies or medicines for drug addiction currently exist. Changes in neuronal connectivity and regulation occurring after repeated drug exposure contribute to addiction-like behaviors in animal models. Among the involved brain areas, including those of the reward system, the striatum is the major area of convergence for glutamate, GABA, and dopamine transmission, and this brain region potentially determines stereotyped behaviors. Although the physiological consequences of striatal neurons after drug exposure have been relatively well documented, it remains to be clarified how changes in striatal connectivity underlie and modulate the expression of addiction-like behaviors. Understanding how striatal circuits contribute to addiction-like behaviors may lead to the development of strategies that successfully attenuate drug-induced behavioral changes. In this review, we summarize the results of recent studies that have examined striatal circuitry and pathway-specific alterations leading to addiction-like behaviors to provide an updated framework for future investigations.

  3. The basal ganglia matching tools package for striatal uptake semi-quantification: description and validation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Calvini, Piero; Rodriguez, Guido; Nobili, Flavio; Inguglia, Fabrizio; Mignone, Alessandro; Guerra, Ugo P.

    2007-01-01

    To design a novel algorithm (BasGan) for automatic segmentation of striatal 123 I-FP-CIT SPECT. The BasGan algorithm is based on a high-definition, three-dimensional (3D) striatal template, derived from Talairach's atlas. A blurred template, obtained by convolving the former with a 3D Gaussian kernel (FWHM = 10 mm), approximates striatal activity distribution. The algorithm performs translations and scale transformation on the bicommissural aligned image to set the striatal templates with standard size in an appropriate initial position. An optimization protocol automatically performs fine adjustments in the positioning of blurred templates to best match the radioactive counts, and locates an occipital ROI for background evaluation. Partial volume effect correction is included in the process of uptake computation of caudate, putamen and background. Experimental validation was carried out by means of six acquisitions of an anthropomorphic striatal phantom. The BasGan software was applied to a first set of patients with Parkinson's disease (PD) versus patients affected by essential tremor. A highly significant correlation was achieved between true binding potential and measured 123 I activity from the phantom. 123 I-FP-CIT uptake was significantly lower in all basal ganglia in the PD group versus controls with both BasGan and a conventional ROI method used for comparison, but particularly with the former. Correlations with the motor UPDRS score were far more significant with the BasGan. The novel BasGan algorithm automatically performs the 3D segmentation of striata. Because co-registered MRI is not needed, it can be used by all nuclear medicine departments, since it is freely available on the Web. (orig.)

  4. A direct ROI quantification method for inherent PVE correction: accuracy assessment in striatal SPECT measurements

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Vanzi, Eleonora; De Cristofaro, Maria T.; Sotgia, Barbara; Mascalchi, Mario; Formiconi, Andreas R. [University of Florence, Clinical Pathophysiology, Florence (Italy); Ramat, Silvia [University of Florence, Neurological and Psychiatric Sciences, Florence (Italy)

    2007-09-15

    The clinical potential of striatal imaging with dopamine transporter (DAT) SPECT tracers is hampered by the limited capability to recover activity concentration ratios due to partial volume effects (PVE). We evaluated the accuracy of a least squares method that allows retrieval of activity in regions of interest directly from projections (LS-ROI). An Alderson striatal phantom was filled with striatal to background ratios of 6:1, 9:1 and 28:1; the striatal and background ROIs were drawn on a coregistered X-ray CT of the phantom. The activity ratios of these ROIs were derived both with the LS-ROI method and with conventional SPECT EM reconstruction (EM-SPECT). Moreover, the two methods were compared in seven patients with motor symptoms who were examined with N-3-fluoropropyl-2-{beta}-carboxymethoxy-3-{beta}-(4-iodophenyl) (FP-CIT) SPECT, calculating the binding potential (BP). In the phantom study, the activity ratios obtained with EM-SPECT were 3.5, 5.3 and 17.0, respectively, whereas the LS-ROI method resulted in ratios of 6.2, 9.0 and 27.3, respectively. With the LS-ROI method, the BP in the seven patients was approximately 60% higher than with EM-SPECT; a linear correlation between the LS-ROI and the EM estimates was found (r = 0.98, p = 0.03). The LS-ROI PVE correction capability is mainly due to the fact that the ill-conditioning of the LS-ROI approach is lower than that of the EM-SPECT one. The LS-ROI seems to be feasible and accurate in the examination of the dopaminergic system. This approach can be fruitful in monitoring of disease progression and in clinical trials of dopaminergic drugs. (orig.)

  5. Development of a realistic, dynamic digital brain phantom for CT perfusion validation

    Science.gov (United States)

    Divel, Sarah E.; Segars, W. Paul; Christensen, Soren; Wintermark, Max; Lansberg, Maarten G.; Pelc, Norbert J.

    2016-03-01

    Physicians rely on CT Perfusion (CTP) images and quantitative image data, including cerebral blood flow, cerebral blood volume, and bolus arrival delay, to diagnose and treat stroke patients. However, the quantification of these metrics may vary depending on the computational method used. Therefore, we have developed a dynamic and realistic digital brain phantom upon which CTP scans can be simulated based on a set of ground truth scenarios. Building upon the previously developed 4D extended cardiac-torso (XCAT) phantom containing a highly detailed brain model, this work consisted of expanding the intricate vasculature by semi-automatically segmenting existing MRA data and fitting nonuniform rational B-spline surfaces to the new vessels. Using time attenuation curves input by the user as reference, the contrast enhancement in the vessels changes dynamically. At each time point, the iodine concentration in the arteries and veins is calculated from the curves and the material composition of the blood changes to reflect the expected values. CatSim, a CT system simulator, generates simulated data sets of this dynamic digital phantom which can be further analyzed to validate CTP studies and post-processing methods. The development of this dynamic and realistic digital phantom provides a valuable resource with which current uncertainties and controversies surrounding the quantitative computations generated from CTP data can be examined and resolved.

  6. Influences of reconstruction and attenuation correction in brain SPECT images obtained by the hybrid SPECT/CT device: evaluation with a 3-dimensional brain phantom

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Akamatsu, Mana; Yamashita, Yasuo; Akamatsu, Go; Tsutsui, Yuji; Ohya, Nobuyoshi; Nakamura, Yasuhiko; Sasaki, Masayuki

    2014-01-01

    The aim of this study was to evaluate the influences of reconstruction and attenuation correction on the differences in the radioactivity distributions in 123 I brain SPECT obtained by the hybrid SPECT/CT device. We used the 3-dimensional (3D) brain phantom, which imitates the precise structure of gray matter, white matter and bone regions. It was filled with 123 I solution (20.1 kBq/mL) in the gray matter region and with K 2 HPO 4 in the bone region. The SPECT/CT data were acquired by the hybrid SPECT/CT device. SPECT images were reconstructed by using filtered back projection with uniform attenuation correction (FBP-uAC), 3D ordered-subsets expectation-maximization with uniform AC (3D-OSEM-uAC) and 3D OSEM with CT-based non-uniform AC (3D-OSEM-CTAC). We evaluated the differences in the radioactivity distributions among these reconstruction methods using a 3D digital phantom, which was developed from CT images of the 3D brain phantom, as a reference. The normalized mean square error (NMSE) and regional radioactivity were calculated to evaluate the similarity of SPECT images to the 3D digital phantom. The NMSE values were 0.0811 in FBP-uAC, 0.0914 in 3D-OSEM-uAC and 0.0766 in 3D-OSEM-CTAC. The regional radioactivity of FBP-uAC was 11.5% lower in the middle cerebral artery territory, and that of 3D-OSEM-uAC was 5.8% higher in the anterior cerebral artery territory, compared with the digital phantom. On the other hand, that of 3D-OSEM-CTAC was 1.8% lower in all brain areas. By using the hybrid SPECT/CT device, the brain SPECT reconstructed by 3D-OSEM with CT attenuation correction can provide an accurate assessment of the distribution of brain radioactivity

  7. The effect of amperozide on uptake and release of [3H]-dopamine in vitro from perfused rat striatal and limbic brain areas

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Eriksson, E.; Christensson, E.

    1990-01-01

    Amperozide, a putatively antipsychotic drug, was studied for its effects on uptake and release of [ 3 H]-dopamine in rat brain in vitro. Amperozide inhibited uptake of [ 3 H]-dopamine in striatal chopped tissue in vitro with an IC 50 of 18 μM. It also increased basal release of [ 3 H]-dopamine from perfused rat striatal and limbic tissue in vitro at concentrations above 5 μM. Release of [ 3 H]-dopamine from perfused rat striatal and limbic tissue stimulated with 5 μM amphetamine, was inhibited by 1 μM amperozide to 46%. No significant difference was found for the effect of amperozide on in vitro release of [ 3 H]-dopamine from corpus striatum compared to tissue from limbic grain regions; neither on basal release nor on amphetamine-stimulated release of dopamine. (author)

  8. Speech-induced striatal dopamine release is left lateralized and coupled to functional striatal circuits in healthy humans: A combined PET, fMRI and DTI study

    Science.gov (United States)

    Simonyan, Kristina; Herscovitch, Peter; Horwitz, Barry

    2013-01-01

    Considerable progress has been recently made in understanding the brain mechanisms underlying speech and language control. However, the neurochemical underpinnings of normal speech production remain largely unknown. We investigated the extent of striatal endogenous dopamine release and its influences on the organization of functional striatal speech networks during production of meaningful English sentences using a combination of positron emission tomography (PET) with the dopamine D2/D3 receptor radioligand [11C]raclopride and functional MRI (fMRI). In addition, we used diffusion tensor tractography (DTI) to examine the extent of dopaminergic modulatory influences on striatal structural network organization. We found that, during sentence production, endogenous dopamine was released in the ventromedial portion of the dorsal striatum, in its both associative and sensorimotor functional divisions. In the associative striatum, speech-induced dopamine release established a significant relationship with neural activity and influenced the left-hemispheric lateralization of striatal functional networks. In contrast, there were no significant effects of endogenous dopamine release on the lateralization of striatal structural networks. Our data provide the first evidence for endogenous dopamine release in the dorsal striatum during normal speaking and point to the possible mechanisms behind the modulatory influences of dopamine on the organization of functional brain circuits controlling normal human speech. PMID:23277111

  9. Inhibition of the striatal specific phosphodiesterase PDE10A ameliorates striatal and cortical pathology in R6/2 mouse model of Huntington's disease.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Carmela Giampà

    2010-10-01

    Full Text Available Huntington's disease is a devastating neurodegenerative condition for which there is no therapy to slow disease progression. The particular vulnerability of striatal medium spiny neurons to Huntington's pathology is hypothesized to result from transcriptional dysregulation within the cAMP and CREB signaling cascades in these neurons. To test this hypothesis, and a potential therapeutic approach, we investigated whether inhibition of the striatal-specific cyclic nucleotide phosphodiesterase PDE10A would alleviate neurological deficits and brain pathology in a highly utilized model system, the R6/2 mouse.R6/2 mice were treated with the highly selective PDE10A inhibitor TP-10 from 4 weeks of age until euthanasia. TP-10 treatment significantly reduced and delayed the development of the hind paw clasping response during tail suspension, deficits in rotarod performance, and decrease in locomotor activity in an open field. Treatment prolonged time to loss of righting reflex. These effects of PDE10A inhibition on neurological function were reflected in a significant amelioration in brain pathology, including reduction in striatal and cortical cell loss, the formation of striatal neuronal intranuclear inclusions, and the degree of microglial activation that occurs in response to the mutant huntingtin-induced brain damage. Striatal and cortical levels of phosphorylated CREB and BDNF were significantly elevated.Our findings provide experimental support for targeting the cAMP and CREB signaling pathways and more broadly transcriptional dysregulation as a therapeutic approach to Huntington's disease. It is noteworthy that PDE10A inhibition in the R6/2 mice reduces striatal pathology, consistent with the localization of the enzyme in medium spiny neurons, and also cortical pathology and the formation of neuronal nuclear inclusions. These latter findings suggest that striatal pathology may be a primary driver of these secondary pathological events. More

  10. A 4D digital phantom for patient-specific simulation of brain CT perfusion protocols.

    Science.gov (United States)

    van den Boom, Rieneke; Manniesing, Rashindra; Oei, Marcel T H; van der Woude, Willem-Jan; Smit, Ewoud J; Laue, Hendrik O A; van Ginneken, Bram; Prokop, Mathias

    2014-07-01

    Optimizing CT brain perfusion protocols is a challenge because of the complex interaction between image acquisition, calculation of perfusion data, and patient hemodynamics. Several digital phantoms have been developed to avoid unnecessary patient exposure or suboptimum choice of parameters. The authors expand this idea by using realistic noise patterns and measured tissue attenuation curves representing patient-specific hemodynamics. The purpose of this work is to validate that this approach can realistically simulate mean perfusion values and noise on perfusion data for individual patients. The proposed 4D digital phantom consists of three major components: (1) a definition of the spatial structure of various brain tissues within the phantom, (2) measured tissue attenuation curves, and (3) measured noise patterns. Tissue attenuation curves were measured in patient data using regions of interest in gray matter and white matter. By assigning the tissue attenuation curves to the corresponding tissue curves within the phantom, patient-specific CTP acquisitions were retrospectively simulated. Noise patterns were acquired by repeatedly scanning an anthropomorphic skull phantom at various exposure settings. The authors selected 20 consecutive patients that were scanned for suspected ischemic stroke and constructed patient-specific 4D digital phantoms using the individual patients' hemodynamics. The perfusion maps of the patient data were compared with the digital phantom data. Agreement between phantom- and patient-derived data was determined for mean perfusion values and for standard deviation in de perfusion data using intraclass correlation coefficients (ICCs) and a linear fit. ICCs ranged between 0.92 and 0.99 for mean perfusion values. ICCs for the standard deviation in perfusion maps were between 0.86 and 0.93. Linear fitting yielded slope values between 0.90 and 1.06. A patient-specific 4D digital phantom allows for realistic simulation of mean values and

  11. Dopaminergic differentiation of human neural stem cells mediated by co-cultured rat striatal brain slices

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Anwar, Mohammad Raffaqat; Andreasen, Christian Maaløv; Lippert, Solvej Kølvraa

    2008-01-01

    differentiation, we co-cultured cells from a human neural forebrain-derived stem cell line (hNS1) with rat striatal brain slices. In brief, coronal slices of neonatal rat striatum were cultured on semiporous membrane inserts placed in six-well trays overlying monolayers of hNS1 cells. After 12 days of co......Properly committed neural stem cells constitute a promising source of cells for transplantation in Parkinson's disease, but a protocol for controlled dopaminergic differentiation is not yet available. To establish a setting for identification of secreted neural compounds promoting dopaminergic...

  12. An inquiry into the semiquantitative parameters of striatal dopamine receptor imaging

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Cao Guoxiang; Tan Tianzhi; Kuang Anren; Liang Zhenglu

    1998-01-01

    Purpose: To inquire into the optimal striatal reference region for nonspecific IBZM uptake in brain dopamine receptor imaging. Methods: Using in vivo data from rats, the authors compared the results of 125 I-iodobenzamide ( 125 I-IBZM) striatal specific binding that were respectively obtained taking cerebellum and frontal cortex as striatal reference region of nonspecific uptake of ligand. Results: Radioiodination labelled IBZM bound stereoselectively and reversibly to striatal D2 receptors. Frontal cortex and cerebellum showed rapid uptake and rapid washout of ligand. When cerebellar uptake was used as a reference of nonspecific uptake in striatum, IBZM saturation could not be demonstrated. But when the frontal cortex was used as reference region, saturation could be demonstrated with B max = 44 pmol/g striatum tissue. The percentage of haloperidol replacement and the percentage of uptake difference between striatum and other brain regions which were derived from competitive inhibition experiments with a large does of spiperone or haloperidol, suggested that the cerebellar uptake underestimated nonspecific uptake in the striatum while frontal cortex was an appropriate reference region for nonspecific uptake of ligand in striatum. Conclusions: For the calculation of specific IBZM binding and other semiquantitative parameters of striatal dopamine D2 receptor imaging, frontal cortex would be the nonspecific reference region of choice

  13. 3D perfused brain phantom for interstitial ultrasound thermal therapy and imaging: design, construction and characterization

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Martínez, José M; Jarosz, Boguslaw J

    2015-01-01

    Thermal therapy has emerged as an independent modality of treating some tumors. In many clinics the hyperthermia, one of the thermal therapy modalities, has been used adjuvant to radio- or chemotherapy to substantially improve the clinical treatment outcomes. In this work, a methodology for building a realistic brain phantom for interstitial ultrasound low dose-rate thermal therapy of the brain is proposed. A 3D brain phantom made of the tissue mimicking material (TMM) had the acoustic and thermal properties in the 20–32 °C range, which is similar to that of a brain at 37 °C. The phantom had 10–11% by mass of bovine gelatin powder dissolved in ethylene glycol. The TMM sonicated at 1 MHz, 1.6 MHz and 2.5 MHz yielded the amplitude attenuation coefficients of 62  ±  1 dB m −1 , 115  ±  4 dB m −1 and 175  ±  9 dB m −1 , respectively. The density and acoustic speed determination at room temperature (∼24 °C) gave 1040  ±  40 kg m −3 and 1545  ±  44 m s −1 , respectively. The average thermal conductivity was 0.532 W m −1  K −1 . The T1 and T2 values of the TMM were 207  ±  4 and 36.2  ±  0.4 ms, respectively. We envisage the use of our phantom for treatment planning and for quality assurance in MRI based temperature determination. Our phantom preparation methodology may be readily extended to other thermal therapy technologies. (paper)

  14. Human striatal recordings reveal abnormal discharge of projection neurons in Parkinson's disease.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Singh, Arun; Mewes, Klaus; Gross, Robert E; DeLong, Mahlon R; Obeso, José A; Papa, Stella M

    2016-08-23

    Circuitry models of Parkinson's disease (PD) are based on striatal dopamine loss and aberrant striatal inputs into the basal ganglia network. However, extrastriatal mechanisms have increasingly been the focus of attention, whereas the status of striatal discharges in the parkinsonian human brain remains conjectural. We now report the activity pattern of striatal projection neurons (SPNs) in patients with PD undergoing deep brain stimulation surgery, compared with patients with essential tremor (ET) and isolated dystonia (ID). The SPN activity in ET was very low (2.1 ± 0.1 Hz) and reminiscent of that found in normal animals. In contrast, SPNs in PD fired at much higher frequency (30.2 ± 1.2 Hz) and with abundant spike bursts. The difference between PD and ET was reproduced between 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine-treated and normal nonhuman primates. The SPN activity was also increased in ID, but to a lower level compared with the hyperactivity observed in PD. These results provide direct evidence that the striatum contributes significantly altered signals to the network in patients with PD.

  15. Technical Note: Development of a 3D printed subresolution sandwich phantom for validation of brain SPECT analysis

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Negus, Ian S.; Holmes, Robin B.; Thorne, Gareth C.; Saunders, Margaret; Jordan, Kirsty C.; Nash, David A.

    2016-01-01

    Purpose: To make an adaptable, head shaped radionuclide phantom to simulate molecular imaging of the brain using clinical acquisition and reconstruction protocols. This will allow the characterization and correction of scanner characteristics, and improve the accuracy of clinical image analysis, including the application of databases of normal subjects. Methods: A fused deposition modeling 3D printer was used to create a head shaped phantom made up of transaxial slabs, derived from a simulated MRI dataset. The attenuation of the printed polylactide (PLA), measured by means of the Hounsfield unit on CT scanning, was set to match that of the brain by adjusting the proportion of plastic filament and air (fill ratio). Transmission measurements were made to verify the attenuation of the printed slabs. The radionuclide distribution within the phantom was created by adding 99m Tc pertechnetate to the ink cartridge of a paper printer and printing images of gray and white matter anatomy, segmented from the same MRI data. The complete subresolution sandwich phantom was assembled from alternate 3D printed slabs and radioactive paper sheets, and then imaged on a dual headed gamma camera to simulate an HMPAO SPECT scan. Results: Reconstructions of phantom scans successfully used automated ellipse fitting to apply attenuation correction. This removed the variability inherent in manual application of attenuation correction and registration inherent in existing cylindrical phantom designs. The resulting images were assessed visually and by count profiles and found to be similar to those from an existing elliptical PMMA phantom. Conclusions: The authors have demonstrated the ability to create physically realistic HMPAO SPECT simulations using a novel head-shaped 3D printed subresolution sandwich method phantom. The phantom can be used to validate all neurological SPECT imaging applications. A simple modification of the phantom design to use thinner slabs would make it suitable for

  16. Technical Note: Development of a 3D printed subresolution sandwich phantom for validation of brain SPECT analysis

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Negus, Ian S.; Holmes, Robin B.; Thorne, Gareth C.; Saunders, Margaret [Department of Medical Physics and Bioengineering, University Hospitals Bristol NHS Foundation Trust, Bristol BS28HW (United Kingdom); Jordan, Kirsty C. [Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of Strathclyde, Glasgow G11XQ (United Kingdom); Nash, David A. [Department of Medical Physics, Portsmouth Hospitals NHS Trust, Portsmouth PO63LY (United Kingdom)

    2016-09-15

    Purpose: To make an adaptable, head shaped radionuclide phantom to simulate molecular imaging of the brain using clinical acquisition and reconstruction protocols. This will allow the characterization and correction of scanner characteristics, and improve the accuracy of clinical image analysis, including the application of databases of normal subjects. Methods: A fused deposition modeling 3D printer was used to create a head shaped phantom made up of transaxial slabs, derived from a simulated MRI dataset. The attenuation of the printed polylactide (PLA), measured by means of the Hounsfield unit on CT scanning, was set to match that of the brain by adjusting the proportion of plastic filament and air (fill ratio). Transmission measurements were made to verify the attenuation of the printed slabs. The radionuclide distribution within the phantom was created by adding {sup 99m}Tc pertechnetate to the ink cartridge of a paper printer and printing images of gray and white matter anatomy, segmented from the same MRI data. The complete subresolution sandwich phantom was assembled from alternate 3D printed slabs and radioactive paper sheets, and then imaged on a dual headed gamma camera to simulate an HMPAO SPECT scan. Results: Reconstructions of phantom scans successfully used automated ellipse fitting to apply attenuation correction. This removed the variability inherent in manual application of attenuation correction and registration inherent in existing cylindrical phantom designs. The resulting images were assessed visually and by count profiles and found to be similar to those from an existing elliptical PMMA phantom. Conclusions: The authors have demonstrated the ability to create physically realistic HMPAO SPECT simulations using a novel head-shaped 3D printed subresolution sandwich method phantom. The phantom can be used to validate all neurological SPECT imaging applications. A simple modification of the phantom design to use thinner slabs would make it suitable

  17. β1-adrenergic receptors activate two distinct signaling pathways in striatal neurons

    Science.gov (United States)

    Meitzen, John; Luoma, Jessie I.; Stern, Christopher M.; Mermelstein, Paul G.

    2010-01-01

    Monoamine action in the dorsal striatum and nucleus accumbens plays essential roles in striatal physiology. Although research often focuses on dopamine and its receptors, norepinephrine and adrenergic receptors are also crucial in regulating striatal function. While noradrenergic neurotransmission has been identified in the striatum, little is known regarding the signaling pathways activated by β-adrenergic receptors in this brain region. Using cultured striatal neurons, we characterized a novel signaling pathway by which activation of β1-adrenergic receptors leads to the rapid phosphorylation of cAMP Response Element Binding Protein (CREB), a transcription-factor implicated as a molecular switch underlying long-term changes in brain function. Norepinephrine-mediated CREB phosphorylation requires β1-adrenergic receptor stimulation of a receptor tyrosine kinase, ultimately leading to the activation of a Ras/Raf/MEK/MAPK/MSK signaling pathway. Activation of β1-adrenergic receptors also induces CRE-dependent transcription and increased c-fos expression. In addition, stimulation of β1-adrenergic receptors produces cAMP production, but surprisingly, β1-adrenergic receptor activation of adenylyl cyclase was not functionally linked to rapid CREB phosphorylation. These findings demonstrate that activation of β1-adrenergic receptors on striatal neurons can stimulate two distinct signaling pathways. These adrenergic actions can produce long-term changes in gene expression, as well as rapidly modulate cellular physiology. By elucidating the mechanisms by which norepinephrine and β1-adrenergic receptor activation affects striatal physiology, we provide the means to more fully understand the role of monoamines in modulating striatal function, specifically how norepinephrine and β1-adrenergic receptors may affect striatal physiology. PMID:21143600

  18. The pan-Kv7 (KCNQ) Channel Opener Retigabine Inhibits Striatal Excitability by Direct Action on Striatal Neurons In Vivo

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Hansen, Henrik H; Weikop, Pia; Mikkelsen, Maria D

    2017-01-01

    Central Kv7 (KCNQ) channels are voltage-dependent potassium channels composed of different combinations of four Kv7 subunits, being differently expressed in the brain. Notably, striatal dopaminergic neurotransmission is strongly suppressed by systemic administration of the pan-Kv7 channel opener ...... by acute systemic haloperidol administration in the rat. The relative mRNA levels of Kv7 subunits in the rat striatum were found to be Kv7.2 = Kv7.3 = Kv7.5 > >Kv7.4. These data suggest that intrastriatal Kv7 channels play a direct role in regulating striatal excitability in vivo....

  19. Motor and cortico-striatal-thalamic connectivity alterations in intrauterine growth restriction.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Eixarch, Elisenda; Muñoz-Moreno, Emma; Bargallo, Nuria; Batalle, Dafnis; Gratacos, Eduard

    2016-06-01

    Intrauterine growth restriction is associated with short- and long-term neurodevelopmental problems. Structural brain changes underlying these alterations have been described with the use of different magnetic resonance-based methods that include changes in whole structural brain networks. However, evaluation of specific brain circuits and its correlation with related functions has not been investigated in intrauterine growth restriction. In this study, we aimed to investigate differences in tractography-related metrics in cortico-striatal-thalamic and motor networks in intrauterine growth restricted children and whether these parameters were related with their specific function in order to explore its potential use as an imaging biomarker of altered neurodevelopment. We included a group of 24 intrauterine growth restriction subjects and 27 control subjects that were scanned at 1 year old; we acquired T1-weighted and 30 directions diffusion magnetic resonance images. Each subject brain was segmented in 93 regions with the use of anatomical automatic labeling atlas, and deterministic tractography was performed. Brain regions included in motor and cortico-striatal-thalamic networks were defined based in functional and anatomic criteria. Within the streamlines that resulted from the whole brain tractography, those belonging to each specific circuit were selected and tractography-related metrics that included number of streamlines, fractional anisotropy, and integrity were calculated for each network. We evaluated differences between both groups and further explored the correlation of these parameters with the results of socioemotional, cognitive, and motor scales from Bayley Scale at 2 years of age. Reduced fractional anisotropy (cortico-striatal-thalamic, 0.319 ± 0.018 vs 0.315 ± 0.015; P = .010; motor, 0.322 ± 0.019 vs 0.319 ± 0.020; P = .019) and integrity cortico-striatal-thalamic (0.407 ± 0.040 vs 0.399 ± 0.034; P = .018; motor, 0.417 ± 0.044 vs 0

  20. A 4D Digital Phantom for Patient-Specific Simulation of Brain CT Perfusion Protocols

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Boom, R. van den; Manniesing, R.; Oei, M.T.H.; Woude, W.J. van der; Smit, E.J.; Laue, H.O.A.; Ginneken, B. van; Prokop, M.

    2014-01-01

    Purpose Optimizing CT brain perfusion protocols is a challenge because of the complex interaction between image acquisition, calculation of perfusion data and patient hemodynamics. Several digital phantoms have been developed to avoid unnecessary patient exposure or suboptimum choice of parameters.

  1. Functional connectivity modeling of consistent cortico-striatal degeneration in Huntington's disease

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Imis Dogan

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available Huntington's disease (HD is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder characterized by a complex neuropsychiatric phenotype. In a recent meta-analysis we identified core regions of consistent neurodegeneration in premanifest HD in the striatum and middle occipital gyrus (MOG. For early manifest HD convergent evidence of atrophy was most prominent in the striatum, motor cortex (M1 and inferior frontal junction (IFJ. The aim of the present study was to functionally characterize this topography of brain atrophy and to investigate differential connectivity patterns formed by consistent cortico-striatal atrophy regions in HD. Using areas of striatal and cortical atrophy at different disease stages as seeds, we performed task-free resting-state and task-based meta-analytic connectivity modeling (MACM. MACM utilizes the large data source of the BrainMap database and identifies significant areas of above-chance co-activation with the seed-region via the activation-likelihood-estimation approach. In order to delineate functional networks formed by cortical as well as striatal atrophy regions we computed the conjunction between the co-activation profiles of striatal and cortical seeds in the premanifest and manifest stages of HD, respectively. Functional characterization of the seeds was obtained using the behavioral meta-data of BrainMap. Cortico-striatal atrophy seeds of the premanifest stage of HD showed common co-activation with a rather cognitive network including the striatum, anterior insula, lateral prefrontal, premotor, supplementary motor and parietal regions. A similar but more pronounced co-activation pattern, additionally including the medial prefrontal cortex and thalamic nuclei was found with striatal and IFJ seeds at the manifest HD stage. The striatum and M1 were functionally connected mainly to premotor and sensorimotor areas, posterior insula, putamen and thalamus. Behavioral characterization of the seeds confirmed that experiments

  2. Introduction of a novel ultrahigh sensitivity collimator for brain SPECT imaging

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Park, Mi-Ae, E-mail: miaepark@bwh.harvard.edu; Kijewski, Marie Foley; Lyon, Morgan C.; Horky, Laura; Moore, Stephen C. [Department of Radiology, Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts 02115 (United States); Keijzers, Ronnie; Keijzers, Mark [Nuclear Fields USA, Des Plaines, Illinois 60018 (United States)

    2016-08-15

    Purpose: Noise levels of brain SPECT images are highest in central regions, due to preferential attenuation of photons emitted from deep structures. To address this problem, the authors have designed a novel collimator for brain SPECT imaging that yields greatly increased sensitivity near the center of the brain without loss of resolution. This hybrid collimator consisted of ultrashort cone-beam holes in the central regions and slant-holes in the periphery (USCB). We evaluated this collimator for quantitative brain imaging tasks. Methods: Owing to the uniqueness of the USCB collimation, the hole pattern required substantial variations in collimator parameters. To utilize the lead-casting technique, the authors designed two supporting plates to position about 37 000 hexagonal, slightly tapered pins. The holes in the supporting plates were modeled to yield the desired focal length, hole length, and septal thickness. To determine the properties of the manufactured collimator and to compute the system matrix, the authors prepared an array of point sources that covered the entire detector area. Each point source contained 32 μCi of Tc-99m at the first scan time. The array was imaged for 5 min at each of the 64 shifted locations to yield a 2-mm sampling distance, and hole parameters were calculated. The sensitivity was also measured using a point source placed along the central ray at several distances from the collimator face. High-count projection data from a five-compartment brain phantom were acquired with the three collimators on a dual-head SPECT/CT system. The authors calculated Cramer-Rao bounds on the precision of estimates of striatal and background activity concentration. In order to assess the new collimation system to detect changes in striatal activity, the authors evaluated the precision of measuring a 5% decrease in right putamen activity. The authors also reconstructed images of projection data obtained by summing data from the individual phantom

  3. Striatal volume predicts level of video game skill acquisition.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Erickson, Kirk I; Boot, Walter R; Basak, Chandramallika; Neider, Mark B; Prakash, Ruchika S; Voss, Michelle W; Graybiel, Ann M; Simons, Daniel J; Fabiani, Monica; Gratton, Gabriele; Kramer, Arthur F

    2010-11-01

    Video game skills transfer to other tasks, but individual differences in performance and in learning and transfer rates make it difficult to identify the source of transfer benefits. We asked whether variability in initial acquisition and of improvement in performance on a demanding video game, the Space Fortress game, could be predicted by variations in the pretraining volume of either of 2 key brain regions implicated in learning and memory: the striatum, implicated in procedural learning and cognitive flexibility, and the hippocampus, implicated in declarative memory. We found that hippocampal volumes did not predict learning improvement but that striatal volumes did. Moreover, for the striatum, the volumes of the dorsal striatum predicted improvement in performance but the volumes of the ventral striatum did not. Both ventral and dorsal striatal volumes predicted early acquisition rates. Furthermore, this early-stage correlation between striatal volumes and learning held regardless of the cognitive flexibility demands of the game versions, whereas the predictive power of the dorsal striatal volumes held selectively for performance improvements in a game version emphasizing cognitive flexibility. These findings suggest a neuroanatomical basis for the superiority of training strategies that promote cognitive flexibility and transfer to untrained tasks.

  4. A capillary-based perfusion phantom for simulation of brain perfusion for MRI

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Maciak, A.; Kronfeld, A.; Mueller-Forell, W.; Wille, C.; Kempski, O.; Stoeter, P.

    2010-01-01

    Purpose: The measurement of the CBF is a non-standardized procedure and there are no reliable gold standards. This abstract shows a capillary-based perfusion-phantom for CE-DSC-MRI. It has equivalent flow properties to those within the tissue capillary system of the human brain and allows the validation of the Siemens Perfusion (MR) software. Materials and Methods: The perfusion phantom consists of a dialyzer for the simulation of the capillary system, a feeding tube for simulation of the AIF and a pulsatile pump for simulation of the heart. Using this perfusion phantom, the exact determination of the gold standard CBF due to the well-known geometry of the phantom is easy. It was validated based on different perfusion measurements. These measurements were investigated with standard software (Siemens Perfusion MR). The software determined the CBF within the capillary system. Based on this CBF, a comparison to the gold standard was made with several different flow speeds. After AIF selection, a total of 726 CBF data points were automatically extracted by the software. Results: This results in a comparison of the gold standard CBF to these 726 CBF values. Therefore, a reproducible and reliable deviation estimation between gold standard CBF and measured CBF using the software was computed. It can be shown that the deviation between gold standard and software-based evaluation ranges between 1 and 31 %. Conclusion: There is no significance for any correlation between flow speed and amount of deviation. The mean measured CBF is 11.4 % higher than the gold standard CBF (p-value < 0.001). Using this kind of perfusion-phantom, the validation of different software systems allows reliable conclusions about their quality. (orig.)

  5. Dose distribution in organs: patient-specific phantoms versus reference phantoms

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Lacerda, I.V.B., E-mail: isabelle.lacerda@ufpe.br [Universidade Federal de Pernambuco (UFPE), Recife (Brazil); Vieira, J.W. [Instituto Federal de Pernambuco (IFPE), Recife (Brazil); Oliveira, M.L.; Lima, F.R.A. [Centro Regional de Ciências Nucleares do Nordeste (CRCN-NE/CNEN-PB), Recife (Brazil)

    2017-07-01

    Discrepancies between ICRP phantoms and real patients lead to disparities on patient-dose estimations. This paper aims to compare distribution of dose in organs of male/female specific-phantoms and ICRP reference phantoms. The absorbed dose estimation was performed using the EGSnrc Monte Carlo code and a parallel source algorithm. In this work were used a patient-specific phantom for a man (1.73m/70.3kg) and another for a woman (1.63m/60.3kg) and the male and female ICRP reference phantoms. The comparison of the absorbed dose from each phantom gender was performed using the relative error. The results were expressed in terms of conversion coefficients to brain, lungs, liver and kidneys. The greatest absolute relative error between the organs of the patient-specific phantom and the reference phantom was 22.92% in the liver and 62.84% in the kidneys, respectively for man and woman. There are errors that cannot be disregarded. This paper shows the need for a specific study for each patient or for the population of each country, since there are different body types, which affects the distribution of the organ doses. (author)

  6. Dose distribution in organs: patient-specific phantoms versus reference phantoms

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lacerda, I.V.B.; Vieira, J.W.; Oliveira, M.L.; Lima, F.R.A.

    2017-01-01

    Discrepancies between ICRP phantoms and real patients lead to disparities on patient-dose estimations. This paper aims to compare distribution of dose in organs of male/female specific-phantoms and ICRP reference phantoms. The absorbed dose estimation was performed using the EGSnrc Monte Carlo code and a parallel source algorithm. In this work were used a patient-specific phantom for a man (1.73m/70.3kg) and another for a woman (1.63m/60.3kg) and the male and female ICRP reference phantoms. The comparison of the absorbed dose from each phantom gender was performed using the relative error. The results were expressed in terms of conversion coefficients to brain, lungs, liver and kidneys. The greatest absolute relative error between the organs of the patient-specific phantom and the reference phantom was 22.92% in the liver and 62.84% in the kidneys, respectively for man and woman. There are errors that cannot be disregarded. This paper shows the need for a specific study for each patient or for the population of each country, since there are different body types, which affects the distribution of the organ doses. (author)

  7. Thermal neutron dose calculations in a brain phantom from 7Li(p,n) reaction based BNCT setup

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Elshahat, B.A.; Naqvi, A.A.; Maalej, N.; Abdallah, Khalid

    2006-01-01

    Monte Carlo simulations were carried out to calculate neutron dose in a brain phantom from a 7 Li(p,n) reaction based setup utilizing a high density polyethylene moderator with graphite reflector. The dimensions of the moderator and the reflector were optimized through optimization of epithermal /(fast +thermal) neutron intensity ratio as a function of geometric parameters of the setup. Results of our calculation showed the capability of our setup to treat the tumor within 4 cm of the head surface. The calculated Peak Therapeutic Ratio for the setup was found to be 2.15. With further improvement in the moderator design and brain phantom irradiation arrangement, the setup capabilities can be improved to reach further deep-seated tumor. (author)

  8. [99mTc]/[123I] Simultaneous dual-isotope brain striatum phantom SPECT study: preparing for simultaneous [99mTc]TRODAT-1/[123I]-IBZM pre- and post-synaptic dopamine imaging

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kao, PF; Hsu, HT; Tzen, KY; Wey, SP

    2004-01-01

    Introduction: The brain dopamine transporters (DAT) and dopamine D2 receptors are implicated in all kinds of movement disorders. Both sites are also targets for drug treatment, Therefore, brain dopamine system is important in both basic and clinical neurological researches. Kung HF et al. developed [ 99m Tc]TRODAT-l for DAT and [ 123 I]IBZM for D2 receptor SPECT imaging in living human brain. In this work, the possibility of doing [ 99m Tc]TRODAT-1/[ 123 I]IBZM simultaneous dual-isotope SPECT for both DAT/D2 receptor imaging was studied. The SPECT acquisition protocol, the percent of 99m Tc/ 123 I energy cross contamination, and the reproducibility of striatal /background ratios were studied with a striatal phantom to confirm the accuracy of 99m Tc/ 123 I dual-isotope simultaneous SPECT technique. Materials and Methods: In each set of experiment, the 4 striatum (target) chambers and the rest of the brain (background) were filled with solutions containing 99m Tc only, 123 I only, and both isotopes. Several sets of experiment with different target/background ratios were tested. For SPECT image acquisition, a triple-head gamma camera equipp with high resolution fan-beam collimators (Siemens Multi-SPECT3). Energy window settings of a 15% centered window at 140KeV for 99m Tc and a 10% asymmetric window with a lower bound at 159KeV for 123 I were used. After filtered backprojection and Chang's attenuation correction, regions of interest were defined at the bilateral basal ganglia and occipital areas. The reproducibility of counting activity and the different target/background ratios from each isotope were observed. Results: The results of the study revealed that the energy crossed contaminations from I-123 into Tc- 99m and vice verse were 22±12.4 % and 0.4±1.0 %, respectively. The correlation of striatum/background ratios between single isotope and simultaneous was excellent (R2 = 0.99). The success of this simultaneous dual-isotope SPECT technique is suggestive of the

  9. Comparative study of anatomical normalization errors in SPM and 3D-SSP using digital brain phantom.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Onishi, Hideo; Matsutake, Yuki; Kawashima, Hiroki; Matsutomo, Norikazu; Amijima, Hizuru

    2011-01-01

    In single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) cerebral blood flow studies, two major algorithms are widely used statistical parametric mapping (SPM) and three-dimensional stereotactic surface projections (3D-SSP). The aim of this study is to compare an SPM algorithm-based easy Z score imaging system (eZIS) and a 3D-SSP system in the errors of anatomical standardization using 3D-digital brain phantom images. We developed a 3D-brain digital phantom based on MR images to simulate the effects of head tilt, perfusion defective region size, and count value reduction rate on the SPECT images. This digital phantom was used to compare the errors of anatomical standardization by the eZIS and the 3D-SSP algorithms. While the eZIS allowed accurate standardization of the images of the phantom simulating a head in rotation, lateroflexion, anteflexion, or retroflexion without angle dependency, the standardization by 3D-SSP was not accurate enough at approximately 25° or more head tilt. When the simulated head contained perfusion defective regions, one of the 3D-SSP images showed an error of 6.9% from the true value. Meanwhile, one of the eZIS images showed an error as large as 63.4%, revealing a significant underestimation. When required to evaluate regions with decreased perfusion due to such causes as hemodynamic cerebral ischemia, the 3D-SSP is desirable. In a statistical image analysis, we must reconfirm the image after anatomical standardization by all means.

  10. Region of interest evaluation of SPECT image reconstruction methods using a realistic brain phantom

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Xia, Weishi; Glick, S.J.; Soares, E.J.

    1996-01-01

    A realistic numerical brain phantom, developed by Zubal et al, was used for a region-of-interest evaluation of the accuracy and noise variance of the following SPECT reconstruction methods: (1) Maximum-Likelihood reconstruction using the Expectation-Maximization (ML-EM) algorithm; (2) an EM algorithm using ordered-subsets (OS-EM); (3) a re-scaled block iterative EM algorithm (RBI-EM); and (4) a filtered backprojection algorithm that uses a combination of the Bellini method for attenuation compensation and an iterative spatial blurring correction method using the frequency-distance principle (FDP). The Zubal phantom was made from segmented MRI slices of the brain, so that neuro-anatomical structures are well defined and indexed. Small regions-of-interest (ROIs) from the white matter, grey matter in the center of the brain and grey matter from the peripheral area of the brain were selected for the evaluation. Photon attenuation and distance-dependent collimator blurring were modeled. Multiple independent noise realizations were generated for two different count levels. The simulation study showed that the ROI bias measured for the EM-based algorithms decreased as the iteration number increased, and that the OS-EM and RBI-EM algorithms (16 and 64 subsets were used) achieved the equivalent accuracy of the ML-EM algorithm at about the same noise variance, with much fewer number of iterations. The Bellini-FDP restoration algorithm converged fast and required less computation per iteration. The ML-EM algorithm had a slightly better ROI bias vs. variance trade-off than the other algorithms

  11. Comparative study of anatomical normalization errors in SPM and 3D-SSP using digital brain phantom

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Onishi, Hideo; Matsutomo, Norikazu; Matsutake, Yuki; Kawashima, Hiroki; Amijima, Hizuru

    2011-01-01

    In single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) cerebral blood flow studies, two major algorithms are widely used statistical parametric mapping (SPM) and three-dimensional stereotactic surface projections (3D-SSP). The aim of this study is to compare an SPM algorithm-based easy Z score imaging system (eZIS) and a 3D-SSP system in the errors of anatomical standardization using 3D-digital brain phantom images. We developed a 3D-brain digital phantom based on MR images to simulate the effects of head tilt, perfusion defective region size, and count value reduction rate on the SPECT images. This digital phantom was used to compare the errors of anatomical standardization by the eZIS and the 3D-SSP algorithms. While the eZIS allowed accurate standardization of the images of the phantom simulating a head in rotation, lateroflexion, anteflexion, or retroflexion without angle dependency, the standardization by 3D-SSP was not accurate enough at approximately 25 deg or more head tilt. When the simulated head contained perfusion defective regions, one of the 3D-SSP images showed an error of 6.9% from the true value. Meanwhile, one of the eZIS images showed an error as large as 63.4%, revealing a significant underestimation. When required to evaluate regions with decreased perfusion due to such causes as hemodynamic cerebral ischemia, the 3D-SSP is desirable. In a statistical image analysis, we must reconfirm the image after anatomical standardization by all means. (author)

  12. Specification and estimation of sources of bias affecting neurological studies in PET/MR with an anatomical brain phantom

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Teuho, J., E-mail: jarmo.teuho@tyks.fi [Turku PET Centre, Turku (Finland); Johansson, J. [Turku PET Centre, Turku (Finland); Linden, J. [Turku PET Centre, Turku (Finland); Department of Mathematics and Statistics, University of Turku, Turku (Finland); Saunavaara, V.; Tolvanen, T.; Teräs, M. [Turku PET Centre, Turku (Finland)

    2014-01-11

    Selection of reconstruction parameters has an effect on the image quantification in PET, with an additional contribution from a scanner-specific attenuation correction method. For achieving comparable results in inter- and intra-center comparisons, any existing quantitative differences should be identified and compensated for. In this study, a comparison between PET, PET/CT and PET/MR is performed by using an anatomical brain phantom, to identify and measure the amount of bias caused due to differences in reconstruction and attenuation correction methods especially in PET/MR. Differences were estimated by using visual, qualitative and quantitative analysis. The qualitative analysis consisted of a line profile analysis for measuring the reproduction of anatomical structures and the contribution of the amount of iterations to image contrast. The quantitative analysis consisted of measurement and comparison of 10 anatomical VOIs, where the HRRT was considered as the reference. All scanners reproduced the main anatomical structures of the phantom adequately, although the image contrast on the PET/MR was inferior when using a default clinical brain protocol. Image contrast was improved by increasing the amount of iterations from 2 to 5 while using 33 subsets. Furthermore, a PET/MR-specific bias was detected, which resulted in underestimation of the activity values in anatomical structures closest to the skull, due to the MR-derived attenuation map that ignores the bone. Thus, further improvements for the PET/MR reconstruction and attenuation correction could be achieved by optimization of RAMLA-specific reconstruction parameters and implementation of bone to the attenuation template. -- Highlights: • Comparison between PET, PET/CT and PET/MR was performed with a novel brain phantom. • The performance of reconstruction and attenuation correction in PET/MR was studied. • A recently developed brain phantom was found feasible for PET/MR imaging. • Contrast reduction

  13. A new head phantom with realistic shape and spatially varying skull resistivity distribution.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Li, Jian-Bo; Tang, Chi; Dai, Meng; Liu, Geng; Shi, Xue-Tao; Yang, Bin; Xu, Can-Hua; Fu, Feng; You, Fu-Sheng; Tang, Meng-Xing; Dong, Xiu-Zhen

    2014-02-01

    Brain electrical impedance tomography (EIT) is an emerging method for monitoring brain injuries. To effectively evaluate brain EIT systems and reconstruction algorithms, we have developed a novel head phantom that features realistic anatomy and spatially varying skull resistivity. The head phantom was created with three layers, representing scalp, skull, and brain tissues. The fabrication process entailed 3-D printing of the anatomical geometry for mold creation followed by casting to ensure high geometrical precision and accuracy of the resistivity distribution. We evaluated the accuracy and stability of the phantom. Results showed that the head phantom achieved high geometric accuracy, accurate skull resistivity values, and good stability over time and in the frequency domain. Experimental impedance reconstructions performed using the head phantom and computer simulations were found to be consistent for the same perturbation object. In conclusion, this new phantom could provide a more accurate test platform for brain EIT research.

  14. Fractal analysis of striatal dopamine re-uptake sites

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kuikka, J.T.; Bergstroem, K.A.; Tiihonen, J.; Raesaenen, P.; Karhu, J.

    1997-01-01

    Spatial variation in regional blood flow, metabolism and receptor density within the brain and in other organs is measurable even with a low spatial resolution technique such as emission tomography. It has been previously shown that the observed variance increases with increasing number of subregions in the organ/tissue studied. This resolution-dependent variance can be described by fractal analysis. We studied striatal dopamine re-uptake sites in 39 healthy volunteers with high-resolution single-photon emission tomography using iodine-123 labelled 2β-carbomethoxy-3β-(4-iodophenyl)tropane ([ 123 I]β-CIT). The mean fractal dimension was 1.15±0.07. The results indicate that regional striatal dopamine re-uptake sites involve considerable spatial heterogeneity which is higher than the uniform density (dimension=1.00) but much lower than complete randomness (dimension=1.50). There was a gender difference, with females having a higher heterogeneity in both the left and the right striatum. In addition, we found striatal asymmetry (left-to-right heterogeneity ratio of 1.19±0.15; P<0.001), suggesting functional hemispheric lateralization consistent with the control of motor behaviour and integrative functions. (orig.). With 5 figs., 1 tab

  15. Fractal analysis of striatal dopamine re-uptake sites

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Kuikka, J.T.; Bergstroem, K.A. [Department of Clinical Physiology, Kuopio University Hospital, Kuopio (Finland); Tiihonen, J.; Raesaenen, P. [Department of Forensic Psychiatry, University of Kuopio and Niuvanniemi Hospital, Kuopio (Finland); Karhu, J. [Department of Clinical Neurophysiology, Kuopio University Hospital, Kuopio (Finland)

    1997-09-01

    Spatial variation in regional blood flow, metabolism and receptor density within the brain and in other organs is measurable even with a low spatial resolution technique such as emission tomography. It has been previously shown that the observed variance increases with increasing number of subregions in the organ/tissue studied. This resolution-dependent variance can be described by fractal analysis. We studied striatal dopamine re-uptake sites in 39 healthy volunteers with high-resolution single-photon emission tomography using iodine-123 labelled 2{beta}-carbomethoxy-3{beta}-(4-iodophenyl)tropane ([{sup 123}I]{beta}-CIT). The mean fractal dimension was 1.15{+-}0.07. The results indicate that regional striatal dopamine re-uptake sites involve considerable spatial heterogeneity which is higher than the uniform density (dimension=1.00) but much lower than complete randomness (dimension=1.50). There was a gender difference, with females having a higher heterogeneity in both the left and the right striatum. In addition, we found striatal asymmetry (left-to-right heterogeneity ratio of 1.19{+-}0.15; P<0.001), suggesting functional hemispheric lateralization consistent with the control of motor behaviour and integrative functions. (orig.). With 5 figs., 1 tab.

  16. PET/CT imaging of striatal dopamine transporters in a newborn piglet model of hypoxic-ischemic brain injury

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Zhang Yanfen; Wang Xiaoming; Wang Xiaoyu; Cao Li; Guo Qiyong

    2013-01-01

    Objective: To investigate changes of striatal DAT following hypoxic ischemic (HI) brain injury in newborn piglets using 11 C-N-2-carbomethoxy-3-(4-fluorophenyl)-tropane (CFT) PET/CT, and to evaluate the value of 11 C-CFT PET/CT in brain injury. Methods: Newborn piglets with HI brain injury (n=20) were taken as a model group,and five piglets were used as a control group. Radioligand 11 C-CFT (55.5-74.0 MBq) was injected through the jugular vein, and PET/CT imaging was performed to observe the changes of striatal DAT in newborn piglets. The ST/occipital lobe (OC) ratio was calculated. Model group was divided into 0-6 h, 20-24 h, 44-48 h and 68-72 h sub-groups after HI in accordance with the imaging time. The piglets were sacrificed immediately after 11 C-CFT PET/CT scanning, and then the brains were removed for pathological analysis. Data analysis was performed with one-way analysis of variance and Pearson linear correlation analysis. Results: After intravenous injection of 11 C-CFT, the radioactivity accumulation in cortical, striatum, and cerebellum was shown clearly in the control and model groups. The radioactivity accumulation was lower in the white matter. The radioactivity in cortical and cerebellum exhibited decreased with time, while the striatum was still clear. After HI, the ST/OC activity ratio in the striatum was initially increased, and the ratio of 0-6 h group (1.34 ± 0.04) was statistically significant compared with that of the control group (1.18 ± 0.06; F=4.658, P<0.05), followed by a gradual decrease. ST/OC ratios of other HI subgroups were 1.27 ±0.01, 1.27 ±0.10 and 1.18 ±0.05, respectively. There was a positive correlation between the number of DAT positive neurons ((13 ± 3), (13 ± 4), (8 ±3) and (4 ±4)/high power field) and 11 C-CFT ST/OC activity ratios (r=0.844, P<0.05). Conclusion: 11 C-CFT PET/CT study can accurately reflect the changes of DAT in the striatum, and the amount of DAT is related to the severity of the ischemic insult

  17. Absorbed dose estimates to structures of the brain and head using a high-resolution voxel-based head phantom

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Evans, Jeffrey F.; Blue, Thomas E.; Gupta, Nilendu

    2001-01-01

    The purpose of this article is to demonstrate the viability of using a high-resolution 3-D head phantom in Monte Carlo N-Particle (MCNP) for boron neutron capture therapy (BNCT) structure dosimetry. This work describes a high-resolution voxel-based model of a human head and its use for calculating absorbed doses to the structures of the brain. The Zubal head phantom is a 3-D model of a human head that can be displayed and manipulated on a computer. Several changes were made to the original head phantom which now contains over 29 critical structures of the brain and head. The modified phantom is a 85x109x120 lattice of voxels, where each voxel is 2.2x2.2x1.4 mm 3 . This model was translated into MCNP lattice format. As a proof of principle study, two MCNP absorbed dose calculations were made (left and right lateral irradiations) using a uniformly distributed neutron disk source with an 1/E energy spectrum. Additionally, the results of these two calculations were combined to estimate the absorbed doses from a bilateral irradiation. Radiobiologically equivalent (RBE) doses were calculated for all structures and were normalized to 12.8 Gy-Eq. For a left lateral irradiation, the left motor cortex receives the limiting RBE dose. For a bilateral irradiation, the insula cortices receive the limiting dose. Among the nonencephalic structures, the parotid glands receive RBE doses that were within 15% of the limiting dose

  18. Fronto-striatal atrophy correlates of neuropsychiatric dysfunction in frontotemporal dementia (FTD and Alzheimer's disease (AD

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Dong Seok Yi

    Full Text Available ABSTRACT Behavioural disturbances in frontotemporal dementia (FTD are thought to reflect mainly atrophy of cortical regions. Recent studies suggest that subcortical brain regions, in particular the striatum, are also significantly affected and this pathology might play a role in the generation of behavioural symptoms. Objective: To investigate prefrontal cortical and striatal atrophy contributions to behavioural symptoms in FTD. Methods: One hundred and eighty-two participants (87 FTD patients, 39 AD patients and 56 controls were included. Behavioural profiles were established using the Cambridge Behavioural Inventory Revised (CBI-R and Frontal System Behaviour Scale (FrSBe. Atrophy in prefrontal (VMPFC, DLPFC and striatal (caudate, putamen regions was established via a 5-point visual rating scale of the MRI scans. Behavioural scores were correlated with atrophy rating scores. Results: Behavioural and atrophy ratings demonstrated that patients were significantly impaired compared to controls, with bvFTD being most severely affected. Behavioural-anatomical correlations revealed that VMPFC atrophy was closely related to abnormal behaviour and motivation disturbances. Stereotypical behaviours were associated with both VMPFC and striatal atrophy. By contrast, disturbance of eating was found to be related to striatal atrophy only. Conclusion: Frontal and striatal atrophy contributed to the behavioural disturbances seen in FTD, with some behaviours related to frontal, striatal or combined fronto-striatal pathology. Consideration of striatal contributions to the generation of behavioural disturbances should be taken into account when assessing patients with potential FTD.

  19. Phantom Sensations, Supernumerary Phantom Limbs and Apotemnophilia: Three Body Representation Disorders.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tatu, Laurent; Bogousslavsky, Julien

    2018-01-01

    Body representation disorders continue to be mysterious and involve the anatomical substrate that underlies the mental representation of the body. These disorders sit on the boundaries of neurological and psychiatric diseases. We present the main characteristics of 3 examples of body representation disorders: phantom sensations, supernumerary phantom limb, and apotemnophilia. The dysfunction of anatomical circuits that regulate body representation can sometimes have paradoxical features. In the case of phantom sensations, the patient feels the painful subjective sensation of the existence of the lost part of the body after amputation, surgery or trauma. In case of apotemnophilia, now named body integrity identity disorder, the subject wishes for the disappearance of the existing and normal limb, which can occasionally lead to self-amputation. More rarely, a brain-damaged patient with 4 existing limbs can report the existence of a supernumerary phantom limb. © 2018 S. Karger AG, Basel.

  20. A capillary-based perfusion phantom for simulation of brain perfusion for MRI; Ein kapillarbasiertes Phantom zur Simulation der Gehirnperfusion mit der Magnet-Resonanz-Tomografie

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Maciak, A.; Kronfeld, A.; Mueller-Forell, W. [Universitaetsklinikum Mainz (Germany). Inst. fuer Neuroradiologie; Wille, C. [Fachhochschule Bingen (Germany). Inst. fuer Informatik; Kempski, O. [Universitaetsklinikum Mainz (Germany). Inst. fuer Neurochirurgische Pathophysiologie; Stoeter, P. [CEDIMAT, Santo Domingo (Dominican Republic). Inst. of Neuroradiology

    2010-10-15

    Purpose: The measurement of the CBF is a non-standardized procedure and there are no reliable gold standards. This abstract shows a capillary-based perfusion-phantom for CE-DSC-MRI. It has equivalent flow properties to those within the tissue capillary system of the human brain and allows the validation of the Siemens Perfusion (MR) software. Materials and Methods: The perfusion phantom consists of a dialyzer for the simulation of the capillary system, a feeding tube for simulation of the AIF and a pulsatile pump for simulation of the heart. Using this perfusion phantom, the exact determination of the gold standard CBF due to the well-known geometry of the phantom is easy. It was validated based on different perfusion measurements. These measurements were investigated with standard software (Siemens Perfusion MR). The software determined the CBF within the capillary system. Based on this CBF, a comparison to the gold standard was made with several different flow speeds. After AIF selection, a total of 726 CBF data points were automatically extracted by the software. Results: This results in a comparison of the gold standard CBF to these 726 CBF values. Therefore, a reproducible and reliable deviation estimation between gold standard CBF and measured CBF using the software was computed. It can be shown that the deviation between gold standard and software-based evaluation ranges between 1 and 31 %. Conclusion: There is no significance for any correlation between flow speed and amount of deviation. The mean measured CBF is 11.4 % higher than the gold standard CBF (p-value < 0.001). Using this kind of perfusion-phantom, the validation of different software systems allows reliable conclusions about their quality. (orig.)

  1. Abstinence duration modulates striatal functioning during monetary reward processing in cocaine patients.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bustamante, Juan-Carlos; Barrós-Loscertales, Alfonso; Costumero, Víctor; Fuentes-Claramonte, Paola; Rosell-Negre, Patricia; Ventura-Campos, Noelia; Llopis, Juan-José; Ávila, César

    2014-09-01

    Pre-clinical and clinical studies in cocaine addiction highlight alterations in the striatal dopaminergic reward system that subserve maintenance of cocaine use. Using an instrumental conditioning paradigm with monetary reinforcement, we studied striatal functional alterations in long-term abstinent cocaine-dependent patients and striatal functioning as a function of abstinence and treatment duration. Eighteen patients and 20 controls underwent functional magnetic resonance imaging during a Monetary Incentive Delay task. Region of interest analyses based on masks of the dorsal and ventral striatum were conducted to test between-group differences and the functional effects in the cocaine group of time (in months) with no more than two lapses from the first time patients visited the clinical service to seek treatment at the scanning time (duration of treatment), and the functional effects of the number of months with no lapses or relapses at the scanning session time (length of abstinence). We applied a voxel-wise and a cluster-wise FWE-corrected level (pFWE) at a threshold of P reward anticipation than the control group. The regression analyses in the patients group revealed a positive correlation between duration of treatment and brain activity in the left caudate during reward anticipation. Likewise, length of abstinence negatively correlated with brain activity in the bilateral nucleus accumbens during monetary outcome processing. In conclusion, caudate and nucleus accumbens show a different brain response pattern to non-drug rewards during cocaine addiction, which can be modulated by treatment success. © 2013 The Authors, Addiction Biology © 2013 Society for the Study of Addiction.

  2. Simulating effects of brain atrophy in longitudinal PET imaging with an anthropomorphic brain phantom

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Jonasson, L S; Axelsson, J; Riklund, K

    2017-01-01

    In longitudinal positron emission tomography (PET), the presence of volumetric changes over time can lead to an overestimation or underestimation of the true changes in the quantified PET signal due to the partial volume effect (PVE) introduced by the limited spatial resolution of existing PET...... cameras and reconstruction algorithms. Here, a 3D-printed anthropomorphic brain phantom with attachable striata in three sizes was designed to enable controlled volumetric changes. Using a method to eliminate the non-radioactive plastic wall, and manipulating BP levels by adding different number of events...... from list-mode acquisitions, we investigated the artificial volume dependence of BP due to PVE, and potential bias arising from varying BP. Comparing multiple reconstruction algorithms we found that a high-resolution ordered-subsets maximization algorithm with spatially variant point-spread function...

  3. DRD2 genotype-based variation of default mode network activity and of its relationship with striatal DAT binding.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sambataro, Fabio; Fazio, Leonardo; Taurisano, Paolo; Gelao, Barbara; Porcelli, Annamaria; Mancini, Marina; Sinibaldi, Lorenzo; Ursini, Gianluca; Masellis, Rita; Caforio, Grazia; Di Giorgio, Annabella; Niccoli-Asabella, Artor; Popolizio, Teresa; Blasi, Giuseppe; Bertolino, Alessandro

    2013-01-01

    The default mode network (DMN) comprises a set of brain regions with "increased" activity during rest relative to cognitive processing. Activity in the DMN is associated with functional connections with the striatum and dopamine (DA) levels in this brain region. A functional single-nucleotide polymorphism within the dopamine D2 receptor gene (DRD2, rs1076560 G > T) shifts splicing of the 2 D2 isoforms, D2 short and D2 long, and has been associated with striatal DA signaling as well as with cognitive processing. However, the effects of this polymorphism on DMN have not been explored. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of rs1076560 on DMN and striatal connectivity and on their relationship with striatal DA signaling. Twenty-eight subjects genotyped for rs1076560 underwent functional magnetic resonance imaging during a working memory task and 123 55 I-Fluoropropyl-2-beta-carbomethoxy-3-beta(4-iodophenyl) nortropan Single Photon Emission Computed Tomography ([(123)I]-FP-CIT SPECT) imaging (a measure of dopamine transporter [DAT] binding). Spatial group-independent component (IC) analysis was used to identify DMN and striatal ICs. Within the anterior DMN IC, GG subjects had relatively greater connectivity in medial prefrontal cortex (MPFC), which was directly correlated with striatal DAT binding. Within the posterior DMN IC, GG subjects had reduced connectivity in posterior cingulate relative to T carriers. Additionally, rs1076560 genotype predicted connectivity differences within a striatal network, and these changes were correlated with connectivity in MPFC and posterior cingulate within the DMN. These results suggest that genetically determined D2 receptor signaling is associated with DMN connectivity and that these changes are correlated with striatal function and presynaptic DA signaling.

  4. Elevated Striatal Reactivity Across Monetary and Social Rewards in Bipolar I Disorder

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dutra, Sunny J.; Cunningham, William A.; Kober, Hedy; Gruber, June

    2016-01-01

    Bipolar disorder (BD) is associated with increased reactivity to rewards and heightened positive affectivity. It is less clear to what extent this heightened reward sensitivity is evident across contexts and what the associated neural mechanisms might be. The present investigation employed both a monetary and social incentive delay task among adults with remitted BD type I (N=24) and a healthy non-psychiatric control group (HC; N=25) using fMRI. Both whole-brain and region-of-interest analyses revealed elevated ventral and dorsal striatal reactivity across monetary and social reward receipt, but not anticipation, in the BD group. Post-hoc analyses further suggested that greater striatal reactivity to reward receipt across monetary and social reward tasks predicted decreased self-reported positive affect when anticipating subsequent rewards in the HC, but not BD, group. Results point toward elevated striatal reactivity to reward receipt as a potential neural mechanism of reward reactivity. PMID:26390194

  5. Age related changes in striatal resting state functional connectivity in autism

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    Aarthi ePadmanabhan

    2013-11-01

    Full Text Available Characterizing the nature of developmental change is critical to understanding the mechanisms that are impaired in complex neurodevelopment disorders such as autism spectrum disorder (ASD and, pragmatically, may allow us to pinpoint periods of plasticity when interventions are particularly useful. Although aberrant brain development has long been theorized as a characteristic feature of ASD, the neural substrates have been difficult to characterize, in part due to a lack of developmental data and to performance confounds. To address these issues, we examined the development of intrinsic functional connectivity with resting state fMRI from late childhood to early adulthood (8-36 years, using a seed based functional connectivity method with the striatum. Overall, we found that both groups show decreases in cortico-striatal circuits over age. However, when controlling for age, ASD participants showed increased connectivity with parietal cortex and decreased connectivity with prefrontal cortex relative to TD participants. In addition, ASD participants showed aberrant age-related changes in connectivity with anterior aspects of cerebellum, and posterior temporal regions (e.g. fusiform gyrus, inferior and superior temporal gyri. In sum, we found prominent differences in the development of striatal connectivity in ASD, most notably, atypical development of connectivity in striatal networks that may underlie cognitive and social reward processing. Our findings highlight the need to identify the biological mechanisms of perturbations in brain reorganization over development, which also may help clarify discrepant findings in the literature.

  6. Striatal μ-opioid receptor availability predicts cold pressor pain threshold in healthy human subjects

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Hagelberg, Nora; Aalto, Sargo; Tuominen, Lauri

    2012-01-01

    the potential associations between μ-opioid receptor BP(ND) and psychophysical measures. The results show that striatal μ-opioid receptor BP(ND) predicts cold pressor pain threshold, but not cold pressor pain tolerance or tactile sensitivity. This finding suggests that striatal μ-opioid receptor density......Previous PET studies in healthy humans have shown that brain μ-opioid receptor activation during experimental pain is associated with reductions in the sensory and affective ratings of the individual pain experience. The aim of this study was to find out whether brain μ-opioid receptor binding...... at the resting state, in absence of painful stimulation, can be a long-term predictor of experimental pain sensitivity. We measured μ-opioid receptor binding potential (BP(ND)) with μ-opioid receptor selective radiotracer [(11)C]carfentanil and positron emission tomography (PET) in 12 healthy male subjects...

  7. Striatal dopamine release induced by repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation over dorsolateral prefrontal cortex: effect of aging

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Bang, Seong Ae; Cho, Sang Soo; Yoon, Eun Jin; Kim, Ji Sun; Lee, Byung Chul; Kim, Yu Kyeong; Kim, Sang Eun

    2007-01-01

    We previously demonstrated dopamine (DA) release in the bilateral striatal regions following prefrontal repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) in young subjects. Several lines of evidence support substantial age-related changes in human dopaminergic neurotransmission. One possible explanation is alteration of cortico striatal neural connection with aging. Therefore, we investigated how frontal activation by rTMS influences striatal DA release in the elderly with SPECT measurements of striatal binding of [123I]iodobenzamide (lBZM), a DA D2 receptor radioligand that is sensitive to endogenous DA. Five healthy elderly male subjects (age, 64 3 y) were studied with brain [123I]IBZM SPECT under three conditions (resting, sham stimulation, and active rTMS over left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC)), while receiving a bolus plus constant infusion of [123I]IBZM. rTMS session consisted of three blocks. In each block, 15 trains of 2 sec duration were delivered with 10 Hz stimulation frequency and 100% motor threshold. Striatal V3', calculated as (striatal - occipital)/occipital radioactivity, was measured under equilibrium condition at baseline and after sham and active rTMS. Sham stimulation did not affect striatal V3'. rTMS over left DLPFC induced no significant change in V3' in the right striatum compared with baseline condition (0.91 0.25 vs. 0.96 0.25, P = NS). Interestingly, left striatal V3' showed a significant increase after rTMS over left DLPFC compared with sham condition (1.09 0.33 vs. 0.93 0.27, P < 0.05; 17.0 11.1% increase). These results are discrepant from previous ones from young subjects, who showed frontal rTMS-induced reduction of striatal V3', indicating rTMS-induced striatal DA release. We found no significant striatal DA release induced by rTMS over DLPFC in healthy elderly subjects using in vivo binding competition techniques. These results may support an altered cortico striatal circuit in normal aging

  8. Striatal dopamine release induced by repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation over dorsolateral prefrontal cortex: effect of aging

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Bang, Seong Ae; Cho, Sang Soo; Yoon, Eun Jin; Kim, Ji Sun; Lee, Byung Chul; Kim, Yu Kyeong; Kim, Sang Eun [Seoul National Univ. College of Medicine, Seoul (Korea, Republic of)

    2007-07-01

    We previously demonstrated dopamine (DA) release in the bilateral striatal regions following prefrontal repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) in young subjects. Several lines of evidence support substantial age-related changes in human dopaminergic neurotransmission. One possible explanation is alteration of cortico striatal neural connection with aging. Therefore, we investigated how frontal activation by rTMS influences striatal DA release in the elderly with SPECT measurements of striatal binding of [123I]iodobenzamide (lBZM), a DA D2 receptor radioligand that is sensitive to endogenous DA. Five healthy elderly male subjects (age, 64 3 y) were studied with brain [123I]IBZM SPECT under three conditions (resting, sham stimulation, and active rTMS over left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC)), while receiving a bolus plus constant infusion of [123I]IBZM. rTMS session consisted of three blocks. In each block, 15 trains of 2 sec duration were delivered with 10 Hz stimulation frequency and 100% motor threshold. Striatal V3', calculated as (striatal - occipital)/occipital radioactivity, was measured under equilibrium condition at baseline and after sham and active rTMS. Sham stimulation did not affect striatal V3'. rTMS over left DLPFC induced no significant change in V3' in the right striatum compared with baseline condition (0.91 0.25 vs. 0.96 0.25, P = NS). Interestingly, left striatal V3' showed a significant increase after rTMS over left DLPFC compared with sham condition (1.09 0.33 vs. 0.93 0.27, P < 0.05; 17.0 11.1% increase). These results are discrepant from previous ones from young subjects, who showed frontal rTMS-induced reduction of striatal V3', indicating rTMS-induced striatal DA release. We found no significant striatal DA release induced by rTMS over DLPFC in healthy elderly subjects using in vivo binding competition techniques. These results may support an altered cortico striatal circuit in normal aging.

  9. Production of a faithful realistic phantom to human head and thermal neutron flux measurement on the brain surface. Cooperative research

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Yamamoto, Kazuyoshi; Kumada, Hiroaki; Kishi, Toshiaki; Torii, Yoshiya; Uchiyama, Junzo [Japan Atomic Energy Research Inst., Tokai, Ibaraki (Japan). Tokai Research Establishment; Endo, Kiyoshi; Yamamoto, Tetsuya; Matsumura, Akira; Nose, Tadao [Tsukuba Univ., Tsukuba, Ibaraki (Japan)

    2002-12-01

    Thermal neutron flux is determined using the gold wires in current BNCT irradiation, so evaluation of arbitrary points after the irradiation is limited in the quantity of these detectors. In order to make up for the weakness, dose estimation of a patient is simulated by a computational dose calculation supporting system. In another way without computer simulation, a medical irradiation condition can be replicate experimentally using of realistic phantom which was produced from CT images by rapid prototyping technique. This phantom was irradiated at a same JRR-4 neutron beam as clinical irradiation condition of the patient and the thermal neutron distribution on the brain surface was measured in detail. This experimental evaluation technique using a realistic phantom is applicable to in vitro cell irradiation experiments for radiation biological effects as well as in-phantom experiments for dosimetry under the nearly medical irradiation condition of patient. (author)

  10. Production of a faithful realistic phantom to human head and thermal neutron flux measurement on the brain surface. Cooperative research

    CERN Document Server

    Yamamoto, K; Kishi, T; Kumada, H; Matsumura, A; Nose, T; Torii, Y; Uchiyama, J; Yamamoto, T

    2002-01-01

    Thermal neutron flux is determined using the gold wires in current BNCT irradiation, so evaluation of arbitrary points after the irradiation is limited in the quantity of these detectors. In order to make up for the weakness, dose estimation of a patient is simulated by a computational dose calculation supporting system. In another way without computer simulation, a medical irradiation condition can be replicate experimentally using of realistic phantom which was produced from CT images by rapid prototyping technique. This phantom was irradiated at a same JRR-4 neutron beam as clinical irradiation condition of the patient and the thermal neutron distribution on the brain surface was measured in detail. This experimental evaluation technique using a realistic phantom is applicable to in vitro cell irradiation experiments for radiation biological effects as well as in-phantom experiments for dosimetry under the nearly medical irradiation condition of patient.

  11. CT-based attenuation correction and resolution compensation for I-123 IMP brain SPECT normal database: a multicenter phantom study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Inui, Yoshitaka; Ichihara, Takashi; Uno, Masaki; Ishiguro, Masanobu; Ito, Kengo; Kato, Katsuhiko; Sakuma, Hajime; Okazawa, Hidehiko; Toyama, Hiroshi

    2018-03-19

    Statistical image analysis of brain SPECT images has improved diagnostic accuracy for brain disorders. However, the results of statistical analysis vary depending on the institution even when they use a common normal database (NDB), due to different intrinsic spatial resolutions or correction methods. The present study aimed to evaluate the correction of spatial resolution differences between equipment and examine the differences in skull bone attenuation to construct a common NDB for use in multicenter settings. The proposed acquisition and processing protocols were those routinely used at each participating center with additional triple energy window (TEW) scatter correction (SC) and computed tomography (CT) based attenuation correction (CTAC). A multicenter phantom study was conducted on six imaging systems in five centers, with either single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) or SPECT/CT, and two brain phantoms. The gray/white matter I-123 activity ratio in the brain phantoms was 4, and they were enclosed in either an artificial adult male skull, 1300 Hounsfield units (HU), a female skull, 850 HU, or an acrylic cover. The cut-off frequency of the Butterworth filters was adjusted so that the spatial resolution was unified to a 17.9 mm full width at half maximum (FWHM), that of the lowest resolution system. The gray-to-white matter count ratios were measured from SPECT images and compared with the actual activity ratio. In addition, mean, standard deviation and coefficient of variation images were calculated after normalization and anatomical standardization to evaluate the variability of the NDB. The gray-to-white matter count ratio error without SC and attenuation correction (AC) was significantly larger for higher bone densities (p correction. The proposed protocol showed potential for constructing an appropriate common NDB from SPECT images with SC, AC and spatial resolution compensation.

  12. DISC1 and striatal volume: a potential risk phenotype for mental illness

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    M. Mallar eChakravarty

    2012-06-01

    Full Text Available Disrupted-in-schizophrenia 1 was originally discovered in a large Scottish family with abnormally high rates of severe mental illness, including schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and depression. An accumulating body of evidence from genetic, postmortem, and animal data supports a role for DISC1 in different forms of mental illness. DISC1 may play an important role in determining structure and function of several brain regions. One brain region of particular importance for several mental disorders is the striatum, and DISC1 mutant mice have demonstrated an increase in dopamine (D2 receptors in this structure. However, association between DISC1 functional polymorphisms and striatal structure have not been examined in humans to our knowledge. We, therefore hypothesized that there would be a relationship between human striatal volume and DISC1 genotype, specifically in the Leu607Phe (rs6675281 and Ser704Cys (rs821618 single nucleotide polymorphisms. We tested our hypothesis by automatically identifying the striatum in fifty-four healthy volunteers recruited for this study. We also performed an exploratory analysis of cortical thickness, cortical surface area, and structure volume. Our results demonstrate that Phe allele carriers have larger striatal volume bilaterally (left striatum: p=0.017; right striatum: p=0.016. From the exploratory analyses we found that Phe carriers also had larger right hemisphere volumes and right occipital lobe surface area (p=0.014 compared to LeuLeu homozygotes (p=0.0074. However, these exploratory findings do not survive a conservative correction for multiple comparisons. Our findings demonstrate that a functional DISC1 variant influences striatal volumes. Taken together with animal data that this gene influences D2 receptor levels in striatum, a key risk pathway for mental illnesses such as schizophrenia and bipolar disorder may be conferred via DISC1’s effects on the striatum .

  13. Striatal and extra-striatal dopamine transporter in cannabis and tobacco addiction: a high resolution PET study

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Leroy, C.; Martinot, J.L.; Duchesnay, E.; Artiges, E.; Ribeiro, M.J.; Trichard, Ch.; Karila, L.; Lukasiewicz, M.; Benyamina, A.; Reynaud, M.; Martinot, J.L.; Duchesnay, E.; Artiges, E.; Comtat, C.; Artiges, E.; Trichard, Ch.

    2011-01-01

    The dopamine (DA) system is known to be involved in the reward and dependence mechanisms of addiction. However, modifications in dopaminergic neurotransmission associated with long-term tobacco and cannabis use have been poorly documented in vivo. In order to assess striatal and extra-striatal dopamine transporter (DAT) availability in tobacco and cannabis addiction, three groups of male age-matched subjects were compared: 11 healthy non-smoker subjects, 14 tobacco-dependent smokers (17.6 ± 5.3 cigarettes/day for 12.1 ± 8.5 years) and 13 cannabis and tobacco smokers (CTS) (4.8 ± 5.3 cannabis joints/day for 8.7 ± 3.9 years). DAT availability was examined in positron emission tomography (HRRT) with a high resolution research tomograph after injection of [ 11 C]PE2I, a selective DAT radioligand. Region of interest and voxel-by-voxel approaches using a simplified reference tissue model were performed for the between-group comparison of DAT availability. Measurements in the dorsal striatum from both analyses were concordant and showed a mean 20% lower DAT availability in drug users compared with controls. Whole-brain analysis also revealed lower DAT availability in the ventral striatum, the midbrain, the middle cingulate and the thalamus (ranging from -15 to -30%). The DAT availability was slightly lower in all regions in CTS than in subjects who smoke tobacco only, but the difference does not reach a significant level. These results support the existence of a decrease in DAT availability associated with tobacco and cannabis addictions involving all dopaminergic brain circuits. These findings are consistent with the idea of a global decrease in cerebral DA activity in dependent subjects. (authors)

  14. Effects of scatter and attenuation corrections on phantom and clinical brain SPECT

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Prando, S.; Robilotta, C.C.R.; Oliveira, M.A.; Alves, T.C.; Busatto Filho, G.

    2002-01-01

    Aim: The present work evaluated the effects of combinations of scatter and attenuation corrections on the analysis of brain SPECT. Materials and Methods: We studied images of the 3D Hoffman brain phantom and from a group of 20 depressive patients with confirmed cardiac insufficiency (CI) and 14 matched healthy controls (HC). Data were acquired with a Sophy-DST/SMV-GE dual-head camera after venous injection of 1110MBq 99m Tc-HMPAO. Two energy windows, 15% on 140keV and 30% centered on 108keV of the Compton distribution, were used to obtain corresponding sets of 128x128x128 projections. Tomograms were reconstructed using OSEM (2 iterations, 8 sub-sets) and Metz filter (order 8, 4 pixels FWHM psf) and FBP with Butterworth filter (order 10, frequency 0.7 Nyquist). Ten combinations of Jaszczak correction (factors 0.3, 0.4 and 0.5) and the 1st order Chang correction (u=0.12cm -1 and 0.159cm -1 ) were applied on the phantom data. In all the phantom images, contrast and signal-noise ratio between 3 ROIs (ventricle, occipital and thalamus) and cerebellum, as well as the ratio between activities in gray and white matters, were calculated and compared with the expected values. The patients images were corrected with k=0.5 and u=0.159cm -1 and reconstructed with OSEM and Metz filter. The images were inspected visually and blood flow comparisons between the CI and the HC groups were performed using Statistical Parametric Mapping (SPM). Results: The best results in the analysis of the contrast and activities ratio were obtained with k=0.5 and u=0.159cm -1 . The results of the activities ratio obtained with OSEM e Metz filter are similar to those published by Laere et al.[J.Nucl.Med 2000;41:2051-2062]. The method of correction using effective attenuation coefficient produced results visually acceptable, but inadequate for the quantitative evaluation. The results of signal-noise ratio are better with OSEM than FBP reconstruction method. The corrections in the CI patients studies

  15. Sex Differences in Medium Spiny Neuron Excitability and Glutamatergic Synaptic Input: Heterogeneity Across Striatal Regions and Evidence for Estradiol-Dependent Sexual Differentiation

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jinyan Cao

    2018-04-01

    Full Text Available Steroid sex hormones and biological sex influence how the brain regulates motivated behavior, reward, and sensorimotor function in both normal and pathological contexts. Investigations into the underlying neural mechanisms have targeted the striatal brain regions, including the caudate–putamen, nucleus accumbens core (AcbC, and shell. These brain regions are of particular interest to neuroendocrinologists given that they express membrane-associated but not nuclear estrogen receptors, and also the well-established role of the sex steroid hormone 17β-estradiol (estradiol in modulating striatal dopamine systems. Indeed, output neurons of the striatum, the medium spiny neurons (MSNs, exhibit estradiol sensitivity and sex differences in electrophysiological properties. Here, we review sex differences in rat MSN glutamatergic synaptic input and intrinsic excitability across striatal regions, including evidence for estradiol-mediated sexual differentiation in the nucleus AcbC. In prepubertal animals, female MSNs in the caudate–putamen exhibit a greater intrinsic excitability relative to male MSNs, but no sex differences are detected in excitatory synaptic input. Alternatively, female MSNs in the nucleus AcbC exhibit increased excitatory synaptic input relative to male MSNs, but no sex differences in intrinsic excitability were detected. Increased excitatory synaptic input onto female MSNs in the nucleus AcbC is abolished after masculinizing estradiol or testosterone exposure during the neonatal critical period. No sex differences are detected in MSNs in prepubertal nucleus accumbens shell. Thus, despite possessing the same neuron type, striatal regions exhibit heterogeneity in sex differences in MSN electrophysiological properties, which likely contribute to the sex differences observed in striatal function.

  16. Preliminary Evidence for Training-Induced Changes of Morphology and Phantom Limb Pain

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    Sandra Preißler

    2017-06-01

    Full Text Available The aim of this study was to investigate whether a special prosthetic training in phantom limb pain patients aimed at increasing the functional use of the prosthesis leads to neural morphological plasticity of brain structures and a reduction in phantom limb pain. For chronic pain disorders, it was shown that morphological alterations due to pain might become at least partially reversed by pain therapies. Phantom limb pain is a chronic pain disorder that is frequently followed by neural plasticity of anatomical brain structures. In our study, 10 patients with amputation of the upper limb participated in a two-week training with a myoelectric prosthesis with somatosensory feedback. Grip strength was fed back with electrocutaneous stimulus patterns applied to the stump. Phantom limb pain was assessed before and after the two-week training. Similarly, two T1 weighted MRI scans were conducted for longitudinal thickness analyses of cortical brain structures. As result of this treatment, patients experienced a reduction in phantom limb pain and a gain in prosthesis functionality. Furthermore, we found a change of cortical thickness in small brain areas in the visual stream and the post-central gyrus ipsilateral to the amputation indicating morphological alterations in brain areas involved in vision and pain processing.

  17. Reduced striatal volumes in Parkinson’s disease: a magnetic resonance imaging study

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Pitcher Toni L

    2012-08-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background The presence and extent of structural changes in the brain as a consequence of Parkinson’s disease (PD is still poorly understood. Methods High-resolution 3-tesla T1-weighted structural magnetic resonance images in sixty-five PD and 27 age-matched healthy control participants were examined. Putamen, caudate, and intracranial volumes were manually traced in the axial plane of 3D reconstructed images. Striatal nuclei volumes were normalized to intracranial volume for statistical comparison. Disease status was assessed using the Unified Parkinson’s Disease Rating Scale and Hoehn and Yahr scale. Cognitive status was assessed using global status tests and detailed neuropsychological testing. Results Both caudate and putamen volumes were smaller in PD brains compared to controls after adjusting for age and gender. Caudate volumes were reduced by 11% (p = 0.001 and putamen volumes by 8.1% (p = 0.025. PD striatal volumes were not found to be significantly correlated with cognitive or motor decline. Conclusion Small, but significant reductions in the volume of both the caudate and putamen occur in PD brains. These reductions are independent of the effects of age and gender, however the relation of these reductions to the functional loss of dopamine, which is characteristic of PD, remains unclear.

  18. Frontal, Striatal, and Medial Temporal Sensitivity to Value Distinguishes Risk-Taking from Risk-Aversive Older Adults during Decision Making.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Goh, Joshua O S; Su, Yu-Shiang; Tang, Yong-Jheng; McCarrey, Anna C; Tereshchenko, Alexander; Elkins, Wendy; Resnick, Susan M

    2016-12-07

    Aging compromises the frontal, striatal, and medial temporal areas of the reward system, impeding accurate value representation and feedback processing critical for decision making. However, substantial variability characterizes age-related effects on the brain so that some older individuals evince clear neurocognitive declines whereas others are spared. Moreover, the functional correlates of normative individual differences in older-adult value-based decision making remain unclear. We performed a functional magnetic resonance imaging study in 173 human older adults during a lottery choice task in which costly to more desirable stakes were depicted using low to high expected values (EVs) of points. Across trials that varied in EVs, participants decided to accept or decline the offered stakes to maximize total accumulated points. We found that greater age was associated with less optimal decisions, accepting stakes when losses were likely and declining stakes when gains were likely, and was associated with increased frontal activity for costlier stakes. Critically, risk preferences varied substantially across older adults and neural sensitivity to EVs in the frontal, striatal, and medial temporal areas dissociated risk-aversive from risk-taking individuals. Specifically, risk-averters increased neural responses to increasing EVs as stakes became more desirable, whereas risk-takers increased neural responses with decreasing EV as stakes became more costly. Risk preference also modulated striatal responses during feedback with risk-takers showing more positive responses to gains compared with risk-averters. Our findings highlight the frontal, striatal, and medial temporal areas as key neural loci in which individual differences differentially affect value-based decision-making ability in older adults. Frontal, striatal, and medial temporal functions implicated in value-based decision processing of rewards and costs undergo substantial age-related changes. However, age

  19. Pyrethroid insecticides evoke neurotransmitter release from rabbit striatal slices

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Eells, J.T.; Dubocovich, M.L.

    1988-01-01

    The effects of the synthetic pyrethroid insecticide fenvalerate ([R,S]-alpha-cyano-3-phenoxybenzyl[R,S]-2-(4-chlorophenyl)-3- methylbutyrate) on neurotransmitter release in rabbit brain slices were investigated. Fenvalerate evoked a calcium-dependent release of [ 3 H]dopamine and [ 3 H]acetylcholine from rabbit striatal slices that was concentration-dependent and specific for the toxic stereoisomer of the insecticide. The release of [ 3 H]dopamine and [ 3 H]acetylcholine by fenvalerate was modulated by D2 dopamine receptor activation and antagonized completely by the sodium channel blocker, tetrodotoxin. These findings are consistent with an action of fenvalerate on the voltage-dependent sodium channels of the presynaptic membrane resulting in membrane depolarization, and the release of dopamine and acetylcholine by a calcium-dependent exocytotic process. In contrast to results obtained in striatal slices, fenvalerate did not elicit the release of [ 3 H]norepinephrine or [ 3 H]acetylcholine from rabbit hippocampal slices indicative of regional differences in sensitivity to type II pyrethroid actions

  20. Effects of cholecystokinin octapeptide on striatal dopamine metabolism and on apomorphine-induced stereotyped cage-climbing in mice

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Kovacs, G L; Szabo, G; Telegdy, G [Institute of Pathophysiology, University Medical School, Szeged, Hungary; Penke, B [Institute of Medical Chemistry, University Medical School, Szeged, Hungary

    1981-01-29

    The effects of sulfated (CCK-8-SE) and non-sulfated (CCK-8-NS) cholecystokinin octapeptide on striatal dopamine (DA) metabolism have been investigated on mice. CCK-8-NS facilitated the disappearance of striatal DA, measured after synthesis inhibition with 350 mg/kg of ..cap alpha..-methyl-p-tyrosine. CCK-8-SE did not affect DA disappearance. In vitro uptake of (/sup 3/H)DA by striatal slices was affected by neither CCK-8-SE, nor CCK-8-NS (10/sup -5/ M). Potassium-induced in vitro release of (/sup 3/H)DA from striatal slices was significantly increased by 10/sup -5/ M CCK-8-NS: however, CCK-8-SE likewise increased DA release in this model system. Apomorphine-induced (1.0 mg/kg) stereotyped cage-climbing behavior was not affected by CCK-8-SE but was enhanced by CCK-8-NS. This effect could be antagonized by haloperidol, but not by naloxone. The data suggest that CCK-8-NS affects striatal DA release, disappearance and receptor sensitivity in the mouse. Dopaminergic mechanisms should therefore be regarded as a possible mode of action of CCK-8-NS on brain functions.

  1. Effects of cholecystokinin octapeptide on striatal dopamine metabolism and on apomorphine-induced stereotyped cage-climbing in mice

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kovacs, G.L.; Szabo, G.; Telegdy, G.; Penke, B.

    1981-01-01

    The effects of sulfated (CCK-8-SE) and non-sulfated (CCK-8-NS) cholecystokinin octapeptide on striatal dopamine (DA) metabolism have been investigated on mice. CCK-8-NS facilitated the disappearance of striatal DA, measured after synthesis inhibition with 350 mg/kg of α-methyl-p-tyrosine. CCK-8-SE did not affect DA disappearance. In vitro uptake of [ 3 H]DA by striatal slices was affected by neither CCK-8-SE, nor CCK-8-NS (10 -5 M). Potassium-induced in vitro release of [ 3 H]DA from striatal slices was significantly increased by 10 -5 M CCK-8-NS: however, CCK-8-SE likewise increased DA release in this model system. Apomorphine-induced (1.0 mg/kg) stereotyped cage-climbing behavior was not affected by CCK-8-SE but was enhanced by CCK-8-NS. This effect could be antagonized by haloperidol, but not by naloxone. The data suggest that CCK-8-NS affects striatal DA release, disappearance and receptor sensitivity in the mouse. Dopaminergic mechanisms should therefore be regarded as a possible mode of action of CCK-8-NS on brain functions. (Auth.)

  2. Dopamine-Related Disruption of Functional Topography of Striatal Connections in Unmedicated Patients With Schizophrenia.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Horga, Guillermo; Cassidy, Clifford M; Xu, Xiaoyan; Moore, Holly; Slifstein, Mark; Van Snellenberg, Jared X; Abi-Dargham, Anissa

    2016-08-01

    Despite the well-established role of striatal dopamine in psychosis, current views generally agree that cortical dysfunction is likely necessary for the emergence of psychotic symptoms. The topographic organization of striatal-cortical connections is central to gating and integration of higher-order information, so a disruption of such topography via dysregulated dopamine could lead to cortical dysfunction in schizophrenia. However, this hypothesis remains to be tested using multivariate methods ascertaining the global pattern of striatal connectivity and without the confounding effects of antidopaminergic medication. To examine whether the pattern of brain connectivity across striatal subregions is abnormal in unmedicated patients with schizophrenia and whether this abnormality relates to psychotic symptoms and extrastriatal dopaminergic transmission. In this multimodal, case-control study, we obtained resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging data from 18 unmedicated patients with schizophrenia and 24 matched healthy controls from the New York State Psychiatric Institute. A subset of these (12 and 17, respectively) underwent positron emission tomography with the dopamine D2 receptor radiotracer carbon 11-labeled FLB457 before and after amphetamine administration. Data were acquired between June 16, 2011, and February 25, 2014. Data analysis was performed from September 1, 2014, to January 11, 2016. Group differences in the striatal connectivity pattern (assessed via multivariable logistic regression) across striatal subregions, the association between the multivariate striatal connectivity pattern and extrastriatal baseline D2 receptor binding potential and its change after amphetamine administration, and the association between the multivariate connectivity pattern and the severity of positive symptoms evaluated with the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale. Of the patients with schizophrenia (mean [SEM] age, 35.6 [11.8] years), 9 (50%) were male and 9

  3. Striatal grafts in a rat model of Huntington's disease

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Guzman, R; Meyer, M; Lövblad, K O

    1999-01-01

    Survival and integration into the host brain of grafted tissue are crucial factors in neurotransplantation approaches. The present study explored the feasibility of using a clinical MR scanner to study striatal graft development in a rat model of Huntington's disease. Rat fetal lateral ganglionic...... time-points graft location could not be further verified. Measures for graft size and ventricle size obtained from MR images highly correlated with measures obtained from histologically processed sections (R = 0.8, P fetal rat lateral ganglionic...

  4. Improved volumetric measurement of brain structure with a distortion correction procedure using an ADNI phantom.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Maikusa, Norihide; Yamashita, Fumio; Tanaka, Kenichiro; Abe, Osamu; Kawaguchi, Atsushi; Kabasawa, Hiroyuki; Chiba, Shoma; Kasahara, Akihiro; Kobayashi, Nobuhisa; Yuasa, Tetsuya; Sato, Noriko; Matsuda, Hiroshi; Iwatsubo, Takeshi

    2013-06-01

    Serial magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) images acquired from multisite and multivendor MRI scanners are widely used in measuring longitudinal structural changes in the brain. Precise and accurate measurements are important in understanding the natural progression of neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer's disease. However, geometric distortions in MRI images decrease the accuracy and precision of volumetric or morphometric measurements. To solve this problem, the authors suggest a commercially available phantom-based distortion correction method that accommodates the variation in geometric distortion within MRI images obtained with multivendor MRI scanners. The authors' method is based on image warping using a polynomial function. The method detects fiducial points within a phantom image using phantom analysis software developed by the Mayo Clinic and calculates warping functions for distortion correction. To quantify the effectiveness of the authors' method, the authors corrected phantom images obtained from multivendor MRI scanners and calculated the root-mean-square (RMS) of fiducial errors and the circularity ratio as evaluation values. The authors also compared the performance of the authors' method with that of a distortion correction method based on a spherical harmonics description of the generic gradient design parameters. Moreover, the authors evaluated whether this correction improves the test-retest reproducibility of voxel-based morphometry in human studies. A Wilcoxon signed-rank test with uncorrected and corrected images was performed. The root-mean-square errors and circularity ratios for all slices significantly improved (p Wilcoxon signed-rank test, p test-retest reproducibility. The results showed that distortion was corrected significantly using the authors' method. In human studies, the reproducibility of voxel-based morphometry analysis for the whole gray matter significantly improved after distortion correction using the authors

  5. Multipinhole collimator with 20 apertures for a brain SPECT application

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Lee, Tzu-Cheng; Ellin, Justin R.; Shrestha, Uttam; Seo, Youngho, E-mail: youngho.seo@ucsf.edu [Physics Research Laboratory, Department of Radiology and Biomedical Imaging, University of California, San Francisco, California 94107 (United States); Huang, Qiu [School of Biomedical Engineering, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai 200030 (China); Gullberg, Grant T. [Department of Radiotracer Development and Imaging Technology, Life Sciences Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, California 94702 (United States)

    2014-11-01

    Purpose: Several new technologies for single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) instrumentation with parallel-hole collimation have been proposed to improve detector sensitivity and signal collection efficiency. Benefits from improved signal efficiency include shorter acquisition times and lower dose requirements. In this paper, the authors show a possibility of over an order of magnitude enhancement in photon detection efficiency (from 7.6 × 10{sup −5} to 1.6 × 10{sup −3}) for dopamine transporter (DaT) imaging of the striatum over the conventional SPECT parallel-hole collimators by use of custom-designed 20 multipinhole (20-MPH) collimators with apertures of 0.75 cm diameter. Methods: Quantifying specific binding ratio (SBR) of {sup 123}I-ioflupane or {sup 123}I-iometopane’s signal at the striatal region is a common brain imaging method to confirm the diagnosis of the Parkinson’s disease. The authors performed imaging of a striatal phantom filled with aqueous solution of I-123 and compared camera recovery ratios of SBR acquired between low-energy high-resolution (LEHR) parallel-hole collimators and 20-MPH collimators. Results: With only two-thirds of total acquisition time (20 min against 30 min), a comparable camera recovery ratio of SBR was achieved using 20-MPH collimators in comparison to that from the LEHR collimator study. Conclusions: Their systematic analyses showed that the 20-MPH collimator could be a promising alternative for the DaT SPECT imaging for brain over the traditional LEHR collimator, which could give both shorter scan time and improved diagnostic accuracy.

  6. Specific absorption rate variation in a brain phantom due to exposure by a 3G mobile phone: problems in dosimetry.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Behari, J; Nirala, Jay Prakash

    2013-12-01

    A specific absorption rate (SAR) measurements system has been developed for compliance testing of personal mobile phone in a brain phantom material contained in a Perspex box. The volume of the box has been chosen corresponding to the volume of a small rat and illuminated by a 3G mobile phone frequency (1718.5 MHz), and the emitted radiation directed toward brain phantom .The induced fields in the phantom material are measured. Set up to lift the plane carrying the mobile phone is run by a pulley whose motion is controlled by a stepper motor. The platform is made to move at a pre-determined rate of 2 degrees per min limited up to 20 degrees. The measured data for induced fields in various locations are used to compute corresponding SAR values and inter comparison obtained. These data are also compared with those when the mobile phone is placed horizontally with respect to the position of the animal. The SAR data is also experimentally obtained by measuring a rise in temperature due to this mobile exposures and data compared with those obtained in the previous set. To seek a comparison with the safety criteria same set of measurements are performed in 10 g phantom material contained in a cubical box. These results are higher than those obtained with the knowledge of induced field measurements. It is concluded that SAR values are sensitive to the angular position of the moving platform and are well below the safety criteria prescribed for human exposure. The data are suggestive of having a fresh look to understand the mode of electromagnetic field -bio interaction.

  7. Neuroinflammation alters voltage-dependent conductance in striatal astrocytes.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Karpuk, Nikolay; Burkovetskaya, Maria; Kielian, Tammy

    2012-07-01

    Neuroinflammation has the capacity to alter normal central nervous system (CNS) homeostasis and function. The objective of the present study was to examine the effects of an inflammatory milieu on the electrophysiological properties of striatal astrocyte subpopulations with a mouse bacterial brain abscess model. Whole cell patch-clamp recordings were performed in striatal glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP)-green fluorescent protein (GFP)(+) astrocytes neighboring abscesses at postinfection days 3 or 7 in adult mice. Cell input conductance (G(i)) measurements spanning a membrane potential (V(m)) surrounding resting membrane potential (RMP) revealed two prevalent astrocyte subsets. A1 and A2 astrocytes were identified by negative and positive G(i) increments vs. V(m), respectively. A1 and A2 astrocytes displayed significantly different RMP, G(i), and cell membrane capacitance that were influenced by both time after bacterial exposure and astrocyte proximity to the inflammatory site. Specifically, the percentage of A1 astrocytes was decreased immediately surrounding the inflammatory lesion, whereas A2 cells were increased. These changes were particularly evident at postinfection day 7, revealing increased cell numbers with an outward current component. Furthermore, RMP was inversely modified in A1 and A2 astrocytes during neuroinflammation, and resting G(i) was increased from 21 to 30 nS in the latter. In contrast, gap junction communication was significantly decreased in all astrocyte populations associated with inflamed tissues. Collectively, these findings demonstrate the heterogeneity of striatal astrocyte populations, which experience distinct electrophysiological modifications in response to CNS inflammation.

  8. Abnormal fronto-striatal activation as a marker of threshold and subthreshold Bulimia Nervosa.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cyr, Marilyn; Yang, Xiao; Horga, Guillermo; Marsh, Rachel

    2018-04-01

    This study aimed to determine whether functional disturbances in fronto-striatal control circuits characterize adolescents with Bulimia Nervosa (BN) spectrum eating disorders regardless of clinical severity. FMRI was used to assess conflict-related brain activations during performance of a Simon task in two samples of adolescents with BN symptoms compared with healthy adolescents. The BN samples differed in the severity of their clinical presentation, illness duration and age. Multi-voxel pattern analyses (MVPAs) based on machine learning were used to determine whether patterns of fronto-striatal activation characterized adolescents with BN spectrum disorders regardless of clinical severity, and whether accurate classification of less symptomatic adolescents (subthreshold BN; SBN) could be achieved based on patterns of activation in adolescents who met DSM5 criteria for BN. MVPA classification analyses revealed that both BN and SBN adolescents could be accurately discriminated from healthy adolescents based on fronto-striatal activation. Notably, the patterns detected in more severely ill BN compared with healthy adolescents accurately discriminated less symptomatic SBN from healthy adolescents. Deficient activation of fronto-striatal circuits can characterize BN early in its course, when clinical presentations are less severe, perhaps pointing to circuit-based disturbances as useful biomarker or risk factor for the disorder, and a tool for understanding its developmental trajectory, as well as the development of early interventions. © 2018 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  9. Averaged head phantoms from magnetic resonance images of Korean children and young adults

    Science.gov (United States)

    Han, Miran; Lee, Ae-Kyoung; Choi, Hyung-Do; Jung, Yong Wook; Park, Jin Seo

    2018-02-01

    Increased use of mobile phones raises concerns about the health risks of electromagnetic radiation. Phantom heads are routinely used for radiofrequency dosimetry simulations, and the purpose of this study was to construct averaged phantom heads for children and young adults. Using magnetic resonance images (MRI), sectioned cadaver images, and a hybrid approach, we initially built template phantoms representing 6-, 9-, 12-, 15-year-old children and young adults. Our subsequent approach revised the template phantoms using 29 averaged items that were identified by averaging the MRI data from 500 children and young adults. In females, the brain size and cranium thickness peaked in the early teens and then decreased. This is contrary to what was observed in males, where brain size and cranium thicknesses either plateaued or grew continuously. The overall shape of brains was spherical in children and became ellipsoidal by adulthood. In this study, we devised a method to build averaged phantom heads by constructing surface and voxel models. The surface model could be used for phantom manipulation, whereas the voxel model could be used for compliance test of specific absorption rate (SAR) for users of mobile phones or other electronic devices.

  10. Effect of scatter and attenuation correction in ROI analysis of brain perfusion scintigraphy. Phantom experiment and clinical study in patients with unilateral cerebrovascular disease

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Bai, J. [Keio Univ., Tokyo (Japan). 21st Century Center of Excellence Program; Hashimoto, J.; Kubo, A. [Keio Univ., Tokyo (Japan). Dept. of Radiology; Ogawa, K. [Hosei Univ., Tokyo (Japan). Dept. of Electronic Informatics; Fukunaga, A.; Onozuka, S. [Keio Univ., Tokyo (Japan). Dept. of Neurosurgery

    2007-07-01

    The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of scatter and attenuation correction in region of interest (ROI) analysis of brain perfusion single-photon emission tomography (SPECT), and to assess the influence of selecting the reference area on the calculation of lesion-to-reference count ratios. Patients, methods: Data were collected from a brain phantom and ten patients with unilateral internal carotid artery stenosis. A simultaneous emission and transmission scan was performed after injecting {sup 123}I-iodoamphetamine. We reconstructed three SPECT images from common projection data: with scatter correction and nonuniform attenuation correction, with scatter correction and uniform attenuation correction, and with uniform attenuation correction applied to data without scatter correction. Regional count ratios were calculated by using four different reference areas (contralateral intact side, ipsilateral cerebellum, whole brain and hemisphere). Results: Scatter correction improved the accuracy of measuring the count ratios in the phantom experiment. It also yielded marked difference in the count ratio in the clinical study when using the cerebellum, whole brain or hemisphere as the reference. Difference between nonuniform and uniform attenuation correction was not significant in the phantom and clinical studies except when the cerebellar reference was used. Calculation of the lesion-to-normal count ratios referring the same site in the contralateral hemisphere was not dependent on the use of scatter correction or transmission scan-based attenuation correction. Conclusion: Scatter correction was indispensable for accurate measurement in most of the ROI analyses. Nonuniform attenuation correction is not necessary when using the reference area other than the cerebellum. (orig.)

  11. Effects of the modern food environment on striatal function, cognition and regulation of ingestive behavior.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Burke, Mary V; Small, Dana M

    2016-06-01

    Emerging evidence from human and animal studies suggest that consumption of palatable foods rich in fat and/or carbohydrates may produce deleterious influences on brain function independently of body weight or metabolic disease. Here we consider two mechanisms by which diet can impact striatal circuits to amplify food cue reactivity and impair inhibitory control. First, we review findings demonstrating that the energetic properties of foods regulate nucleus accumbens food cue reactivity, a demonstrated predictor of weight gain susceptibility, which is then sensitized by chronic consumption of an energy dense diet. Second, we consider evidence for diet-induced adaptations in dorsal striatal dopamine signaling that is associated with impaired inhibitory control and negative outcome learning.

  12. Brain Pharmacokinetics and the Pharmacological Effects on Striatal Neurotransmitter Levels of Pueraria lobata Isoflavonoids in Rat

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Bingxin Xiao

    2017-09-01

    Full Text Available Isoflavonoids are putatively active components of Pueraria lobata and has been demonstrated prominent neuro-protection effect against cerebrovascular disorders, hypertension or Parkinson's disease (PD. However, the molecular basis for the beneficial effect of Pueraria lobata on nervous systems has not been well revealed. The present study aims to assess striatum exposure to main active isoflavonoids and changes of striatal extracellular neurotransmitters levels in rat brain after intravenous administration of Pueraria lobata isoflavonoids extracts (PLF, to further elucidate its' substantial bases for neuro activities. Fifteen rats were divided into 3 groups (five rats in each group to receive a dose of PLF at 80 or 160 mg/kg or normal saline (vehicle, respectively. An LC-MS/MS method was employed to determine the concentrations of five main isoflavonoids and multiple neurotransmitters in microdialysate from striatal extracellular fluid (ECF of the rats. The exposed quantities of puerarin (PU, 3′-methoxypuerarin (MPU, daidzein-8-C-apiosyl-(1-6-glucoside (DAC, and 3′-hydroxypuerarin (HPU in striatum were dose-dependent. The content of daidzein (DAZ was too low to be detected in all dialysate samples through the experiment. Optimal dose PLF (80 mg/kg promoted DA metabolism and inhibited 5-HT metabolism. No obvious change in the level of GLu was determined. The concentration of GABA presented a temporary decline firstly and then a gradual uptrend followed by a further downtrend. Higher dose (160 mg/kg PLF could enhance the metabolism of both DA and 5-HT, and lower the extracellular level of GLu, without changing GABA concentrations, which might result in alleviation on excitatory toxicity under conditions, such as ischemia. The results infer that different dose of PLF should be chosen to achieve appropriate neurochemical modulation effects under conditions, such as hypertension or ischemia/stroke. These findings may significantly contribute to a

  13. Effect of scatter correction on the compartmental measurement of striatal and extrastriatal dopamine D2 receptors using [123I]epidepride SPET

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Fujita, Masahiro; Seneca, Nicholas; Innis, Robert B.; Varrone, Andrea; Kim, Kyeong Min; Watabe, Hiroshi; Iida, Hidehiro; Zoghbi, Sami S.; Tipre, Dnyanesh; Seibyl, John P.

    2004-01-01

    Prior studies with anthropomorphic phantoms and single, static in vivo brain images have demonstrated that scatter correction significantly improves the accuracy of regional quantitation of single-photon emission tomography (SPET) brain images. Since the regional distribution of activity changes following a bolus injection of a typical neuroreceptor ligand, we examined the effect of scatter correction on the compartmental modeling of serial dynamic images of striatal and extrastriatal dopamine D 2 receptors using [ 123 I]epidepride. Eight healthy human subjects [age 30±8 (range 22-46) years] participated in a study with a bolus injection of 373±12 (354-389) MBq [ 123 I]epidepride and data acquisition over a period of 14 h. A transmission scan was obtained in each study for attenuation and scatter correction. Distribution volumes were calculated by means of compartmental nonlinear least-squares analysis using metabolite-corrected arterial input function and brain data processed with scatter correction using narrow-beam geometry μ (SC) and without scatter correction using broad-beam μ (NoSC). Effects of SC were markedly different among brain regions. SC increased activities in the putamen and thalamus after 1-1.5 h while it decreased activity during the entire experiment in the temporal cortex and cerebellum. Compared with NoSC, SC significantly increased specific distribution volume in the putamen (58%, P=0.0001) and thalamus (23%, P=0.0297). Compared with NoSC, SC made regional distribution of the specific distribution volume closer to that of [ 18 F]fallypride. It is concluded that SC is required for accurate quantification of distribution volumes of receptor ligands in SPET studies. (orig.)

  14. Magnetoencephalography Phantom Comparison and Validation: Hospital Universiti Sains Malaysia (HUSM) Requisite.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Omar, Hazim; Ahmad, Alwani Liyan; Hayashi, Noburo; Idris, Zamzuri; Abdullah, Jafri Malin

    2015-12-01

    Magnetoencephalography (MEG) has been extensively used to measure small-scale neuronal brain activity. Although it is widely acknowledged as a sensitive tool for deciphering brain activity and source localisation, the accuracy of the MEG system must be critically evaluated. Typically, on-site calibration with the provided phantom (Local phantom) is used. However, this method is still questionable due to the uncertainty that may originate from the phantom itself. Ideally, the validation of MEG data measurements would require cross-site comparability. A simple method of phantom testing was used twice in addition to a measurement taken with a calibrated reference phantom (RefPhantom) obtained from Elekta Oy of Helsinki, Finland. The comparisons of two main aspects were made in terms of the dipole moment (Qpp) and the difference in the dipole distance from the origin (d) after the tests of statistically equal means and variance were confirmed. The result of Qpp measurements for the LocalPhantom and RefPhantom were 978 (SD24) nAm and 988 (SD32) nAm, respectively, and were still optimally within the accepted range of 900 to 1100 nAm. Moreover, the shifted d results for the LocalPhantom and RefPhantom were 1.84 mm (SD 0.53) and 2.14 mm (SD 0.78), respectively, and these values were below the maximum acceptance range of within 5.0 mm of the nominal dipole location. The Local phantom seems to outperform the reference phantom as indicated by the small standard error of the former (SE 0.094) compared with the latter (SE 0.138). The result indicated that HUSM MEG system was in excellent working condition in terms of the dipole magnitude and localisation measurements as these values passed the acceptance limits criteria of the phantom test.

  15. Synthesis and binding to striatal membranes of non carrier added I-123 labeled 4'-iodococaine

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Metwally, S.A.M.; Gatley, S.J.; Wolf, A.P.; Yu, D.-W.

    1992-01-01

    An 123 I labeled cocaine analog, 4'-[ 123 I]iodococaine, has been prepared by oxidative destannylation of the tributyltin analog and shown to interact with cocaine binding sites in rat brain striatal membranes. It may thus be a suitable SPECT radiotracer for studies of the dopamine reuptake site in neurodegenerative diseases. (Author)

  16. Recruitment of prefrontal-striatal circuit in response to skilled motor challenge.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Guo, Yumei; Wang, Zhuo; Prathap, Sandhya; Holschneider, Daniel P

    2017-12-13

    A variety of physical fitness regimens have been shown to improve cognition, including executive function, yet our understanding of which parameters of motor training are important in optimizing outcomes remains limited. We used functional brain mapping to compare the ability of two motor challenges to acutely recruit the prefrontal-striatal circuit. The two motor tasks - walking in a complex running wheel with irregularly spaced rungs or walking in a running wheel with a smooth internal surface - differed only in the extent of skill required for their execution. Cerebral perfusion was mapped in rats by intravenous injection of [C]-iodoantipyrine during walking in either a motorized complex wheel or in a simple wheel. Regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF) was quantified by whole-brain autoradiography and analyzed in three-dimensional reconstructed brains by statistical parametric mapping and seed-based functional connectivity. Skilled or simple walking compared with rest, increased rCBF in regions of the motor circuit, somatosensory and visual cortex, as well as the hippocampus. Significantly greater rCBF increases were noted during skilled walking than for simple walking. Skilled walking, unlike simple walking or the resting condition, was associated with a significant positive functional connectivity in the prefrontal-striatal circuit (prelimbic cortex-dorsomedial striatum) and greater negative functional connectivity in the prefrontal-hippocampal circuit. Our findings suggest that the level of skill of a motor training task determines the extent of functional recruitment of the prefrontal-corticostriatal circuit, with implications for a new approach in neurorehabilitation that uses circuit-specific neuroplasticity to improve motor and cognitive functions.

  17. Impaired striatal Akt signaling disrupts dopamine homeostasis and increases feeding.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Nicole Speed

    Full Text Available The prevalence of obesity has increased dramatically worldwide. The obesity epidemic begs for novel concepts and therapeutic targets that cohesively address "food-abuse" disorders. We demonstrate a molecular link between impairment of a central kinase (Akt involved in insulin signaling induced by exposure to a high-fat (HF diet and dysregulation of higher order circuitry involved in feeding. Dopamine (DA rich brain structures, such as striatum, provide motivation stimuli for feeding. In these central circuitries, DA dysfunction is posited to contribute to obesity pathogenesis. We identified a mechanistic link between metabolic dysregulation and the maladaptive behaviors that potentiate weight gain. Insulin, a hormone in the periphery, also acts centrally to regulate both homeostatic and reward-based HF feeding. It regulates DA homeostasis, in part, by controlling a key element in DA clearance, the DA transporter (DAT. Upon HF feeding, nigro-striatal neurons rapidly develop insulin signaling deficiencies, causing increased HF calorie intake.We show that consumption of fat-rich food impairs striatal activation of the insulin-activated signaling kinase, Akt. HF-induced Akt impairment, in turn, reduces DAT cell surface expression and function, thereby decreasing DA homeostasis and amphetamine (AMPH-induced DA efflux. In addition, HF-mediated dysregulation of Akt signaling impairs DA-related behaviors such as (AMPH-induced locomotion and increased caloric intake. We restored nigro-striatal Akt phosphorylation using recombinant viral vector expression technology. We observed a rescue of DAT expression in HF fed rats, which was associated with a return of locomotor responses to AMPH and normalization of HF diet-induced hyperphagia.Acquired disruption of brain insulin action may confer risk for and/or underlie "food-abuse" disorders and the recalcitrance of obesity. This molecular model, thus, explains how even short-term exposure to "the fast food

  18. Postural & striatal deformities in Parkinson`s disease: Are these rare?

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Sanjay Pandey

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available Parkinson`s disease (PD is the most common neurodegenerative disease and is characterized by tremor, rigidity and akinesia. Diagnosis is clinical in the majority of the patients. Patients with PD may have stooped posture but some of them develop different types of postural and striatal deformities. Usually these deformities are more common in atypical parkinsonian disorders such as progressive supranuclear palsy and multisystem atrophy. But in many studies it has been highlighted that these may also be present in approximately one third of PD patients leading to severe disability. These include antecollis or dropped head, camptocormia, p0 isa syndrome, scoliosis, striatal hands and striatal toes. The pathogenesis of these deformities is a complex combination of central and peripheral influences such as rigidity, dystonia and degenerative skeletal changes. Duration of parkinsonism symptoms is an important risk factor and in majority of the patients these deformities are seen in advanced statge of the disease. The patients with such symptoms may initially respond to dopaminergic medications but if not intervened they may become fixed and difficult to treat. Pain and restriction of movement are most common clinical manifestations and these may mimick symptoms of musculoskeletal disorders like rheumatoid arthritis. Early diagnosis is important as the patients may respond to adjustment in dopaminergic medications. Recent advances such as deep brain stimulation (DBS and ultrasound guided botulinum toxin injection are helpful in management of these deformities in patients with PD.

  19. In vivo evaluation of striatal dopamine reuptake sites using 11C-nomifensine and positron emission tomography

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Aquilonius, S.-M.; Bergstroem, K.; Eckernaes, S.-Aa.; Leenders, K.L.; Hartvig, P.; Lundquist, H.; Antoni, G.; Gee, A.; Rimland, A.; Uhlin, J.; Langstroem, B.

    1987-01-01

    In vitro nomifensine demonstrates high affinity and specificity for dopamine reuptake sites in the brain. In the present study 11 C-nomifensine was administered i.v. in trace amounts (10-50 μg) to ketamine anaesthetized Rhesus monkeys (6-10 kg b.w.) and the timecourse of radioactivity within different brain regions was measured by positron emission tomography (PET). Six base-line experiments lasting for 60-80 min were performed. The procedure was repeated after pretreatment with nomifensine (2-6 mg/kg i.v.), another reuptake inhibitor, mazindol (0.3 mg/kg i.v.), desipramine (0.5 mg/kg i.v.) or spiperone (0.3 mg/kg i.v.) before the administration of a second 11 C-nomifensine dose. The highest radioactivity uptake was found in the dopamine innervated striatum and the lowest in a region containing the cerebellum, known to be almost devoid of dopaminergic neurons. The difference between striatal and cerebellar uptake of 11 C-nomifensine derived radioactivity was markedly reduced after nomifensine and mazindol but not after desipramine and spiperone. These results indicate that in vivo the striatal uptake of 11 C-nomifensine, as measured with PET, involves specific binding with the dopamine reuptake sites. In the first human applications of 11 C-nomifensine and PET in a healthy volunteer, the regional uptake of radioactivity was similar to that in base-line experiments with Rhesus monkeys. In the healthy subject the striatal/cerebellar ratio was 1.6, 50 min after the injection of 11 C-nomifensine. In a hemi-parkinsonian patient this ratio was 1.1 contralaterally and 1.3 ipsilaterally to the affected side. 11 C-nomifensine and PET seems to be an auspicious method to measure the striatal dopaminergic nerve terminals of man in vivo. (author)

  20. Passive multi-frequency brain imaging and hyperthermia irradiation apparatus: the use of dielectric matching materials in phantom experiments

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Gouzouasis, Ioannis; Karathanasis, Konstantinos; Karanasiou, Irene; Uzunoglu, Nikolaos

    2009-01-01

    In this paper a hybrid system able to provide focused microwave radiometry and deep brain hyperthermia is experimentally tested. The system's main module is an ellipsoidal conductive wall cavity which acts as a beam former, focusing the electromagnetic energy on the medium of interest. The system's microwave radiometry component has extensively been studied theoretically and experimentally in the past few years with promising results. In this work, further investigation concerning the improvement of the hybrid system's focusing properties is conducted. Specifically, microwave radiometry and hyperthermia experiments are performed using water phantoms surrounded by dielectric layers used as matching material to enhance detection/penetration depth and spatial resolution. The results showed that the dielectric material reduces the reflected electromagnetic energy on the air–phantom interface, resulting in improved temperature resolution and higher detection or penetration of the energy when microwave radiometry and hyperthermia are applied respectively

  1. A simple algorithm for subregional striatal uptake analysis with partial volume correction in dopaminergic PET imaging

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lue Kunhan; Lin Hsinhon; Chuang Kehshih; Kao Chihhao, K.; Hsieh Hungjen; Liu Shuhsin

    2014-01-01

    In positron emission tomography (PET) of the dopaminergic system, quantitative measurements of nigrostriatal dopamine function are useful for differential diagnosis. A subregional analysis of striatal uptake enables the diagnostic performance to be more powerful. However, the partial volume effect (PVE) induces an underestimation of the true radioactivity concentration in small structures. This work proposes a simple algorithm for subregional analysis of striatal uptake with partial volume correction (PVC) in dopaminergic PET imaging. The PVC algorithm analyzes the separate striatal subregions and takes into account the PVE based on the recovery coefficient (RC). The RC is defined as the ratio of the PVE-uncorrected to PVE-corrected radioactivity concentration, and is derived from a combination of the traditional volume of interest (VOI) analysis and the large VOI technique. The clinical studies, comprising 11 patients with Parkinson's disease (PD) and 6 healthy subjects, were used to assess the impact of PVC on the quantitative measurements. Simulations on a numerical phantom that mimicked realistic healthy and neurodegenerative situations were used to evaluate the performance of the proposed PVC algorithm. In both the clinical and the simulation studies, the striatal-to-occipital ratio (SOR) values for the entire striatum and its subregions were calculated with and without PVC. In the clinical studies, the SOR values in each structure (caudate, anterior putamen, posterior putamen, putamen, and striatum) were significantly higher by using PVC in contrast to those without. Among the PD patients, the SOR values in each structure and quantitative disease severity ratings were shown to be significantly related only when PVC was used. For the simulation studies, the average absolute percentage error of the SOR estimates before and after PVC were 22.74% and 1.54% in the healthy situation, respectively; those in the neurodegenerative situation were 20.69% and 2

  2. Parsing Heterogeneous Striatal Activity

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kae Nakamura

    2017-05-01

    Full Text Available The striatum is an input channel of the basal ganglia and is well known to be involved in reward-based decision making and learning. At the macroscopic level, the striatum has been postulated to contain parallel functional modules, each of which includes neurons that perform similar computations to support selection of appropriate actions for different task contexts. At the single-neuron level, however, recent studies in monkeys and rodents have revealed heterogeneity in neuronal activity even within restricted modules of the striatum. Looking for generality in the complex striatal activity patterns, here we briefly survey several types of striatal activity, focusing on their usefulness for mediating behaviors. In particular, we focus on two types of behavioral tasks: reward-based tasks that use salient sensory cues and manipulate outcomes associated with the cues; and perceptual decision tasks that manipulate the quality of noisy sensory cues and associate all correct decisions with the same outcome. Guided by previous insights on the modular organization and general selection-related functions of the basal ganglia, we relate striatal activity patterns on these tasks to two types of computations: implementation of selection and evaluation. We suggest that a parsing with the selection/evaluation categories encourages a focus on the functional commonalities revealed by studies with different animal models and behavioral tasks, instead of a focus on aspects of striatal activity that may be specific to a particular task setting. We then highlight several questions in the selection-evaluation framework for future explorations.

  3. D2 receptor genotype and striatal dopamine signaling predict motor cortical activity and behavior in humans.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fazio, Leonardo; Blasi, Giuseppe; Taurisano, Paolo; Papazacharias, Apostolos; Romano, Raffaella; Gelao, Barbara; Ursini, Gianluca; Quarto, Tiziana; Lo Bianco, Luciana; Di Giorgio, Annabella; Mancini, Marina; Popolizio, Teresa; Rubini, Giuseppe; Bertolino, Alessandro

    2011-02-14

    Pre-synaptic D2 receptors regulate striatal dopamine release and DAT activity, key factors for modulation of motor pathways. A functional SNP of DRD2 (rs1076560 G>T) is associated with alternative splicing such that the relative expression of D2S (mainly pre-synaptic) vs. D2L (mainly post-synaptic) receptor isoforms is decreased in subjects with the T allele with a putative increase of striatal dopamine levels. To evaluate how DRD2 genotype and striatal dopamine signaling predict motor cortical activity and behavior in humans, we have investigated the association of rs1076560 with BOLD fMRI activity during a motor task. To further evaluate the relationship of this circuitry with dopamine signaling, we also explored the correlation between genotype based differences in motor brain activity and pre-synaptic striatal DAT binding measured with [(123)I] FP-CIT SPECT. Fifty healthy subjects, genotyped for DRD2 rs1076560 were studied with BOLD-fMRI at 3T while performing a visually paced motor task with their right hand; eleven of these subjects also underwent [(123)I]FP-CIT SPECT. SPM5 random-effects models were used for statistical analyses. Subjects carrying the T allele had greater BOLD responses in left basal ganglia, thalamus, supplementary motor area, and primary motor cortex, whose activity was also negatively correlated with reaction time at the task. Moreover, left striatal DAT binding and activity of left supplementary motor area were negatively correlated. The present results suggest that DRD2 genetic variation was associated with focusing of responses in the whole motor network, in which activity of predictable nodes was correlated with reaction time and with striatal pre-synaptic dopamine signaling. Our results in humans may help shed light on genetic risk for neurobiological mechanisms involved in the pathophysiology of disorders with dysregulation of striatal dopamine like Parkinson's disease. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  4. Impact of PET/CT system, reconstruction protocol, data analysis method, and repositioning on PET/CT precision: An experimental evaluation using an oncology and brain phantom.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mansor, Syahir; Pfaehler, Elisabeth; Heijtel, Dennis; Lodge, Martin A; Boellaard, Ronald; Yaqub, Maqsood

    2017-12-01

    In longitudinal oncological and brain PET/CT studies, it is important to understand the repeatability of quantitative PET metrics in order to assess change in tracer uptake. The present studies were performed in order to assess precision as function of PET/CT system, reconstruction protocol, analysis method, scan duration (or image noise), and repositioning in the field of view. Multiple (repeated) scans have been performed using a NEMA image quality (IQ) phantom and a 3D Hoffman brain phantom filled with 18 F solutions on two systems. Studies were performed with and without randomly (PET/CT, especially in the case of smaller spheres (PET metrics depends on the combination of reconstruction protocol, data analysis methods and scan duration (scan statistics). Moreover, precision was also affected by phantom repositioning but its impact depended on the data analysis method in combination with the reconstructed voxel size (tissue fraction effect). This study suggests that for oncological PET studies the use of SUV peak may be preferred over SUV max because SUV peak is less sensitive to patient repositioning/tumor sampling. © 2017 The Authors. Medical Physics published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. on behalf of American Association of Physicists in Medicine.

  5. Fronto-striatal atrophy in behavioural variant frontotemporal dementia & Alzheimer’s disease

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Maxime eBertoux

    2015-07-01

    Full Text Available Behavioural variant frontotemporal dementia (bvFTD has only recently been associated with significant striatal atrophy, whereas the striatum appears to be relatively preserved in Alzheimer’s disease (AD. Considering the critical role the striatum has in cognition and behaviour, striatal degeneration, together with frontal atrophy, could be responsible of some characteristic symptoms in bvFTD and emerges therefore as promising novel diagnostic biomarker to distinguish bvFTD and AD. Previous studies have, however, only taken either cortical or striatal atrophy into account when comparing the two diseases. In this study, we establish for the first time a profile of fronto-striatal atrophy in 23 bvFTD and 29 AD patients at presentation, based on the structural connectivity of striatal and cortical regions. Patients are compared to 50 healthy controls by using a novel probabilistic connectivity atlas, which defines striatal regions by their cortical white matter connectivity, allowing us to explore the degeneration of the frontal and striatal regions that are functionally linked. Comparisons with controls revealed that bvFTD showed substantial fronto-striatal atrophy affecting the ventral as well as anterior and posterior dorso-lateral prefrontal cortices and the related striatal subregions. By contrast, AD showed few fronto-striatal atrophy, despite having significant posterior dorso-lateral prefrontal degeneration. Direct comparison between bvFTD and AD revealed significantly more atrophy in the ventral striatal-ventromedial prefrontal cortex regions in bvFTD. Consequently, deficits in ventral fronto-striatal regions emerge as promising novel and efficient diagnosis biomarker for bvFTD. Future investigations into the contributions of these fronto-striatal loops on bvFTD symptomology are needed to develop simple diagnostic and disease tracking algorithms.

  6. Effect of scatter correction on the compartmental measurement of striatal and extrastriatal dopamine D{sub 2} receptors using [{sup 123}I]epidepride SPET

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Fujita, Masahiro; Seneca, Nicholas; Innis, Robert B. [Department of Psychiatry, Yale University School of Medicine and VA Connecticut Healthcare System, West Haven, CT (United States); Molecular Imaging Branch, National Institute of Mental Health, Bethesda, MD (United States); Varrone, Andrea [Department of Psychiatry, Yale University School of Medicine and VA Connecticut Healthcare System, West Haven, CT (United States); Biostructure and Bioimaging Institute, National Research Council, Napoli (Italy); Kim, Kyeong Min; Watabe, Hiroshi; Iida, Hidehiro [Department of Investigative Radiology, National Cardiovascular Center Research Institute, Osaka (Japan); Zoghbi, Sami S. [Department of Psychiatry, Yale University School of Medicine and VA Connecticut Healthcare System, West Haven, CT (United States); Molecular Imaging Branch, National Institute of Mental Health, Bethesda, MD (United States); Department of Radiology, Yale University School of Medicine and VA Connecticut Healthcare System, West Haven, CT (United States); Tipre, Dnyanesh [Molecular Imaging Branch, National Institute of Mental Health, Bethesda, MD (United States); Seibyl, John P. [Institute for Neurodegenerative Disorders, New Haven, CT (United States)

    2004-05-01

    Prior studies with anthropomorphic phantoms and single, static in vivo brain images have demonstrated that scatter correction significantly improves the accuracy of regional quantitation of single-photon emission tomography (SPET) brain images. Since the regional distribution of activity changes following a bolus injection of a typical neuroreceptor ligand, we examined the effect of scatter correction on the compartmental modeling of serial dynamic images of striatal and extrastriatal dopamine D{sub 2} receptors using [{sup 123}I]epidepride. Eight healthy human subjects [age 30{+-}8 (range 22-46) years] participated in a study with a bolus injection of 373{+-}12 (354-389) MBq [{sup 123}I]epidepride and data acquisition over a period of 14 h. A transmission scan was obtained in each study for attenuation and scatter correction. Distribution volumes were calculated by means of compartmental nonlinear least-squares analysis using metabolite-corrected arterial input function and brain data processed with scatter correction using narrow-beam geometry {mu} (SC) and without scatter correction using broad-beam {mu} (NoSC). Effects of SC were markedly different among brain regions. SC increased activities in the putamen and thalamus after 1-1.5 h while it decreased activity during the entire experiment in the temporal cortex and cerebellum. Compared with NoSC, SC significantly increased specific distribution volume in the putamen (58%, P=0.0001) and thalamus (23%, P=0.0297). Compared with NoSC, SC made regional distribution of the specific distribution volume closer to that of [{sup 18}F]fallypride. It is concluded that SC is required for accurate quantification of distribution volumes of receptor ligands in SPET studies. (orig.)

  7. Effect of Exercise Training on Striatal Dopamine D2/D3 Receptors in Methamphetamine Users during Behavioral Treatment.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Robertson, Chelsea L; Ishibashi, Kenji; Chudzynski, Joy; Mooney, Larissa J; Rawson, Richard A; Dolezal, Brett A; Cooper, Christopher B; Brown, Amira K; Mandelkern, Mark A; London, Edythe D

    2016-05-01

    Methamphetamine use disorder is associated with striatal dopaminergic deficits that have been linked to poor treatment outcomes, identifying these deficits as an important therapeutic target. Exercise attenuates methamphetamine-induced neurochemical damage in the rat brain, and a preliminary observation suggests that exercise increases striatal D2/D3 receptor availability (measured as nondisplaceable binding potential (BPND)) in patients with Parkinson's disease. The goal of this study was to evaluate whether adding an exercise training program to an inpatient behavioral intervention for methamphetamine use disorder reverses deficits in striatal D2/D3 receptors. Participants were adult men and women who met DSM-IV criteria for methamphetamine dependence and were enrolled in a residential facility, where they maintained abstinence from illicit drugs of abuse and received behavioral therapy for their addiction. They were randomized to a group that received 1 h supervised exercise training (n=10) or one that received equal-time health education training (n=9), 3 days/week for 8 weeks. They came to an academic research center for positron emission tomography (PET) using [(18)F]fallypride to determine the effects of the 8-week interventions on striatal D2/D3 receptor BPND. At baseline, striatal D2/D3 BPND did not differ between groups. However, after 8 weeks, participants in the exercise group displayed a significant increase in striatal D2/D3 BPND, whereas those in the education group did not. There were no changes in D2/D3 BPND in extrastriatal regions in either group. These findings suggest that structured exercise training can ameliorate striatal D2/D3 receptor deficits in methamphetamine users, and warrants further evaluation as an adjunctive treatment for stimulant dependence.

  8. Synthesis and binding to striatal membranes of non carrier added I-123 labeled 4'-iodococaine

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Metwally, S.A.M.; Gatley, S.J.; Wolf, A.P.; Yu, D.-W. (Brookhaven National Lab., Upton, NY (United States))

    1992-03-01

    An {sup 123}I labeled cocaine analog, 4'-({sup 123}I)iodococaine, has been prepared by oxidative destannylation of the tributyltin analog and shown to interact with cocaine binding sites in rat brain striatal membranes. It may thus be a suitable SPECT radiotracer for studies of the dopamine reuptake site in neurodegenerative diseases. (Author).

  9. Five-band microwave radiometer system for noninvasive brain temperature measurement in newborn babies: Phantom experiment and confidence interval

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sugiura, T.; Hirata, H.; Hand, J. W.; van Leeuwen, J. M. J.; Mizushina, S.

    2011-10-01

    Clinical trials of hypothermic brain treatment for newborn babies are currently hindered by the difficulty in measuring deep brain temperatures. As one of the possible methods for noninvasive and continuous temperature monitoring that is completely passive and inherently safe is passive microwave radiometry (MWR). We have developed a five-band microwave radiometer system with a single dual-polarized, rectangular waveguide antenna operating within the 1-4 GHz range and a method for retrieving the temperature profile from five radiometric brightness temperatures. This paper addresses (1) the temperature calibration for five microwave receivers, (2) the measurement experiment using a phantom model that mimics the temperature profile in a newborn baby, and (3) the feasibility for noninvasive monitoring of deep brain temperatures. Temperature resolutions were 0.103, 0.129, 0.138, 0.105 and 0.111 K for 1.2, 1.65, 2.3, 3.0 and 3.6 GHz receivers, respectively. The precision of temperature estimation (2σ confidence interval) was about 0.7°C at a 5-cm depth from the phantom surface. Accuracy, which is the difference between the estimated temperature using this system and the measured temperature by a thermocouple at a depth of 5 cm, was about 2°C. The current result is not satisfactory for clinical application because the clinical requirement for accuracy must be better than 1°C for both precision and accuracy at a depth of 5 cm. Since a couple of possible causes for this inaccuracy have been identified, we believe that the system can take a step closer to the clinical application of MWR for hypothermic rescue treatment.

  10. MLE [Maximum Likelihood Estimator] reconstruction of a brain phantom using a Monte Carlo transition matrix and a statistical stopping rule

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Veklerov, E.; Llacer, J.; Hoffman, E.J.

    1987-10-01

    In order to study properties of the Maximum Likelihood Estimator (MLE) algorithm for image reconstruction in Positron Emission Tomographyy (PET), the algorithm is applied to data obtained by the ECAT-III tomograph from a brain phantom. The procedure for subtracting accidental coincidences from the data stream generated by this physical phantom is such that he resultant data are not Poisson distributed. This makes the present investigation different from other investigations based on computer-simulated phantoms. It is shown that the MLE algorithm is robust enough to yield comparatively good images, especially when the phantom is in the periphery of the field of view, even though the underlying assumption of the algorithm is violated. Two transition matrices are utilized. The first uses geometric considerations only. The second is derived by a Monte Carlo simulation which takes into account Compton scattering in the detectors, positron range, etc. in the detectors. It is demonstrated that the images obtained from the Monte Carlo matrix are superior in some specific ways. A stopping rule derived earlier and allowing the user to stop the iterative process before the images begin to deteriorate is tested. Since the rule is based on the Poisson assumption, it does not work well with the presently available data, although it is successful wit computer-simulated Poisson data

  11. Striatal hypometabolism in premanifest and manifest Huntington's disease patients

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Lopez-Mora, Diego Alfonso; Camacho, Valle; Fernandez, Alejandro; Montes, Alberto; Carrio, Ignasi [Autonomous University of Barcelona, Nuclear Medicine Department, Hospital Sant Pau, Barcelona (Spain); Perez-Perez, Jesus; Martinez-Horta, Sauel; Kulisevsky, Jaime [Autonomous University of Barcelona, Movement Disorders Unit, Neurology Department, Hospital Sant Pau, Barcelona (Spain); Sampedro, Frederic [University of Barcelona, Barcelona (Spain); Lozano-Martinez, Gloria Andrea; Gomez-Anson, Beatriz [Autonomous University of Barcelona, Neuroradiology, Radiology Department, Hospital Sant Pau, Barcelona (Spain)

    2016-11-15

    To assess metabolic changes in cerebral {sup 18}F-FDG PET/CT in premanifest and manifest Huntington's disease (HD) subjects compared to a control group and to correlate {sup 18}F-FDG uptake patterns with different disease stages. Thirty-three gene-expanded carriers (Eight males; mean age: 43 y/o; CAG > 39) were prospectively included. Based on the Unified Huntington's Disease Rating Scale Total Motor Score and the Total Functional Capacity, subjects were classified as premanifest (preHD = 15) and manifest (mHD = 18). Estimated time disease-onset was calculated using the Langbehn formula, which allowed classifying preHD as far-to (preHD-A) and close-to (PreHD-B) disease-onset. Eighteen properly matched participants were included as a control group (CG). All subjects underwent brain {sup 18}F-FDG PET/CT and MRI. {sup 18}F-FDG PET/CT were initially assessed by two nuclear medicine physicians identifying qualitative metabolic changes in the striatum. Quantitative analysis was performed using SPM8 with gray matter atrophy correction using the BPM toolbox. Visual analysis showed a marked striatal hypometabolism in mHD. A normal striatal distribution of {sup 18}F-FDG uptake was observed for most of the preHD subjects. Quantitative analysis showed a significant striatal hypometabolism in mHD subjects compared to CG (p < 0.001 uncorrected, k = 50 voxels). In both preHD groups we observed a significant striatal hypometabolism with respect to CG (p < 0.001 uncorrected, k = 50 voxels). In mHD subjects we observed a significant striatal hypometabolism with respect to both preHD groups (p < 0.001 uncorrected, k = 50 voxels). {sup 18}F-FDG PET/CT might be a helpful tool to identify patterns of glucose metabolism in the striatum across the stages of HD and might be relevant in assessing the clinical status of gene-expanded HD carriers due to the fact that dysfunctional glucose metabolism begins at early preHD stages of the disease. {sup 18}F-FDG PET/CT appears as a

  12. Construction of voxel head phantom and application to BNCT dose calculation

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Lee, Choon Sik; Lee, Choon Ik; Lee, Jai Ki [Hanyang Univ., Seoul (Korea, Republic of)

    2001-06-15

    Voxel head phantom for overcoming the limitation of mathematical phantom in depicting anatomical details was constructed and example dose calculation for BNCT was performed. The repeated structure algorithm of the general purpose Monte Carlo code, MCNP4B was applied for voxel Monte Carlo calculation. Simple binary voxel phantom and combinatorial geometry phantom composed of two materials were constructed for validating the voxel Monte Carlo calculation system. The tomographic images of VHP man provided by NLM(National Library of Medicine) were segmented and indexed to construct voxel head phantom. Comparison od doses for broad parallel gamma and neutron beams in AP and PA directions showed decrease of brain dose due to the attenuation of neutron in eye balls in case of voxel head phantom. The spherical tumor volume with diameter, 5cm was defined in the center of brain for BNCT dose calculation in which accurate 3 dimensional dose calculation is essential. As a result of BNCT dose calculation for downward neutron beam of 10keV and 40keV, the tumor dose is about doubled when boron concentration ratio between the tumor to the normal tissue is 30{mu}g/g to 3 {mu}g/g. This study established the voxel Monte Carlo calculation system and suggested the feasibility of precise dose calculation in therapeutic radiology.

  13. Striatal dopamine D1 and D2 receptors: widespread influences on methamphetamine-induced dopamine and serotonin neurotoxicity.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gross, Noah B; Duncker, Patrick C; Marshall, John F

    2011-11-01

    Methamphetamine (mAMPH) is an addictive psychostimulant drug that releases monoamines through nonexocytotic mechanisms. In animals, binge mAMPH dosing regimens deplete markers for monoamine nerve terminals, for example, dopamine and serotonin transporters (DAT and SERT), in striatum and cerebral cortex. Although the precise mechanism of mAMPH-induced damage to monoaminergic nerve terminals is uncertain, both dopamine D1 and D2 receptors are known to be important. Systemic administration of dopamine D1 or D2 receptor antagonists to rodents prevents mAMPH-induced damage to striatal dopamine nerve terminals. Because these studies employed systemic antagonist administration, the specific brain regions involved remain to be elucidated. The present study examined the contribution of dopamine D1 and D2 receptors in striatum to mAMPH-induced DAT and SERT neurotoxicities. In this experiment, either the dopamine D1 antagonist, SCH23390, or the dopamine D2 receptor antagonist, sulpiride, was intrastriatally infused during a binge mAMPH regimen. Striatal DAT and cortical, hippocampal, and amygdalar SERT were assessed as markers of mAMPH-induced neurotoxicity 1 week following binge mAMPH administration. Blockade of striatal dopamine D1 or D2 receptors during an otherwise neurotoxic binge mAMPH regimen produced widespread protection against mAMPH-induced striatal DAT loss and cortical, hippocampal, and amygdalar SERT loss. This study demonstrates that (1) dopamine D1 and D2 receptors in striatum, like nigral D1 receptors, are needed for mAMPH-induced striatal DAT reductions, (2) these same receptors are needed for mAMPH-induced SERT loss, and (3) these widespread influences of striatal dopamine receptor antagonists are likely attributable to circuits connecting basal ganglia to thalamus and cortex. Copyright © 2011 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

  14. Global actions of nicotine on the striatal microcircuit.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Plata, Víctor; Duhne, Mariana; Pérez-Ortega, Jesús; Hernández-Martinez, Ricardo; Rueda-Orozco, Pavel; Galarraga, Elvira; Drucker-Colín, René; Bargas, José

    2013-01-01

    what is the predominant action induced by the activation of cholinergic-nicotinic receptors (nAChrs) in the striatal network given that nAChrs are expressed by several elements of the circuit: cortical terminals, dopamine terminals, and various striatal GABAergic interneurons. To answer this question some type of multicellular recording has to be used without losing single cell resolution. Here, we used calcium imaging and nicotine. It is known that in the presence of low micromolar N-Methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA), the striatal microcircuit exhibits neuronal activity consisting in the spontaneous synchronization of different neuron pools that interchange their activity following determined sequences. The striatal circuit also exhibits profuse spontaneous activity in pathological states (without NMDA) such as dopamine depletion. However, in this case, most pathological activity is mostly generated by the same neuron pool. Here, we show that both types of activity are inhibited during the application of nicotine. Nicotine actions were blocked by mecamylamine, a non-specific antagonist of nAChrs. Interestingly, inhibitory actions of nicotine were also blocked by the GABAA-receptor antagonist bicuculline, in which case, the actions of nicotine on the circuit became excitatory and facilitated neuronal synchronization. We conclude that the predominant action of nicotine in the striatal microcircuit is indirect, via the activation of networks of inhibitory interneurons. This action inhibits striatal pathological activity in early Parkinsonian animals almost as potently as L-DOPA.

  15. Acute effect of intravenously applied alcohol in the human striatal and extrastriatal D2 /D3 dopamine system.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pfeifer, Philippe; Tüscher, Oliver; Buchholz, Hans Georg; Gründer, Gerhard; Vernaleken, Ingo; Paulzen, Michael; Zimmermann, Ulrich S; Maus, Stephan; Lieb, Klaus; Eggermann, Thomas; Fehr, Christoph; Schreckenberger, Mathias

    2017-09-01

    Investigations on the acute effects of alcohol in the human mesolimbic dopamine D 2 /D 3 receptor system have yielded conflicting results. With respect to the effects of alcohol on extrastriatal D 2 /D 3 dopamine receptors no investigations have been reported yet. Therefore we applied PET imaging using the postsynaptic dopamine D 2 /D 3 receptor ligand [ 18 F]fallypride addressing the question, whether intravenously applied alcohol stimulates the extrastriatal and striatal dopamine system. We measured subjective effects of alcohol and made correlation analyses with the striatal and extrastriatal D 2 /D 3 binding potential. Twenty-four healthy male μ-opioid receptor (OPRM1)118G allele carriers underwent a standardized intravenous and placebo alcohol administration. The subjective effects of alcohol were measured with a visual analogue scale. For the evaluation of the dopamine response we calculated the binding potential (BP ND ) by using the simplified reference tissue model (SRTM). In addition, we calculated distribution volumes (target and reference regions) in 10 subjects for which metabolite corrected arterial samples were available. In the alcohol condition no significant dopamine response in terms of a reduction of BP ND was observed in striatal and extrastriatal brain regions. We found a positive correlation for 'liking' alcohol and the BP ND in extrastriatal brain regions (Inferior frontal cortex (IFC) (r = 0.533, p = 0.007), orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) (r = 0.416, p = 0.043) and prefrontal cortex (PFC) (r = 0.625, p = 0.001)). The acute alcohol effects on the D 2 /D 3 dopamine receptor binding potential of the striatal and extrastriatal system in our experiment were insignificant. A positive correlation of the subjective effect of 'liking' alcohol with cortical D 2 /D 3 receptors may hint at an addiction relevant trait. © 2016 Society for the Study of Addiction.

  16. WE-EF-303-06: Feasibility of PET Image-Based On-Line Proton Beam-Range Verification with Simulated Uniform Phantom and Human Brain Studies

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lou, K; Sun, X; Zhu, X; Grosshans, D; Clark, J; Shao, Y

    2015-01-01

    Purpose: To study the feasibility of clinical on-line proton beam range verification with PET imaging Methods: We simulated a 179.2-MeV proton beam with 5-mm diameter irradiating a PMMA phantom of human brain size, which was then imaged by a brain PET with 300*300*100-mm 3 FOV and different system sensitivities and spatial resolutions. We calculated the mean and standard deviation of positron activity range (AR) from reconstructed PET images, with respect to different data acquisition times (from 5 sec to 300 sec with 5-sec step). We also developed a technique, “Smoothed Maximum Value (SMV)”, to improve AR measurement under a given dose. Furthermore, we simulated a human brain irradiated by a 110-MeV proton beam of 50-mm diameter with 0.3-Gy dose at Bragg peak and imaged by the above PET system with 40% system sensitivity at the center of FOV and 1.7-mm spatial resolution. Results: MC Simulations on the PMMA phantom showed that, regardless of PET system sensitivities and spatial resolutions, the accuracy and precision of AR were proportional to the reciprocal of the square root of image count if image smoothing was not applied. With image smoothing or SMV method, the accuracy and precision could be substantially improved. For a cylindrical PMMA phantom (200 mm diameter and 290 mm long), the accuracy and precision of AR measurement could reach 1.0 and 1.7 mm, with 100-sec data acquired by the brain PET. The study with a human brain showed it was feasible to achieve sub-millimeter accuracy and precision of AR measurement with acquisition time within 60 sec. Conclusion: This study established the relationship between count statistics and the accuracy and precision of activity-range verification. It showed the feasibility of clinical on-line BR verification with high-performance PET systems and improved AR measurement techniques. Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas grant RP120326, NIH grant R21CA187717, The Cancer Center Support (Core) Grant CA016672

  17. The effects of donor stage on the survival and function of embryonic striatal grafts in the adult rat brain; II. Correlation between positron emission tomography and reaching behaviour

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Dunnett, S.B.; Brooks, D.J.; Ashworth, S.; Opacka-Juffrey, J.; Myers, R.; Hume, S.P.; Torres, E.M.; Fricker, R.A.

    1997-01-01

    increased proportion of striatal-like tissue within the grafts and an increase in functional D 1 and D 2 dopamine receptors measured by positron emission tomography, i.e. a more extensive integration of the graft with the host brain. (Copyright (c) 1997 Elsevier Science B.V., Amsterdam. All rights reserved.)

  18. Brain reactivity to alcohol and cannabis marketing during sobriety and intoxication.

    Science.gov (United States)

    de Sousa Fernandes Perna, Elizabeth B; Theunissen, Eef L; Kuypers, Kim P C; Evers, Elisabeth A; Stiers, Peter; Toennes, Stefan W; Witteman, Jurriaan; van Dalen, Wim; Ramaekers, Johannes G

    2017-05-01

    Drugs of abuse stimulate striatal dopamine release and activate reward pathways. This study examined the impact of alcohol and cannabis marketing on the reward circuit in alcohol and cannabis users while sober and intoxicated. It was predicted that alcohol and cannabis marketing would increase striatal activation when sober and that reward sensitivity would be less during alcohol and cannabis intoxication. Heavy alcohol (n = 20) and regular cannabis users (n = 21) participated in a mixed factorial study involving administration of alcohol and placebo in the alcohol group and cannabis and placebo in the cannabis group. Non-drug users (n = 20) served as between group reference. Brain activation after exposure to alcohol and cannabis marketing movies was measured using functional magnetic resonance imaging and compared between groups while sober and compared with placebo while intoxicated. Implicit alcohol and cannabis cognitions were assessed by means of a single-category implicit association test. Alcohol and cannabis marketing significantly increased striatal BOLD activation across all groups while sober. Striatal activation however decreased during intoxication with alcohol and cannabis. Implicit associations with cannabis marketing cues were significantly more positive in alcohol and cannabis users as compared with non-drug using controls. Public advertising of alcohol or cannabis use elicits striatal activation in the brain's reward circuit. Reduction of marketing would reduce brain exposure to reward cues that motivate substance use. Conversely, elevated dopamine levels protect against the reinforcing potential of marketing. © 2016 Society for the Study of Addiction.

  19. Elevated Striatal Dopamine Function in Immigrants and Their Children: A Risk Mechanism for Psychosis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Egerton, Alice; Howes, Oliver D; Houle, Sylvain; McKenzie, Kwame; Valmaggia, Lucia R; Bagby, Michael R; Tseng, Huai-Hsuan; Bloomfield, Michael A P; Kenk, Miran; Bhattacharyya, Sagnik; Suridjan, Ivonne; Chaddock, Chistopher A; Winton-Brown, Toby T; Allen, Paul; Rusjan, Pablo; Remington, Gary; Meyer-Lindenberg, Andreas; McGuire, Philip K; Mizrahi, Romina

    2017-03-01

    Migration is a major risk factor for schizophrenia but the neurochemical processes involved are unknown. One candidate mechanism is through elevations in striatal dopamine synthesis and release. The objective of this research was to determine whether striatal dopamine function is elevated in immigrants compared to nonimmigrants and the relationship with psychosis. Two complementary case-control studies of in vivo dopamine function (stress-induced dopamine release and dopamine synthesis capacity) in immigrants compared to nonimmigrants were performed in Canada and the United Kingdom. The Canadian dopamine release study included 25 immigrant and 31 nonmigrant Canadians. These groups included 23 clinical high risk (CHR) subjects, 9 antipsychotic naïve patients with schizophrenia, and 24 healthy volunteers. The UK dopamine synthesis study included 32 immigrants and 44 nonimmigrant British. These groups included 50 CHR subjects and 26 healthy volunteers. Both striatal stress-induced dopamine release and dopamine synthesis capacity were significantly elevated in immigrants compared to nonimmigrants, independent of clinical status. These data provide the first evidence that the effect of migration on the risk of developing psychosis may be mediated by an elevation in brain dopamine function. © The Author 2017. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Maryland Psychiatric Research Center.

  20. Reward inference by primate prefrontal and striatal neurons.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pan, Xiaochuan; Fan, Hongwei; Sawa, Kosuke; Tsuda, Ichiro; Tsukada, Minoru; Sakagami, Masamichi

    2014-01-22

    The brain contains multiple yet distinct systems involved in reward prediction. To understand the nature of these processes, we recorded single-unit activity from the lateral prefrontal cortex (LPFC) and the striatum in monkeys performing a reward inference task using an asymmetric reward schedule. We found that neurons both in the LPFC and in the striatum predicted reward values for stimuli that had been previously well experienced with set reward quantities in the asymmetric reward task. Importantly, these LPFC neurons could predict the reward value of a stimulus using transitive inference even when the monkeys had not yet learned the stimulus-reward association directly; whereas these striatal neurons did not show such an ability. Nevertheless, because there were two set amounts of reward (large and small), the selected striatal neurons were able to exclusively infer the reward value (e.g., large) of one novel stimulus from a pair after directly experiencing the alternative stimulus with the other reward value (e.g., small). Our results suggest that although neurons that predict reward value for old stimuli in the LPFC could also do so for new stimuli via transitive inference, those in the striatum could only predict reward for new stimuli via exclusive inference. Moreover, the striatum showed more complex functions than was surmised previously for model-free learning.

  1. Cigarette smoking and schizophrenia independently and reversibly altered intrinsic brain activity.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Liu, Huan; Luo, Qi; Du, Wanyi; Li, Xingbao; Zhang, Zhiwei; Yu, Renqiang; Chen, Xiaolu; Meng, Huaqing; Du, Lian

    2018-01-03

    Schizophrenia patients are at high risk for cigarette smoking, but the neurobiological mechanisms of this comorbid association are relatively unknown. Long-term nicotine intake may impact brain that are independently and additively associated with schizophrenia. We investigated whether altered intrinsic brain activity (iBA) related to schizophrenia pathology is also associated with nicotine addiction. Forty-two schizophrenia patients (21 smokers and 21 nonsmokers) and 21 sex- and age-matched healthy nonsmokers underwent task-free functional MRI. Whole brain iBA was measured by the amplitude of spontaneous low frequency fluctuation. Furthermore, correlation analyses between iBA, symptom severity and nicotine addiction severity were performed. We found that prefrontal cortex, right caudate, and right postcentral gyrus were related to both disease and nicotine addiction effects. More importantly, schizophrenia smokers, compared to schizophrenia nonsmokers showed reversed iBA in the above brain regions. In addition, schizophrenia smokers, relative to nonsmokers, altered iBA in the left striatal and motor cortices. The iBA of the right caudate was negatively correlated with symptom severity. The iBA of the right postcentral gyrus negatively correlated with nicotine addiction severity. The striatal and motor cortices could potentially increase the vulnerability of smoking in schizophrenia. More importantly, smoking reversed iBA in the right striatal and prefrontal cortices, consistent with the self-medication theory in schizophrenia. Smoking altered left striatal and motor cortices activity, suggesting that the nicotine addiction effect was independent of disease. These results provide a local property of intrinsic brain activity mechanism that contributes to cigarette smoking and schizophrenia.

  2. Striatal response to reward anticipation: evidence for a systems-level intermediate phenotype for schizophrenia.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Grimm, Oliver; Heinz, Andreas; Walter, Henrik; Kirsch, Peter; Erk, Susanne; Haddad, Leila; Plichta, Michael M; Romanczuk-Seiferth, Nina; Pöhland, Lydia; Mohnke, Sebastian; Mühleisen, Thomas W; Mattheisen, Manuel; Witt, Stephanie H; Schäfer, Axel; Cichon, Sven; Nöthen, Markus; Rietschel, Marcella; Tost, Heike; Meyer-Lindenberg, Andreas

    2014-05-01

    Attenuated ventral striatal response during reward anticipation is a core feature of schizophrenia that is seen in prodromal, drug-naive, and chronic schizophrenic patients. Schizophrenia is highly heritable, raising the possibility that this phenotype is related to the genetic risk for the disorder. To examine a large sample of healthy first-degree relatives of schizophrenic patients and compare their neural responses to reward anticipation with those of carefully matched controls without a family psychiatric history. To further support the utility of this phenotype, we studied its test-retest reliability, its potential brain structural contributions, and the effects of a protective missense variant in neuregulin 1 (NRG1) linked to schizophrenia by meta-analysis (ie, rs10503929). Examination of a well-established monetary reward anticipation paradigm during functional magnetic resonance imaging at a university hospital; voxel-based morphometry; test-retest reliability analysis of striatal activations in an independent sample of 25 healthy participants scanned twice with the same task; and imaging genetics analysis of the control group. A total of 54 healthy first-degree relatives of schizophrenic patients and 80 controls matched for demographic, psychological, clinical, and task performance characteristics were studied. Blood oxygen level-dependent response during reward anticipation, analysis of intraclass correlations of functional contrasts, and associations between striatal gray matter volume and NRG1 genotype. Compared with controls, healthy first-degree relatives showed a highly significant decrease in ventral striatal activation during reward anticipation (familywise error-corrected P systems-level functional phenotype is reliable (with intraclass correlation coefficients of 0.59-0.73), independent of local gray matter volume (with no corresponding group differences and no correlation to function, and with all uncorrected P values >.05), and affected by

  3. Reduced Striatal Dopamine Transporters in People with Internet Addiction Disorder

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    Haifeng Hou

    2012-01-01

    Full Text Available In recent years, internet addiction disorder (IAD has become more prevalent worldwide and the recognition of its devastating impact on the users and society has rapidly increased. However, the neurobiological mechanism of IAD has not bee fully expressed. The present study was designed to determine if the striatal dopamine transporter (DAT levels measured by T99mc-TRODAT-1 single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT brain scans were altered in individuals with IAD. SPECT brain scans were acquired on 5 male IAD subjects and 9 healthy age-matched controls. The volume (V and weight (W of bilateral corpus striatum as well as the T99mc-TRODAT-1 uptake ratio of corpus striatum/the whole brain (Ra were calculated using mathematical models. It was displayed that DAT expression level of striatum was significantly decreased and the V, W, and Ra were greatly reduced in the individuals with IAD compared to controls. Taken together, these results suggest that IAD may cause serious damages to the brain and the neuroimaging findings further illustrate IAD is associated with dysfunctions in the dopaminergic brain systems. Our findings also support the claim that IAD may share similar neurobiological abnormalities with other addictive disorders.

  4. Global actions of nicotine on the striatal microcircuit

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    Victor E Plata

    2013-11-01

    Full Text Available The question to solve in the present work is: what is the predominant action induced by the activation of cholinergic-nicotinic receptors (nAChrs in the striatal network given that nAChrs are expressed by several elements of the circuit: cortical terminals, dopamine terminals, and various striatal GABAergic interneurons. To answer this question some type of multicellular recording has to be used without losing single cell resolution. Here, we used calcium imaging and nicotine. It is known that in the presence of low micromolar N-Methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA, the striatal microcircuit exhibits neuronal activity consisting in the spontaneous synchronization of different neuron pools that interchange their activity following determined sequences. The striatal circuit also exhibits profuse spontaneous activity in pathological states (without NMDA such as dopamine depletion. However, in this case, most pathological activity is mostly generated by the same neuron pool. Here, we show that both types of activity are inhibited during the application of nicotine. Nicotine actions were blocked by mecamylamine, a non specific antagonist of nAChrs. Interestingly, inhibitory actions of nicotine were also blocked by the GABAA-receptor antagonist bicuculline, in which case, the actions of nicotine on the circuit became excitatory and facilitated neuronal synchronization. We conclude that the predominant action of nicotine in the striatal microcircuit is indirect, via the activation of networks of inhibitory interneurons. This action inhibits striatal pathological activity in early Parkinsonian animals almost as potently as L-DOPA.

  5. Striatal Activity and Reward Relativity: Neural Signals Encoding Dynamic Outcome Valuation.

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    Webber, Emily S; Mankin, David E; Cromwell, Howard C

    2016-01-01

    The striatum is a key brain region involved in reward processing. Striatal activity has been linked to encoding reward magnitude and integrating diverse reward outcome information. Recent work has supported the involvement of striatum in the valuation of outcomes. The present work extends this idea by examining striatal activity during dynamic shifts in value that include different levels and directions of magnitude disparity. A novel task was used to produce diverse relative reward effects on a chain of instrumental action. Rats ( Rattus norvegicus ) were trained to respond to cues associated with specific outcomes varying by food pellet magnitude. Animals were exposed to single-outcome sessions followed by mixed-outcome sessions, and neural activity was compared among identical outcome trials from the different behavioral contexts. Results recording striatal activity show that neural responses to different task elements reflect incentive contrast as well as other relative effects that involve generalization between outcomes or possible influences of outcome variety. The activity that was most prevalent was linked to food consumption and post-food consumption periods. Relative encoding was sensitive to magnitude disparity. A within-session analysis showed strong contrast effects that were dependent upon the outcome received in the immediately preceding trial. Significantly higher numbers of responses were found in ventral striatum linked to relative outcome effects. Our results support the idea that relative value can incorporate diverse relationships, including comparisons from specific individual outcomes to general behavioral contexts. The striatum contains these diverse relative processes, possibly enabling both a higher information yield concerning value shifts and a greater behavioral flexibility.

  6. Beyond Neuronal Activity Markers: Select Immediate Early Genes in Striatal Neuron Subtypes Functionally Mediate Psychostimulant Addiction

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    Ramesh Chandra

    2017-06-01

    Full Text Available Immediate early genes (IEGs were traditionally used as markers of neuronal activity in striatum in response to stimuli including drugs of abuse such as psychostimulants. Early studies using these neuronal activity markers led to important insights in striatal neuron subtype responsiveness to psychostimulants. Such studies have helped identify striatum as a critical brain center for motivational, reinforcement and habitual behaviors in psychostimulant addiction. While the use of IEGs as neuronal activity markers in response to psychostimulants and other stimuli persists today, the functional role and implications of these IEGs has often been neglected. Nonetheless, there is a subset of research that investigates the functional role of IEGs in molecular, cellular and behavioral alterations by psychostimulants through striatal medium spiny neuron (MSN subtypes, the two projection neuron subtypes in striatum. This review article will address and highlight the studies that provide a functional mechanism by which IEGs mediate psychostimulant molecular, cellular and behavioral plasticity through MSN subtypes. Insight into the functional role of IEGs in striatal MSN subtypes could provide improved understanding into addiction and neuropsychiatric diseases affecting striatum, such as affective disorders and compulsive disorders characterized by dysfunctional motivation and habitual behavior.

  7. Epidural electrocorticography of phantom hand movement following long-term upper-limb amputation

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    Alireza eGharabaghi

    2014-05-01

    Full Text Available Introduction: Prostheses for upper-limb amputees are currently controlled by either myoelectric or peripheral neural signals. Performance and dexterity of these devices is still limited, particularly when it comes to controlling hand function. Movement-related brain activity might serve as a complementary bio-signal for motor control of hand prosthesis. Methods: We introduced a methodology to implant a cortical interface without direct exposure of the brain surface in an upper-limb amputee. This bi-directional interface enabled us to explore the cortical physiology following long-term transhumeral amputation. In addition, we investigated neurofeedback of electrocorticographic brain activity related to the patient’s motor imagery to open his missing hand, i.e. phantom hand movement, for real-time control of a virtual hand prosthesis.Results: Both event-related brain potentials and cortical stimulation revealed mutually overlapping cortical representations of the phantom hand. Phantom hand movements could be robustly classified and the patient required only three training sessions to gain reliable control of the virtual hand prosthesis in an online closed-loop paradigm that discriminated between hand opening and rest. Conclusion: Epidural implants may constitute a powerful and safe alternative communication pathway between the brain and external devices for upper-limb amputees, thereby facilitating the integrated use of different signal sources for more intuitive and specific control of multi-functional devices in clinical use.

  8. Striatal dysfunction in attention deficit and hyperkinetic disorder

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lou, H.C.; Henriksen, L.; Bruhn, P.; Borner, H.; Nielsen, J.B.

    1989-01-01

    We have previously reported that periventricular structures are hypoperfused in attention deficit and hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). This study has expanded the number of patients, who were divided into two groups: six patients with pure ADHD, and 13 patients with ADHD in combination with other neurologic symptoms. By using xenon 133 inhalation and emission tomography, the regional cerebral blood flow distribution was determined and compared with a control group. Striatal regions were found to be hypoperfused and, by inference, hypofunctional in both groups. This hypoperfusion was statistically significant in the right striatum in ADHD, and in both striatal regions in ADHD with other neuropsychologic and neurologic symptoms. The primary sensory and sensorimotor cortical regions were highly perfused. Methylphenidate increased flow to striatal and posterior periventricular regions, and tended to decrease flow to primary sensory regions. Low striatal activity, partially reversible with methylphenidate, appears to be a cardinal feature in ADHD

  9. Striatal dysfunction in attention deficit and hyperkinetic disorder

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    Lou, H.C.; Henriksen, L.; Bruhn, P.; Borner, H.; Nielsen, J.B.

    1989-01-01

    We have previously reported that periventricular structures are hypoperfused in attention deficit and hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). This study has expanded the number of patients, who were divided into two groups: six patients with pure ADHD, and 13 patients with ADHD in combination with other neurologic symptoms. By using xenon 133 inhalation and emission tomography, the regional cerebral blood flow distribution was determined and compared with a control group. Striatal regions were found to be hypoperfused and, by inference, hypofunctional in both groups. This hypoperfusion was statistically significant in the right striatum in ADHD, and in both striatal regions in ADHD with other neuropsychologic and neurologic symptoms. The primary sensory and sensorimotor cortical regions were highly perfused. Methylphenidate increased flow to striatal and posterior periventricular regions, and tended to decrease flow to primary sensory regions. Low striatal activity, partially reversible with methylphenidate, appears to be a cardinal feature in ADHD.

  10. Correlation of individual differences in schizotypal personality traits with amphetamine-induced dopamine release in striatal and extrastriatal brain regions.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Woodward, Neil D; Cowan, Ronald L; Park, Sohee; Ansari, M Sib; Baldwin, Ronald M; Li, Rui; Doop, Mikisha; Kessler, Robert M; Zald, David H

    2011-04-01

    Schizotypal personality traits are associated with schizophrenia spectrum disorders, and individuals with schizophrenia spectrum disorders demonstrate increased dopamine transmission in the striatum. The authors sought to determine whether individual differences in normal variation in schizotypal traits are correlated with dopamine transmission in the striatum and in extrastriatal brain regions. Sixty-three healthy volunteers with no history of psychiatric illness completed the Schizotypal Personality Questionnaire and underwent positron emission tomography imaging with [(18)F]fallypride at baseline and after administration of oral d-amphetamine (0.43 mg/kg). Dopamine release, quantified by subtracting each participant's d-amphetamine scan from his or her baseline scan, was correlated with Schizotypal Personality Questionnaire total and factor scores using region-of-interest and voxel-wise analyses. Dopamine release in the striatum was positively correlated with overall schizotypal traits. The association was especially robust in the associative subdivision of the striatum. Voxel-wise analyses identified additional correlations between dopamine release and schizotypal traits in the left middle frontal gyrus and left supramarginal gyrus. Exploratory analyses of Schizotypal Personality Questionnaire factor scores revealed correlations between dopamine release and disorganized schizotypal traits in the striatum, thalamus, medial prefrontal cortex, temporal lobe, insula, and inferior frontal cortex. The association between dopamine signaling and psychosis phenotypes extends to individual differences in normal variation in schizotypal traits and involves dopamine transmission in both striatal and extrastriatal brain regions. Amphetamine-induced dopamine release may be a useful endophenotype for investigating the genetic basis of schizophrenia spectrum disorders.

  11. Haloperidol Selectively Remodels Striatal Indirect Pathway Circuits

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sebel, Luke E; Graves, Steven M; Chan, C Savio; Surmeier, D James

    2017-01-01

    Typical antipsychotic drugs are widely thought to alleviate the positive symptoms of schizophrenia by antagonizing dopamine D2 receptors expressed by striatal spiny projection neurons (SPNs). What is less clear is why antipsychotics have a therapeutic latency of weeks. Using a combination of physiological and anatomical approaches in ex vivo brain slices from transgenic mice, it was found that 2 weeks of haloperidol treatment induced both intrinsic and synaptic adaptations specifically within indirect pathway SPNs (iSPNs). Perphenazine treatment had similar effects. Some of these adaptations were homeostatic, including a drop in intrinsic excitability and pruning of excitatory corticostriatal glutamatergic synapses. However, haloperidol treatment also led to strengthening of a subset of excitatory corticostriatal synapses. This slow remodeling of corticostriatal iSPN circuitry is likely to play a role in mediating the delayed therapeutic action of neuroleptics. PMID:27577602

  12. Populations of striatal medium spiny neurons encode vibrotactile frequency in rats: modulation by slow wave oscillations.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hawking, Thomas G; Gerdjikov, Todor V

    2013-01-01

    Dorsolateral striatum (DLS) is implicated in tactile perception and receives strong projections from somatosensory cortex. However, the sensory representations encoded by striatal projection neurons are not well understood. Here we characterized the contribution of DLS to the encoding of vibrotactile information in rats by assessing striatal responses to precise frequency stimuli delivered to a single vibrissa. We applied stimuli in a frequency range (45-90 Hz) that evokes discriminable percepts and carries most of the power of vibrissa vibration elicited by a range of complex fine textures. Both medium spiny neurons and evoked potentials showed tactile responses that were modulated by slow wave oscillations. Furthermore, medium spiny neuron population responses represented stimulus frequency on par with previously reported behavioral benchmarks. Our results suggest that striatum encodes frequency information of vibrotactile stimuli which is dynamically modulated by ongoing brain state.

  13. Specification and estimation of sources of bias affecting neurological studies in PET/MR with an anatomical brain phantom

    Science.gov (United States)

    Teuho, J.; Johansson, J.; Linden, J.; Saunavaara, V.; Tolvanen, T.; Teräs, M.

    2014-01-01

    Selection of reconstruction parameters has an effect on the image quantification in PET, with an additional contribution from a scanner-specific attenuation correction method. For achieving comparable results in inter- and intra-center comparisons, any existing quantitative differences should be identified and compensated for. In this study, a comparison between PET, PET/CT and PET/MR is performed by using an anatomical brain phantom, to identify and measure the amount of bias caused due to differences in reconstruction and attenuation correction methods especially in PET/MR. Differences were estimated by using visual, qualitative and quantitative analysis. The qualitative analysis consisted of a line profile analysis for measuring the reproduction of anatomical structures and the contribution of the amount of iterations to image contrast. The quantitative analysis consisted of measurement and comparison of 10 anatomical VOIs, where the HRRT was considered as the reference. All scanners reproduced the main anatomical structures of the phantom adequately, although the image contrast on the PET/MR was inferior when using a default clinical brain protocol. Image contrast was improved by increasing the amount of iterations from 2 to 5 while using 33 subsets. Furthermore, a PET/MR-specific bias was detected, which resulted in underestimation of the activity values in anatomical structures closest to the skull, due to the MR-derived attenuation map that ignores the bone. Thus, further improvements for the PET/MR reconstruction and attenuation correction could be achieved by optimization of RAMLA-specific reconstruction parameters and implementation of bone to the attenuation template.

  14. MR brain volumetric measurements are predictive of neurobehavioral impairment in the HIV-1 transgenic rat.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Casas, Rafael; Muthusamy, Siva; Wakim, Paul G; Sinharay, Sanhita; Lentz, Margaret R; Reid, William C; Hammoud, Dima A

    2018-01-01

    HIV infection is known to be associated with brain volume loss, even in optimally treated patients. In this study, we assessed whether dynamic brain volume changes over time are predictive of neurobehavorial performance in the HIV-1 transgenic (Tg) rat, a model of treated HIV-positive patients. Cross-sectional brain MRI imaging was first performed comparing Tg and wild type (WT) rats at 3 and 19 months of age. Longitudinal MRI and neurobehavioral testing of another group of Tg and WT rats was then performed from 5 to 23 weeks of age. Whole brain and subregional image segmentation was used to assess the rate of brain growth over time. We used repeated-measures mixed models to assess differences in brain volumes and to establish how predictive the volume differences are of specific neurobehavioral deficits. Cross-sectional imaging showed smaller whole brain volumes in Tg compared to WT rats at 3 and at 19 months of age. Longitudinally, Tg brain volumes were smaller than age-matched WT rats at all time points, starting as early as 5 weeks of age. The Tg striatal growth rate delay between 5 and 9 weeks of age was greater than that of the whole brain. Striatal volume in combination with genotype was the most predictive of rota-rod scores and in combination with genotype and age was the most predictive of total exploratory activity scores in the Tg rats. The disproportionately delayed striatal growth compared to whole brain between 5 and 9 weeks of age and the role of striatal volume in predicting neurobehavioral deficits suggest an important role of the dopaminergic system in HIV associated neuropathology. This might explain problems with motor coordination and executive decisions in this animal model. Smaller brain and subregional volumes and neurobehavioral deficits were seen as early as 5 weeks of age, suggesting an early brain insult in the Tg rat. Neuroprotective therapy testing in this model should thus target this early stage of development, before brain

  15. Construction of realistic phantoms from patient images and a commercial three-dimensional printer.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Leng, Shuai; Chen, Baiyu; Vrieze, Thomas; Kuhlmann, Joel; Yu, Lifeng; Alexander, Amy; Matsumoto, Jane; Morris, Jonathan; McCollough, Cynthia H

    2016-07-01

    The purpose of this study was to use three-dimensional (3-D) printing techniques to construct liver and brain phantoms having realistic pathologies, anatomic structures, and heterogeneous backgrounds. Patient liver and head computed tomography (CT) images were segmented into tissue, vessels, liver lesion, white and gray matter, and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). Stereolithography files of each object were created and imported into a commercial 3-D printer. Printing materials were assigned to each object after test scans, which showed that the printing materials had CT numbers ranging from 70 to 121 HU at 120 kV. Printed phantoms were scanned on a CT scanner and images were evaluated. CT images of the liver phantom had measured CT numbers of 77.8 and 96.6 HU for the lesion and background, and 137.5 to 428.4 HU for the vessels channels, which were filled with iodine solutions. The difference in CT numbers between lesions and background (18.8 HU) was representative of the low-contrast values needed for optimization tasks. The liver phantom background was evaluated with Haralick features and showed similar texture between patient and phantom images. CT images of the brain phantom had CT numbers of 125, 134, and 108 HU for white matter, gray matter, and CSF, respectively. The CT number differences were similar to those in patient images.

  16. Symbol phantoms

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Yamaguchi, Hiroshi; Hongo, Syozo; Takeshita, Hiroshi

    1990-01-01

    We have developed Japanese phantoms in two procedures for computation of organ doses exposed to internal and/or external radiation sources. One method is to make mathematical phantoms on the basis of ORNL mathematical phantoms. Parameters to specify organs of Japanese mathematical phantom are determined by interpolations of the ORNL data, which define the organs of Caucasian males and females of various ages, i.e. new born, 1, 5, 10, 15 years and adult, with survey data for Japanese physiques. Another procedure is to build 'symbol phantoms' for the Japanese public. The concept and its method of the symbol phantom enables us to make a phantom for an individual when we have all of his transversal section images obtained by a medical imaging device like MRI, and thus we may achieve more realistic phantoms for Japanese public than the mathematical phantoms. Both studies are in progress in NIRS. (author)

  17. Sex differences of gray matter morphology in cortico-limbic-striatal neural system in major depressive disorder.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kong, Lingtao; Chen, Kaiyuan; Womer, Fay; Jiang, Wenyan; Luo, Xingguang; Driesen, Naomi; Liu, Jie; Blumberg, Hilary; Tang, Yanqing; Xu, Ke; Wang, Fei

    2013-06-01

    Sex differences are observed in both epidemiological and clinical aspects of major depressive disorder (MDD). The cortico-limbic-striatal neural system, including the prefrontal cortex, amygdala, hippocampus, and striatum, have shown sexually dimorphic morphological features and have been implicated in the dysfunctional regulation of mood and emotion in MDD. In this study, we utilized a whole-brain, voxel-based approach to examine sex differences in the regional distribution of gray matter (GM) morphological abnormalities in medication-naïve participants with MDD. Participants included 29 medication-naïve individuals with MDD (16 females and 13 males) and 33 healthy controls (HC) (17 females and 16 males). Gray matter morphology of the cortico-limbic-striatal neural system was examined using voxel-based morphometry analyzes of high-resolution structural magnetic resonance imaging scans. The main effect of diagnosis and interaction effect of diagnosis by sex on GM morphology were statistically significant (p sex-related patterns of abnormalities within the cortico-limbic-strial neural system, such as predominant prefrontal-limbic abnormalities in MDD females vs. predominant prefrontal-striatal abnormalities in MDD males, suggest differences in neural circuitry that may mediate sex differences in the clinical presentation of MDD and potential targets for sex-differentiated treatment of the disorder. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  18. Increased ventral-striatal activity during monetary decision making is a marker of problem poker gambling severity.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Brevers, Damien; Noël, Xavier; He, Qinghua; Melrose, James A; Bechara, Antoine

    2016-05-01

    The aim of this study was to examine the impact of different neural systems on monetary decision making in frequent poker gamblers, who vary in their degree of problem gambling. Fifteen frequent poker players, ranging from non-problem to high-problem gambling, and 15 non-gambler controls were scanned using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) while performing the Iowa Gambling Task (IGT). During IGT deck selection, between-group fMRI analyses showed that frequent poker gamblers exhibited higher ventral-striatal but lower dorsolateral prefrontal and orbitofrontal activations as compared with controls. Moreover, using functional connectivity analyses, we observed higher ventral-striatal connectivity in poker players, and in regions involved in attentional/motor control (posterior cingulate), visual (occipital gyrus) and auditory (temporal gyrus) processing. In poker gamblers, scores of problem gambling severity were positively associated with ventral-striatal activations and with the connectivity between the ventral-striatum seed and the occipital fusiform gyrus and the middle temporal gyrus. Present results are consistent with findings from recent brain imaging studies showing that gambling disorder is associated with heightened motivational-reward processes during monetary decision making, which may hamper one's ability to moderate his level of monetary risk taking. © 2015 Society for the Study of Addiction.

  19. Studies on Phantom Vibration and Ringing Syndrome among Postgraduate Students

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    Atul Kumar Goyal

    2015-03-01

    Full Text Available Phantom vibrations and ringing of mobile phones are prevalent hallucinations in the general population. They might be considered as a normal brain mechanism. The aim of this study was to establish the prevalence of Phantom vibrations and ringing syndrome among students and to assess factors associated it. The survey of 300 postgraduate students belonging to different field of specialization was conducted at Kurukshetra University. 74% of students were found to have both Phantom vibrations and ringing syndrome. Whereas 17% of students felt Phantom vibration exclusively and 4% students face only Phantom ringing syndrome. Both the syndrome occurs more fervent in students who kept their mobile phone in shirt or jean pocket than to who kept mobile in handbag. 75% of students felt vibration or ringing even when the phone is switched off or phone was not in their pocket. Also the frequency of both the syndrome is directly proportional to the duration of mobile phone use and person emotional behavior. Although most of students agree that the Phantom syndrome did not bother them but some students deals with anxiety when they feel symptoms associated with Phantom syndrome. By using mobile phones in proper way, one can avoid these syndromes, or at least can ameliorate the symptoms.

  20. Repeated administration of D-amphetamine induces loss of [123I]FP-CIT binding to striatal dopamine transporters in rat brain: a validation study

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Booij, Jan; Bruin, Kora de; Gunning, W. Boudewijn

    2006-01-01

    In recent years, several PET and SPECT studies have shown loss of striatal dopamine transporter (DAT) binding in amphetamine (AMPH) users. However, the use of DAT SPECT tracers to detect AMPH-induced changes in DAT binding has not been validated. We therefore examined if repeated administration of D-AMPH or methamphetamine (METH) may induce loss of binding to striatal DATs in rats by using an experimental biodistribution study design and a SPECT tracer for the DAT ([ 123 I]FP-CIT). Methods: Groups of male rats (n=10 per group) were treated with D-AMPH (10 mg/kg body weight), METH (10 mg/kg body weight), or saline, twice a day for 5 consecutive days. Five days later, [ 123 I]FP-CIT was injected intravenously, and 2 h later, the rats were sacrificed and radioactivity was assayed. Results: In D-AMPH but not METH-treated rats, striatal [ 123 I]FP-CIT uptake was significantly lower (approximately 17%) than in the control group. Conclusion: These data show that [ 123 I]FP-CIT can be used to detect AMPH-induced changes in DAT binding and may validate the use of DAT radiotracers to study AMPH-induced changes in striatal DAT binding in vivo

  1. Design and evaluation of two multi-pinhole collimators for brain SPECT.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chen, Ling; Tsui, Benjamin M W; Mok, Greta S P

    2017-10-01

    SPECT is a powerful tool for diagnosing or staging brain diseases such as Alzheimer's disease (AD) and Parkinson's disease (PD) but is limited by its inferior resolution and sensitivity. At the same time, pinhole SPECT provides superior resolution and detection efficiency trade-off as compared to the conventional parallel-hole collimator for imaging small field-of-view (FOV), which fits for the case of brain imaging. In this study, we propose to develop and evaluate two multi-pinhole (MPH) collimator designs to improve the imaging of cerebral blood flow and striatum. We set the target resolutions to be 12 and 8 mm, respectively, and the FOV at 200 mm which is large enough to cover the whole brain. The constraints for system optimization include maximum and minimum detector-to-center-of-FOV (CFOV) distances of 344 and 294 mm, respectively, and minimal radius-of-rotation (ROR) of 135 mm to accommodate patients' shoulder. According to the targeted FOV, resolutions, and constraints, we determined the pinhole number, ROR, focal length, aperture acceptance angle, and aperture diameter which maximized the system sensitivity. We then assessed the imaging performance of the proposed MPH and standard low-energy high-resolution (LEHR) collimators using analytical simulations of a digital NCAT brain phantom with 99m Tc-HMPAO/ 99m Tc-TRODAT-1 distributions; Monte Carlo simulations of a hot-rod phantom; and a Defrise phantom using GATE v6.1. Projections were generated over 360° and reconstructed using the 3D MPH/LEHR OS-EM methods with up to 720 updates. The normalized mean square error (NMSE) was calculated over the cerebral and striatal regions extracted from the reconstructed images for 99m Tc-HMPAO and 99m Tc-TRODAT-1 simulations, respectively, and average normalized standard deviation (NSD) based on 20 noise realizations was assessed on selected uniform 3D regions as the noise index. Visual assessment and image profiles were applied to the results of Monte Carlo

  2. Conversion of ICRP male reference phantom to polygon-surface phantom

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yeom, Yeon Soo; Han, Min Cheol; Kim, Chan Hyeong; Jeong, Jong Hwi

    2013-10-01

    The International Commission on Radiological Protection (ICRP) reference phantoms, developed based on computed tomography images of human bodies, provide much more realism of human anatomy than the previously used MIRD5 (Medical Internal Radiation Dose) mathematical phantoms. It has been, however, realized that the ICRP reference phantoms have some critical limitations showing a considerable amount of holes for the skin and wall organs mainly due to the nature of voxels of which the phantoms are made, especially due to their low voxel resolutions. To address this problem, we are planning to develop the polygon-surface version of ICRP reference phantoms by directly converting the ICRP reference phantoms (voxel phantoms) to polygon-surface phantoms. The objective of this preliminary study is to see if it is indeed possible to construct the high-quality polygon-surface phantoms based on the ICRP reference phantoms maintaining identical organ morphology and also to identify any potential issues, and technologies to address these issues, in advance. For this purpose, in the present study, the ICRP reference male phantom was roughly converted to a polygon-surface phantom. Then, the constructed phantom was implemented in Geant4, Monte Carlo particle transport code, for dose calculations, and the calculated dose values were compared with those of the original ICRP reference phantom to see how much the calculated dose values are sensitive to the accuracy of the conversion process. The results of the present study show that it is certainly possible to convert the ICRP reference phantoms to surface phantoms with enough accuracy. In spite of using relatively less resources (original ICRP reference phantoms, it is believed that the polygon-surface version of ICRP reference phantoms properly developed will not only provide the same or similar dose values (say, difference <5 or 10%) for highly penetrating radiations, but also provide correct dose values for the weakly penetrating

  3. Behavioral sensitivity of temporally modulated striatal neurons

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    George ePortugal

    2011-07-01

    Full Text Available Recent investigations into the neural mechanisms that underlie temporal perception have revealed that the striatum is an important contributor to interval timing processes, and electrophysiological recording studies have shown that the firing rates of striatal neurons are modulated by the time in a trial at which an operant response is made. However, it remains unclear whether striatal firing rate modulations are related to the passage of time alone (i.e., whether temporal information is represented in an abstract manner independent of other attributes of biological importance, or whether this temporal information is embedded within striatal activity related to co-occurring contextual information, such as motor behaviors. This study evaluated these two hypotheses by recording from striatal neurons while rats performed a temporal production task. Rats were trained to respond at different nosepoke apertures for food reward under two simultaneously active reinforcement schedules: a variable-interval (VI-15 sec schedule and a fixed-interval (FI-15 sec schedule of reinforcement. Responding during a trial occurred in a sequential manner composing 3 phases; VI responding, FI responding, VI responding. The vast majority of task-sensitive striatal neurons (95% varied their firing rates associated with equivalent behaviors (e.g., periods in which their snout was held within the nosepoke across these behavioral phases, and 96% of cells varied their firing rates for the same behavior within a phase, thereby demonstrating their sensitivity to time. However, in a direct test of the abstract timing hypothesis, 91% of temporally modulated hold cells were further modulated by the overt motor behaviors associated with transitioning between nosepokes. As such, these data are inconsistent with the striatum representing time in an abstract’ manner, but support the hypothesis that temporal information is embedded within contextual and motor functions of the

  4. No association between striatal dopamine transporter binding and body mass index

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    van de Giessen, Elsmarieke; Hesse, Swen; Caan, Matthan W A

    2013-01-01

    Dopamine is one among several neurotransmitters that regulate food intake and overeating. Thus, it has been linked to the pathophysiology of obesity and high body mass index (BMI). Striatal dopamine D(2) receptor availability is lower in obesity and there are indications that striatal dopamine...... transporter (DAT) availability is also decreased. In this study, we tested whether BMI and striatal DAT availability are associated....

  5. Conversion of ICRP male reference phantom to polygon-surface phantom

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Yeom, Yeon Soo; Han, Min Cheol; Kim, Chan Hyeong; Jeong, Jong Hwi

    2013-01-01

    The International Commission on Radiological Protection (ICRP) reference phantoms, developed based on computed tomography images of human bodies, provide much more realism of human anatomy than the previously used MIRD5 (Medical Internal Radiation Dose) mathematical phantoms. It has been, however, realized that the ICRP reference phantoms have some critical limitations showing a considerable amount of holes for the skin and wall organs mainly due to the nature of voxels of which the phantoms are made, especially due to their low voxel resolutions. To address this problem, we are planning to develop the polygon-surface version of ICRP reference phantoms by directly converting the ICRP reference phantoms (voxel phantoms) to polygon-surface phantoms. The objective of this preliminary study is to see if it is indeed possible to construct the high-quality polygon-surface phantoms based on the ICRP reference phantoms maintaining identical organ morphology and also to identify any potential issues, and technologies to address these issues, in advance. For this purpose, in the present study, the ICRP reference male phantom was roughly converted to a polygon-surface phantom. Then, the constructed phantom was implemented in Geant4, Monte Carlo particle transport code, for dose calculations, and the calculated dose values were compared with those of the original ICRP reference phantom to see how much the calculated dose values are sensitive to the accuracy of the conversion process. The results of the present study show that it is certainly possible to convert the ICRP reference phantoms to surface phantoms with enough accuracy. In spite of using relatively less resources (<2 man-months), we were able to construct the polygon-surface phantom with the organ masses perfectly matching the ICRP reference values. The analysis of the calculated dose values also implies that the dose values are indeed not very sensitive to the detailed morphology of the organ models in the phantom

  6. Arc mRNA induction in striatal efferent neurons associated with response learning.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Daberkow, D P; Riedy, M D; Kesner, R P; Keefe, K A

    2007-07-01

    The dorsal striatum is involved in motor-response learning, but the extent to which distinct populations of striatal efferent neurons are differentially involved in such learning is unknown. Activity-regulated, cytoskeleton-associated (Arc) protein is an effector immediate-early gene implicated in synaptic plasticity. We examined arc mRNA expression in striatopallidal vs. striatonigral efferent neurons in dorsomedial and dorsolateral striatum of rats engaged in reversal learning on a T-maze motor-response task. Male Sprague-Dawley rats learned to turn right or left for 3 days. Half of the rats then underwent reversal training. The remaining rats were yoked to rats undergoing reversal training, such that they ran the same number of trials but ran them as continued-acquisition trials. Brains were removed and processed using double-label fluorescent in situ hybridization for arc and preproenkephalin (PPE) mRNA. In the reversal, but not the continued-acquisition, group there was a significant relation between the overall arc mRNA signal in dorsomedial striatum and the number of trials run, with rats reaching criterion in fewer trials having higher levels of arc mRNA expression. A similar relation was seen between the numbers of PPE(+) and PPE(-) neurons in dorsomedial striatum with cytoplasmic arc mRNA expression. Interestingly, in behaviourally activated animals significantly more PPE(-) neurons had cytoplasmic arc mRNA expression. These data suggest that Arc in both striatonigral and striatopallidal efferent neurons is involved in striatal synaptic plasticity mediating motor-response learning in the T-maze and that there is differential processing of arc mRNA in distinct subpopulations of striatal efferent neurons.

  7. Dysregulation of striatal projection neurons in Parkinson's disease.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Beck, Goichi; Singh, Arun; Papa, Stella M

    2018-03-01

    The loss of nigrostriatal dopamine (DA) is the primary cause of motor dysfunction in Parkinson's disease (PD), but the underlying striatal mechanisms remain unclear. In spite of abundant literature portraying structural, biochemical and plasticity changes of striatal projection neurons (SPNs), in the past there has been a data vacuum from the natural human disease and its close model in non-human primates. Recently, single-cell recordings in advanced parkinsonian primates have generated new insights into the altered function of SPNs. Currently, there are also human data that provide direct evidence of profoundly dysregulated SPN activity in PD. Here, we review primate recordings that are impacting our understanding of the striatal dysfunction after DA loss, particularly through the analysis of physiologic correlates of parkinsonian motor behaviors. In contrast to recordings in rodents, data obtained in primates and patients demonstrate similar major abnormalities of the spontaneous SPN firing in the alert parkinsonian state. Furthermore, these studies also show altered SPN responses to DA replacement in the advanced parkinsonian state. Clearly, there is yet much to learn about the striatal discharges in PD, but studies using primate models are contributing unique information to advance our understanding of pathophysiologic mechanisms.

  8. A comparative study on patient specific absolute dosimetry using slab phantom, acrylic body phantom and goat head phantom

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Om Prakash Gurjar

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available Purpose: To compare the results of patient specific absolute dosimetry using slab phantom, acrylic body phantom and goat head phantom. Methods: Fifteen intensity modulated radiotherapy (IMRT plans already planned on treatment planning system (TPS for head-and-neck cancer patients were exported on all three kinds of phantoms viz. slab phantom, acrylic body phantom and goat head phantom, and dose was calculated using anisotropic analytic algorithm (AAA. All the gantry angles were set to zero in case of slab phantom while set to as it is in actual plan in case of other two phantoms. All the plans were delivered by linear accelerator (LA and dose for each plan was measured by 0.13 cc ion chamber. The percentage (% variations between planned and measured doses were calculated and analyzed. Results: The mean % variations between planned and measured doses of all IMRT quality assurance (QA plans were as 0.65 (Standard deviation (SD: 0.38 with confidence limit (CL 1.39, 1.16 (SD: 0.61 with CL 2.36 and 2.40 (SD: 0.86 with CL 4.09 for slab phantom, acrylic head phantom and goat head phantom respectively. Conclusion: Higher dose variations found in case of real tissue phantom compare to results in case of slab and acrylic body phantoms. The algorithm AAA does not calculate doses in heterogeneous medium as accurate as it calculates in homogeneous medium. Therefore the patient specific absolute dosimetry should be done using heterogeneous phantom mimicking density wise as well as design wise to the actual human body.  

  9. Autoradiographic evidence for methamphetamine-induced striatal dopaminergic loss in mouse brain: attenuation in CuZn-superoxide dismutase transgenic mice.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hirata, H; Ladenheim, B; Carlson, E; Epstein, C; Cadet, J L

    1996-04-01

    Methamphetamine (METH) has long-lasting neurotoxic effects on the nigrostriatal dopamine (DA) system of rodents. METH-induced neurotoxicity is thought to involve release of DA in presynaptic DA terminals, which is associated with increased formation of oxygen-based free radicals. We have recently shown that METH-induced striatal DA depletion is attenuated in transgenic (Tg) mice that express the human CuZn-superoxide dismutase (SOD) enzyme. That study did not specifically address the issue of loss of DA terminals. In the present study, we have used receptor autoradiographic studies of [(125)I]RTI-121-labeled DA uptake sites to evaluate the effects of several doses of METH on striatal DA terminals of Non-Tg as well as of heterozygous and homozygous SOD-Tg mice. In Non-Tg mice, METH caused decreases in striatal DA uptake sites in a dose-dependent fashion. The loss of DA terminals was more prominent in the lateral region than in the medial subdivisions of the striatum. In SOD-Tg mice, the loss of DA terminals caused by METH was attenuated in a gene dosage-dependent fashion, with the homozygous mice showing the greatest protection. Female mice were somewhat more resistant than male mice against these deleterious effects of METH. These results provide further evidence for a role of superoxide radicals in the long-term effects of METH. They also suggest the notion of a gender-specific handling of oxidative stress.

  10. Does human presynaptic striatal dopamine function predict social conformity?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Stokes, Paul R A; Benecke, Aaf; Puraite, Julita; Bloomfield, Michael A P; Shotbolt, Paul; Reeves, Suzanne J; Lingford-Hughes, Anne R; Howes, Oliver; Egerton, Alice

    2014-03-01

    Socially desirable responding (SDR) is a personality trait which reflects either a tendency to present oneself in an overly positive manner to others, consistent with social conformity (impression management (IM)), or the tendency to view one's own behaviour in an overly positive light (self-deceptive enhancement (SDE)). Neurochemical imaging studies report an inverse relationship between SDR and dorsal striatal dopamine D₂/₃ receptor availability. This may reflect an association between SDR and D₂/₃ receptor expression, synaptic dopamine levels or a combination of the two. In this study, we used a [¹⁸F]-DOPA positron emission tomography (PET) image database to investigate whether SDR is associated with presynaptic dopamine function. Striatal [¹⁸F]-DOPA uptake, (k(i)(cer), min⁻¹), was determined in two independent healthy participant cohorts (n=27 and 19), by Patlak analysis using a cerebellar reference region. SDR was assessed using the revised Eysenck Personality Questionnaire (EPQ-R) Lie scale, and IM and SDE were measured using the Paulhus Deception Scales. No significant associations were detected between Lie, SDE or IM scores and striatal [¹⁸F]-DOPA k(i)(cer). These results indicate that presynaptic striatal dopamine function is not associated with social conformity and suggests that social conformity may be associated with striatal D₂/₃ receptor expression rather than with synaptic dopamine levels.

  11. Dopamine D(2) receptor quantification in extrastriatal brain regions using [(123)I]epidepride with bolus/infusion

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Pinborg, L H; Videbaek, C; Knudsen, G M

    2000-01-01

    the significance of individual differences in plasma clearance and binding parameters. A steady-state condition, however, could not be attained in striatal brain regions using a B/I protocol of 20 h, even after 11 h. Under near steady-state conditions a striatal:cerebellar ratio of 23 was demonstrated. Epidepride...

  12. Repeated administration of D-amphetamine induces loss of [{sup 123}I]FP-CIT binding to striatal dopamine transporters in rat brain: a validation study

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Booij, Jan [Department of Nuclear Medicine, Academic Medical Center, 1105 AZ Amsterdam (Netherlands)]. E-mail: j.booij@amc.uva.nl; Bruin, Kora de [Department of Nuclear Medicine, Academic Medical Center, 1105 AZ Amsterdam (Netherlands); Gunning, W. Boudewijn [Department of Neurology, Epilepsy Centre Kempenhaeghe, 5590 AB Heeze (Netherlands)

    2006-04-15

    In recent years, several PET and SPECT studies have shown loss of striatal dopamine transporter (DAT) binding in amphetamine (AMPH) users. However, the use of DAT SPECT tracers to detect AMPH-induced changes in DAT binding has not been validated. We therefore examined if repeated administration of D-AMPH or methamphetamine (METH) may induce loss of binding to striatal DATs in rats by using an experimental biodistribution study design and a SPECT tracer for the DAT ([{sup 123}I]FP-CIT). Methods: Groups of male rats (n=10 per group) were treated with D-AMPH (10 mg/kg body weight), METH (10 mg/kg body weight), or saline, twice a day for 5 consecutive days. Five days later, [{sup 123}I]FP-CIT was injected intravenously, and 2 h later, the rats were sacrificed and radioactivity was assayed. Results: In D-AMPH but not METH-treated rats, striatal [{sup 123}I]FP-CIT uptake was significantly lower (approximately 17%) than in the control group. Conclusion: These data show that [{sup 123}I]FP-CIT can be used to detect AMPH-induced changes in DAT binding and may validate the use of DAT radiotracers to study AMPH-induced changes in striatal DAT binding in vivo.

  13. Radiological response and dosimetry in physical phantom of head and neck for 3D conformational radiotherapy; Resposta radiologica e dosimetria em phantom fisico de cabeca e pescoco para radioterapia conformacional 3D

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Thompson, Larissa

    2013-07-01

    Phantoms are tools for simulation of organs and tissues of the human body in radiology and radiotherapy. This thesis describes the development, validation and, most importantly, the use of a physical head and neck phantom in radiology and radiotherapy, with the purpose of evaluating dose distribution using Gafchromic EBT2 film in 15 MV 3D conformal radiotherapy. The work was divided in two stages, (1) development of new equivalent tissues and improvement of the physical phantom, and (2) use of the physical phantom in experimental dosimetry studies. In phase (1) parameters such as mass density, chemical composition of tissues, anatomical and biometric measurements were considered, as well as aspects of imaging by computed tomography (CT) and radiological response representation in Hounsfield Units (HU), which were compared with human data. Radiological experiments of in-phantom simulated brain pathologies were also conducted. All those results matched human-sourced data, therefore the physical phantom is a suitable simulator that may be used to enhance radiological protocols and education in medical imaging. The main objective in phase (2) was to evaluate the spatial dose distribution in a brain tumor simulator inserted inside the head and neck phantom developed by the Ionizing Radiation Research Group (NRI), exposed to 15 MV 3D conformal radiotherapy, for internal dose assessment. Radiation planning was based on CT images of the physical phantom with a brain tumor simulator made with equivalent material. The treatment planning system (TPS), CAT3D software, used CT images and prescribed a dose of 200 cGy, distributed in three fields of radiation, in a T-shaped pattern. The TPS covered the planning treatment volume (PTV) with 97% of the prescribed dose. A solid water phantom and radiochromic Gafchromic EBT2 film were used for calibration procedures, generating a dose response curve as a function of optical density (OD). After calibration and irradiation, the film

  14. Local control of striatal dopamine release

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Roger eCachope

    2014-05-01

    Full Text Available The mesolimbic and nigrostriatal dopamine (DA systems play a key role in the physiology of reward seeking, motivation and motor control. Importantly, they are also involved in the pathophysiology of Parkinson’s and Huntington’s disease, schizophrenia and addiction. Control of DA release in the striatum is tightly linked to firing of DA neurons in the ventral tegmental area (VTA and the substantia nigra (SN. However, local influences in the striatum affect release by exerting their action directly on axon terminals. For example, endogenous glutamatergic and cholinergic activity is sufficient to trigger striatal DA release independently of cell body firing. Recent developments involving genetic manipulation, pharmacological selectivity or selective stimulation have allowed for better characterization of these phenomena. Such termino-terminal forms of control of DA release transform considerably our understanding of the mesolimbic and nigrostriatal systems, and have strong implications as potential mechanisms to modify impaired control of DA release in the diseased brain. Here, we review these and related mechanisms and their implications in the physiology of ascending DA systems.

  15. Adversity in childhood linked to elevated striatal dopamine function in adulthood

    OpenAIRE

    Egerton, A.; Valmaggia, L. R.; Howes, O. D.; Day, F.; Chaddock, C. A.; Allen, P.; Winton-Brown, T. T.; Bloomfield, M. A. P.; Bhattacharyya, S.; Chilcott, J.; Lappin, J. M.; Murray, R. M.; McGuire, P.

    2016-01-01

    Childhood adversity increases the risk of psychosis in adulthood. Theoretical and animal models suggest that this effect may be mediated by increased striatal dopamine neurotransmission. The primary objective of this study was to examine the relationship between adversity in childhood and striatal dopamine function in early adulthood. Secondary objectives were to compare exposure to childhood adversity and striatal dopamine function in young people at ultra high risk (UHR) of psychosis and he...

  16. Ventral striatal activity links adversity and reward processing in children.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kamkar, Niki H; Lewis, Daniel J; van den Bos, Wouter; Morton, J Bruce

    2017-08-01

    Adversity impacts many aspects of psychological and physical development including reward-based learning and decision-making. Mechanisms relating adversity and reward processing in children, however, remain unclear. Here, we show that adversity is associated with potentiated learning from positive outcomes and impulsive decision-making, but unrelated to learning from negative outcomes. We then show via functional magnetic resonance imaging that the link between adversity and reward processing is partially mediated by differences in ventral striatal response to rewards. The findings suggest that early-life adversity is associated with alterations in the brain's sensitivity to rewards accounting, in part, for the link between adversity and altered reward processing in children. Copyright © 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

  17. Exercise-induced rescue of tongue function without striatal dopamine sparing in a rat neurotoxin model of Parkinson disease.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ciucci, Michelle R; Schaser, Allison J; Russell, John A

    2013-09-01

    Unilateral lesions to the medial forebrain bundle with 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA) lead to force and timing deficits during a complex licking task. We hypothesized that training targeting tongue force generation during licking would improve timing and force measures and also lead to striatal dopamine sparing. Nine month-old male Fisher344/Brown Norway rats were used in this experiment. Sixteen rats were in the control condition and received tongue exercise (n=8) or no exercise (n=8). Fourteen rats were in the 6-OHDA lesion condition and underwent tongue exercise (n=7) and or no exercise (n=7). Following 4 weeks of training and post-training measures, all animals underwent bilateral stimulation of the hypoglossal nerves to measure muscle contractile properties and were then transcardially perfused and brain tissues collected for immunohistochemistry to examine striatal dopamine content. Results demonstrated that exercise animals performed better for maximal force, average force, and press rate than their no-exercise counterparts, and the 6-OHDA animals that underwent exercise performed as well as the Control No Exercise group. Interestingly, there were no group differences for tetanic muscle force, despite behavioral recovery of forces. Additionally, behavioral and neurochemical analyses indicate that there were no differences in striatal dopamine. Thus, targeted exercise can improve tongue force and timing deficits related to 6-OHDA lesions and this exercise likely has a central, versus peripheral (muscle strength) mechanism. However, this mechanism is not related to sparing of striatal dopamine content. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  18. Real Time Imaging of Biomarkers in the Parkinson's Brain Using Mini-Implantable Biosensors. II. Pharmaceutical Therapy with Bromocriptine

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Patricia A. Broderick

    2009-12-01

    Full Text Available We used Neuromolecular Imaging (NMI and trademarked BRODERICK PROBE® mini-implantable biosensors, to selectively and separately detect neurotransmitters in vivo, on line, within seconds in the dorsal striatal brain of the Parkinson’s Disease (PD animal model. We directly compared our results derived from PD to the normal striatal brain of the non-Parkinson’s Disease (non-PD animal. This advanced biotechnology enabled the imaging of dopamine (DA, serotonin (5-HT, homovanillic acid (HVA a metabolite of DA, L-tryptophan (L-TP a precursor to 5-HT and peptides, dynorphin A 1-17 (Dyn A and somatostatin (somatostatin releasing inhibitory factor (SRIF. Each neurotransmitter and neurochemical was imaged at a signature electroactive oxidation/half-wave potential in dorsal striatum of the PD as compared with the non-PD animal. Both endogenous and bromocriptine-treated neurochemical profiles in PD and non-PD were imaged using the same experimental paradigm and detection sensitivities. Results showed that we have found significant neurotransmitter peptide biomarkers in the dorsal striatal brain of endogenous and bromocriptine-treated PD animals. The peptide biomarkers were not imaged in dorsal striatal brain of non-PD animals, either endogenously or bromocriptine-treated. These findings provide new pharmacotherapeutic strategies for PD patients. Thus, our findings are highly applicable to the clinical treatment of PD.

  19. SU-E-T-124: Anthropomorphic Phantoms for Confirmation of Linear Accelerator Based Small Animal Irradiation

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Perks, J; Benedict, S [UC Davis Cancer Center, Sacramento, CA (United States); Lucero, S [UC Davis, Davis, CA (United States)

    2015-06-15

    Purpose: To document the support of radiobiological small animal research by a modern radiation oncology facility. This study confirms that a standard, human use linear accelerator can cover the range of experiments called for by researchers performing animal irradiation. A number of representative, anthropomorphic murine phantoms were made. The phantoms confirmed the small field photon and electron beams dosimetry validated the use of the linear accelerator for rodents. Methods: Laser scanning a model, CAD design and 3D printing produced the phantoms. The phantoms were weighed and CT scanned to judge their compatibility to real animals. Phantoms were produced to specifically mimic lung, gut, brain, and othotopic lesion irradiations. Each phantom was irradiated with the same protocol as prescribed to the live animals. Delivered dose was measured with small field ion chambers, MOS/FETs or TLDs. Results: The density of the phantom material compared to density range across the real mice showed that the printed material would yield sufficiently accurate measurements when irradiated. The whole body, lung and gut irradiations were measured within 2% of prescribed doses with A1SL ion chamber. MOSFET measurements of electron irradiations for the orthotopic lesions allowed refinement of the measured small field output factor to better than 2% and validated the immunology experiment of irradiating one lesion and sparing another. Conclusion: Linacs are still useful tools in small animal bio-radiation research. This work demonstrated a strong role for the clinical accelerator in small animal research, facilitating standard whole body dosing as well as conformal treatments down to 1cm field. The accuracy of measured dose, was always within 5%. The electron irradiations of the phantom brain and flank tumors needed adjustment; the anthropomorphic phantoms allowed refinement of the initial output factor measurements for these fields which were made in a large block of solid water.

  20. Synchrotron-based DEI for bio-imaging and DEI-CT to image phantoms with contrast agents

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Rao, Donepudi V.; Swapna, Medasani; Cesareo, Roberto; Brunetti, Antonio; Akatsuka, Tako; Yuasa, Tetsuya; Zhong, Zhong; Takeda, Tohoru; Gigante, Giovanni E.

    2012-01-01

    The introduction of water, physiological, or iodine as contrast agents is shown to enhance minute image features in synchrotron-based X-ray diffraction radiographic and tomographic imaging. Anatomical features of rat kidney, such as papillary ducts, ureter, renal artery and renal vein are clearly distinguishable. Olfactory bulb, olfactory tact, and descending bundles of the rat brain are visible with improved contrast. - Highlights: ► Distinguishable anatomical structures features of rat kidney and rat brain are acquired with Sy-DEI in planar mode. ► Images of a small brain phantom and cylindrical phantom are acquired in tomography mode (Sy-DEI-CT) with contrast agents. ► Sy-DEI and Sy-DEI-CT techniques provide new source of information related to biological microanatomy.

  1. The relationship between subcortical brain volume and striatal dopamine D2/3 receptor availability in healthy humans assessed with [11 C]-raclopride and [11 C]-(+)-PHNO PET.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Caravaggio, Fernando; Ku Chung, Jun; Plitman, Eric; Boileau, Isabelle; Gerretsen, Philip; Kim, Julia; Iwata, Yusuke; Patel, Raihaan; Chakravarty, M Mallar; Remington, Gary; Graff-Guerrero, Ariel

    2017-11-01

    Abnormalities in dopamine (DA) and brain morphology are observed in several neuropsychiatric disorders. However, it is not fully understood how these abnormalities may relate to one another. For such in vivo findings to be used as biomarkers for neuropsychiatric disease, it must be understood how variability in DA relates to brain structure under healthy conditions. We explored how the availability of striatal DA D 2/3 receptors (D 2/3 R) is related to the volume of subcortical brain structures in a sample of healthy humans. Differences in D 2/3 R availability measured with an antagonist radiotracer ([ 11 C]-raclopride) versus an agonist radiotracer ([ 11 C]-(+)-PHNO) were examined. Data from 62 subjects scanned with [ 11 C]-raclopride (mean age = 38.98 ± 14.45; 23 female) and 68 subjects scanned with [ 11 C]-(+)-PHNO (mean age = 38.54 ± 14.59; 25 female) were used. Subcortical volumes were extracted from T1-weighted images using the Multiple Automatically Generated Templates (MAGeT-Brain) algorithm. Partial correlations were used controlling for age, gender, and total brain volume. For [ 11 C]-(+)-PHNO, ventral caudate volumes were positively correlated with BP ND in the dorsal caudate and globus pallidus (GP). Ventral striatum (VS) volumes were positively correlated with BP ND in the VS. With [ 11 C]-raclopride, BP ND in the VS was negatively correlated with subiculum volume of the hippocampus. Moreover, BP ND in the GP was negatively correlated with the volume of the lateral posterior nucleus of the thalamus. Findings are purely exploratory and presented corrected and uncorrected for multiple comparisons. We hope they will help inform the interpretation of future PET studies where concurrent changes in D 2/3 R and brain morphology are observed. Hum Brain Mapp 38:5519-5534, 2017. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  2. Optogenetic approaches to evaluate striatal function in animal models of Parkinson disease.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Parker, Krystal L; Kim, Youngcho; Alberico, Stephanie L; Emmons, Eric B; Narayanan, Nandakumar S

    2016-03-01

    Optogenetics refers to the ability to control cells that have been genetically modified to express light-sensitive ion channels. The introduction of optogenetic approaches has facilitated the dissection of neural circuits. Optogenetics allows for the precise stimulation and inhibition of specific sets of neurons and their projections with fine temporal specificity. These techniques are ideally suited to investigating neural circuitry underlying motor and cognitive dysfunction in animal models of human disease. Here, we focus on how optogenetics has been used over the last decade to probe striatal circuits that are involved in Parkinson disease, a neurodegenerative condition involving motor and cognitive abnormalities resulting from degeneration of midbrain dopaminergic neurons. The precise mechanisms underlying the striatal contribution to both cognitive and motor dysfunction in Parkinson disease are unknown. Although optogenetic approaches are somewhat removed from clinical use, insight from these studies can help identify novel therapeutic targets and may inspire new treatments for Parkinson disease. Elucidating how neuronal and behavioral functions are influenced and potentially rescued by optogenetic manipulation in animal models could prove to be translatable to humans. These insights can be used to guide future brain-stimulation approaches for motor and cognitive abnormalities in Parkinson disease and other neuropsychiatric diseases.

  3. Ventricular fibrillation cardiac arrest produces a chronic striatal hyperdopaminergic state that is worsened by methylphenidate treatment.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nora, Gerald J; Harun, Rashed; Fine, David F; Hutchison, Daniel; Grobart, Adam C; Stezoski, Jason P; Munoz, Miranda J; Kochanek, Patrick M; Leak, Rehana K; Drabek, Tomas; Wagner, Amy K

    2017-07-01

    Cardiac arrest survival rates have improved with modern resuscitation techniques, but many survivors experience impairments associated with hypoxic-ischemic brain injury (HIBI). Currently, little is understood about chronic changes in striatal dopamine (DA) systems after HIBI. Given the common empiric clinical use of DA enhancing agents in neurorehabilitation, investigation evaluating dopaminergic alterations after cardiac arrest (CA) is necessary to optimize rehabilitation approaches. We hypothesized that striatal DA neurotransmission would be altered chronically after ventricular fibrillation cardiac arrest (VF-CA). Fast-scan cyclic voltammetry was used with median forebrain bundle (MFB) maximal electrical stimulations (60Hz, 10s) in rats to characterize presynaptic components of DA neurotransmission in the dorsal striatum (D-Str) and nucleus accumbens 14 days after a 5-min VF-CA when compared to Sham or Naïve. VF-CA increased D-Str-evoked overflow [DA], total [DA] released, and initial DA release rate versus controls, despite also increasing maximal velocity of DA reuptake (V max ). Methylphenidate (10 mg/kg), a DA transporter inhibitor, was administered to VF-CA and Shams after establishing a baseline, pre-drug 60 Hz, 5 s stimulation response. Methylphenidate increased initial evoked overflow [DA] more-so in VF-CA versus Sham and reduced D-Str V max in VF-CA but not Shams; these findings are consistent with upregulated striatal DA transporter in VF-CA versus Sham. Our work demonstrates that 5-min VF-CA increases electrically stimulated DA release with concomitant upregulation of DA reuptake 2 weeks after brief VF-CA insult. Future work should elucidate how CA insult duration, time after insult, and insult type influence striatal DA neurotransmission and related cognitive and motor functions. © 2017 International Society for Neurochemistry.

  4. ESC-Derived BDNF-Overexpressing Neural Progenitors Differentially Promote Recovery in Huntington's Disease Models by Enhanced Striatal Differentiation

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Tina Zimmermann

    2016-10-01

    Full Text Available Huntington's disease (HD is characterized by fatal motoric failures induced by loss of striatal medium spiny neurons. Neuronal cell death has been linked to impaired expression and axonal transport of the neurotrophin BDNF (brain-derived neurotrophic factor. By transplanting embryonic stem cell-derived neural progenitors overexpressing BDNF, we combined cell replacement and BDNF supply as a potential HD therapy approach. Transplantation of purified neural progenitors was analyzed in a quinolinic acid (QA chemical and two genetic HD mouse models (R6/2 and N171-82Q on the basis of distinct behavioral parameters, including CatWalk gait analysis. Explicit rescue of motor function by BDNF neural progenitors was found in QA-lesioned mice, whereas genetic mouse models displayed only minor improvements. Tumor formation was absent, and regeneration was attributed to enhanced neuronal and striatal differentiation. In addition, adult neurogenesis was preserved in a BDNF-dependent manner. Our findings provide significant insight for establishing therapeutic strategies for HD to ameliorate neurodegenerative symptoms.

  5. Age differences in striatal delay sensitivity during intertemporal choice in healthy adults

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Gregory R Samanez-Larkin

    2011-11-01

    Full Text Available Intertemporal choices are a ubiquitous class of decisions that involve selecting between outcomes available at different times in the future. We investigated the neural systems supporting intertemporal decisions in healthy younger and older adults. Using functional neuroimaging, we find that aging is associated with a shift in the brain areas that respond to delayed rewards. Although we replicate findings that brain regions associated with the mesolimbic dopamine system respond preferentially to immediate rewards, we find a separate region in the ventral striatum with very modest time dependence in older adults. Activation in this striatal region was relatively insensitive to delay in older but not younger adults. Since the dopamine system is believed to support associative learning about future rewards over time, our observed transfer of function may be due to greater experience with delayed rewards as people age. Identifying differences in the neural systems underlying these decisions may contribute to a more comprehensive model of age-related change in intertemporal choice.

  6. Brain Image Motion Correction

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Jensen, Rasmus Ramsbøl; Benjaminsen, Claus; Larsen, Rasmus

    2015-01-01

    The application of motion tracking is wide, including: industrial production lines, motion interaction in gaming, computer-aided surgery and motion correction in medical brain imaging. Several devices for motion tracking exist using a variety of different methodologies. In order to use such devices...... offset and tracking noise in medical brain imaging. The data are generated from a phantom mounted on a rotary stage and have been collected using a Siemens High Resolution Research Tomograph for positron emission tomography. During acquisition the phantom was tracked with our latest tracking prototype...

  7. Control volume based hydrocephalus research; a phantom study

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cohen, Benjamin; Voorhees, Abram; Madsen, Joseph; Wei, Timothy

    2009-11-01

    Hydrocephalus is a complex spectrum of neurophysiological disorders involving perturbation of the intracranial contents; primarily increased intraventricular cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) volume and intracranial pressure are observed. CSF dynamics are highly coupled to the cerebral blood flows and pressures as well as the mechanical properties of the brain. Hydrocephalus, as such, is a very complex biological problem. We propose integral control volume analysis as a method of tracking these important interactions using mass and momentum conservation principles. As a first step in applying this methodology in humans, an in vitro phantom is used as a simplified model of the intracranial space. The phantom's design consists of a rigid container filled with a compressible gel. Within the gel a hollow spherical cavity represents the ventricular system and a cylindrical passage represents the spinal canal. A computer controlled piston pump supplies sinusoidal volume fluctuations into and out of the flow phantom. MRI is used to measure fluid velocity and volume change as functions of time. Independent pressure measurements and momentum flow rate measurements are used to calibrate the MRI data. These data are used as a framework for future work with live patients and normal individuals. Flow and pressure measurements on the flow phantom will be presented through the control volume framework.

  8. Just watching the game ain't enough: striatal fMRI reward responses to successes and failures in a video game during active and vicarious playing.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kätsyri, Jari; Hari, Riitta; Ravaja, Niklas; Nummenmaa, Lauri

    2013-01-01

    Although the multimodal stimulation provided by modern audiovisual video games is pleasing by itself, the rewarding nature of video game playing depends critically also on the players' active engagement in the gameplay. The extent to which active engagement influences dopaminergic brain reward circuit responses remains unsettled. Here we show that striatal reward circuit responses elicited by successes (wins) and failures (losses) in a video game are stronger during active than vicarious gameplay. Eleven healthy males both played a competitive first-person tank shooter game (active playing) and watched a pre-recorded gameplay video (vicarious playing) while their hemodynamic brain activation was measured with 3-tesla functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). Wins and losses were paired with symmetrical monetary rewards and punishments during active and vicarious playing so that the external reward context remained identical during both conditions. Brain activation was stronger in the orbitomedial prefrontal cortex (omPFC) during winning than losing, both during active and vicarious playing. In contrast, both wins and losses suppressed activations in the midbrain and striatum during active playing; however, the striatal suppression, particularly in the anterior putamen, was more pronounced during loss than win events. Sensorimotor confounds related to joystick movements did not account for the results. Self-ratings indicated losing to be more unpleasant during active than vicarious playing. Our findings demonstrate striatum to be selectively sensitive to self-acquired rewards, in contrast to frontal components of the reward circuit that process both self-acquired and passively received rewards. We propose that the striatal responses to repeated acquisition of rewards that are contingent on game related successes contribute to the motivational pull of video-game playing.

  9. Just watching the game ain’t enough: Striatal fMRI reward responses to successes and failures in a video game during active and vicarious playing

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jari eKätsyri

    2013-06-01

    Full Text Available Although the multimodal stimulation provided by modern audiovisual video games is pleasing by itself, the rewarding nature of video game playing depends critically also on the players’ active engagement in the gameplay. The extent to which active engagement influences dopaminergic brain reward circuit responses remains unsettled. Here we show that striatal reward circuit responses elicited by successes (wins and failures (losses in a video game are stronger during active than vicarious gameplay. Eleven healthy males both played a competitive first-person tank shooter game (active playing and watched a pre-recorded gameplay video (vicarious playing while their hemodynamic brain activation was measured with 3-tesla functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI. Wins and losses were paired with symmetrical monetary rewards and punishments during active and vicarious playing so that the external reward context remained identical during both conditions. Brain activation was stronger in the orbitomedial prefrontal cortex (omPFC during winning than losing, both during active and vicarious playing conditions. In contrast, both wins and losses suppressed activations in the midbrain and striatum during active playing; however, the striatal suppression, particularly in the anterior putamen, was more pronounced during loss than win events. Sensorimotor confounds related to joystick movements did not account for the results. Self-ratings indicated losing to be more unpleasant during active than vicarious playing. Our findings demonstrate striatum to be selectively sensitive to self-acquired rewards, in contrast to frontal components of the reward circuit that process both self-acquired and passively received rewards. We propose that the striatal responses to repeated acquisition of rewards that are contingent on game related successes contribute to the motivational pull of video-game playing.

  10. Temporal changes of striatal dopamine release during and after a video game with a monetary reward: a PET study with [11C]raclopride continuous infusion

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kim, S. E.; Cho, S. S.; Choe, Y. S.; Lee, S. Y.; Kang, E.; Kim, B. T.

    2002-01-01

    In an attempt to understand the neurochemical changes associated with rewarded motor learning in human brain, we investigated the temporal changes of striatal dopamine (DA) release during and after a goal-directed psychomotor task (a video game) with a monetary incentive using [ 11 C]raclopride PET. Seven healthy, right-handed, nonsmokers were studied with PET for 120 min (50 min resting followed by 40 min video game and another 30 min resting) while receiving a bolus plus constant infusion of the DA D2 receptor radioligand [ 11 C]raclopride. During the video game (from 50 to 90 min postinjection), subjects played Tetris, which involved learning of joystick movement to fit falling jigsaw blocks, and periodically rewarded with unpredictable amount monetary incentives for improved performance. Striatal V3', calculated as striatal-cerebellar/cerebellar activity ratio, was measured under equilibrium condition, at baseline and during and after the video game. Striatal V3' was significantly reduced during the video game compared with baseline levels, indicating increased DA release in this region (caudate, -15±6%; putamen, -30±10%). During the 30 min after the game ended, striatal [ 11 C]raclopride binding was gradually increased and the V3' approached baseline levels. There was a significant correlation between the reduction in striatal V3' and the task performance during the video game. These results demonstrate DA release in the human striatum during a psychomotor task with a monetary reward and to our knowledge for the first time a gradual DA restoration to baseline levels following the offset of stimulation. They also illustrate that acute fluctuations of synaptic DA can be measured in vivo using [ 11 C]raclopride PET

  11. Computer tomographic phantom

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lonn, A.H.R.; Jacobsen, D.R.; Zech, D.J.

    1988-01-01

    A reference phantom for computer tomography employs a flexible member with means for urging the flexible member into contact along the curved surface of the lumbar region of a human patient. In one embodiment, the reference phantom is pre-curved in an arc greater than required. Pressure from the weight of a patient laying upon the reference phantom is effective for straightening out the curvature sufficiently to achieve substantial contact along the lumbar region. The curvature of the reference phantom may be additionally distorted by a resilient pad between the resilient phantom and a table for urging it into contact with the lumbar region. In a second embodiment of the invention, a flexible reference phantom is disposed in a slot in the top of a resilient cushion. The resilient cushion and reference phantom may be enclosed in a flexible container. A partially curved reference phantom in a slot in a resilient cushion is also contemplated. (author)

  12. Regulation of drugs affecting striatal cholinergic activity by corticostriatal projections

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ladinsky, H.

    1986-01-01

    Research demonstrates that the chronic degeneration of the corticostriatal excitatory pathway makes the cholinergic neurons of the striatum insensitive to the neuropharmacological action of a number of different drugs. Female rats were used; they were killed and after the i.v. infusion of tritium-choline precursor, choline acetyltransferase activity was measured. Striatal noradrenaline, dopamine and serotonin content was measured by electrochemical detection coupled with high pressure liquid chromatography. Uptake of tritium-glutamic acid was estimated. The data were analyzed statistically. It is shown that there is evidence that the effects of a number of drugs capable of depressing cholinergic activity through receptor-mediated responses are operative only if the corticostriatal pathway is integral. Neuropharmacological responses in the brain appear to be the result of an interaction between several major neurotransmitter systems

  13. Fabrication and characterization of a 3-D non-homogeneous tissue-like mouse phantom for optical imaging

    Science.gov (United States)

    Avtzi, Stella; Zacharopoulos, Athanasios; Psycharakis, Stylianos; Zacharakis, Giannis

    2013-11-01

    In vivo optical imaging of biological tissue not only requires the development of new theoretical models and experimental procedures, but also the design and construction of realistic tissue-mimicking phantoms. However, most of the phantoms available currently in literature or the market, have either simple geometrical shapes (cubes, slabs, cylinders) or when realistic in shape they use homogeneous approximations of the tissue or animal under investigation. The goal of this study is to develop a non-homogeneous realistic phantom that matches the anatomical geometry and optical characteristics of the mouse head in the visible and near-infrared spectral range. The fabrication of the phantom consisted of three stages. Initially, anatomical information extracted from either mouse head atlases or structural imaging modalities (MRI, XCT) was used to design a digital phantom comprising of the three main layers of the mouse head; the brain, skull and skin. Based on that, initial prototypes were manufactured by using accurate 3D printing, allowing complex objects to be built layer by layer with sub-millimeter resolution. During the second stage the fabrication of individual molds was performed by embedding the prototypes into a rubber-like silicone mixture. In the final stage the detailed phantom was constructed by loading the molds with epoxy resin of controlled optical properties. The optical properties of the resin were regulated by using appropriate quantities of India ink and intralipid. The final phantom consisted of 3 layers, each one with different absorption and scattering coefficient (μa,μs) to simulate the region of the mouse brain, skull and skin.

  14. Environmental enrichment brings a beneficial effect on beam walking and enhances the migration of doublecortin-positive cells following striatal lesions in rats.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Urakawa, S; Hida, H; Masuda, T; Misumi, S; Kim, T-S; Nishino, H

    2007-02-09

    Rats raised in an enriched environment (enriched rats) have been reported to show less motor dysfunction following brain lesions, but the neuronal correlates of this improvement have not been well clarified. The present study aimed to elucidate the effect of chemical brain lesions and environmental enrichment on motor function and lesion-induced neurogenesis. Three week-old, recently weaned rats were divided into two groups: one group was raised in an enriched environment and the other group was raised in a standard cage for 5 weeks. Striatal damage was induced at an age of 8 weeks by injection of the neuro-toxins 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA) or quinolinic acid (QA) into the striatum, or by injection of 6-OHDA into the substantia nigra (SN), which depleted nigrostriatal dopaminergic innervation. Enriched rats showed better performance on beam walking compared with those raised in standard conditions, but both groups showed similar forelimb use asymmetry in a cylinder test. The number of bromodeoxyuridine-labeled proliferating cells in the subventricular zone was increased by a severe striatal lesion induced by QA injection 1 week after the lesion, but decreased by injection of 6-OHDA into the SN. Following induction of lesions by striatal injection of 6-OHDA or QA, the number of cells positive for doublecortin (DCX) was strongly increased in the striatum; however, there was no change in the number of DCX-positive cells following 6-OHDA injection into the SN. Environmental enrichment enhanced the increase of DCX-positive cells with migrating morphology in the dorsal striatum. In enriched rats, DCX-positive cells traversed the striatal parenchyma far from the corpus callosum and lateral ventricle. DCX-positive cells co-expressed an immature neuronal marker, polysialylated neural cell adhesion molecule, but were negative for a glial marker. These data suggest that environmental enrichment improves motor performance on beam walking and enhances neuronal migration toward

  15. MK-801 protection against methamphetamine-induced striatal dopamine terminal injury is associated with attenuated dopamine overflow.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Weihmuller, F B; O'Dell, S J; Marshall, J F

    1992-06-01

    Repeated administrations of methamphetamine (m-AMPH) produce high extracellular levels of dopamine (DA) and subsequent striatal DA terminal damage. Pharmacological blockade of N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptors has been shown previously to prevent m-AMPH-induced striatal DA terminal injury, but the mechanism for this protection is unclear. In the present study, in vivo microdialysis was used to determine the effects of blockade of NMDA receptors with the noncompetitive antagonist MK-801 on m-AMPH-induced striatal DA overflow. Four injections of MK-801 (0.5 mg/kg, ip) alone did not significantly change extracellular striatal DA concentrations from pretreatment values. Four treatments with m-AMPH (4.0 mg/kg, sc at 2-hr intervals) increased striatal DA overflow, and the overflow was particularly extensive following the fourth injection. This m-AMPH regimen produced a 40% reduction in striatal DA tissue content 1 week later. Treatment with MK-801 15 min before each of the four m-AMPH injections or prior to only the last two m-AMPH administrations attenuated the m-AMPH-induced increase in striatal DA overflow and protected completely against striatal DA depletions. Other MK-801 treatment regimens less effectively reduced the m-AMPH-induced striatal DA efflux and were ineffective in protecting against striatal DA depletions. Linear regression analysis indicated that cumulative DA overflow was strongly predictive (r = -.68) of striatal DA tissue levels measured one week later. These findings suggest that the extensive DA overflow seen during a neurotoxic regimen of m-AMPH is a crucial component of the subsequent neurotoxicity.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

  16. Reduced striatal D2 receptor binding in myoclonus-dystonia

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Beukers, R.J.; Weisscher, N.; Tijssen, M.A.J.; Booij, J.; Zijlstra, F.; Amelsvoort, T.A.M.J. van

    2009-01-01

    To study striatal dopamine D 2 receptor availability in DYT11 mutation carriers of the autosomal dominantly inherited disorder myoclonus-dystonia (M-D). Fifteen DYT11 mutation carriers (11 clinically affected) and 15 age- and sex-matched controls were studied using 123 I-IBZM SPECT. Specific striatal binding ratios were calculated using standard templates for striatum and occipital areas. Multivariate analysis with corrections for ageing and smoking showed significantly lower specific striatal to occipital IBZM uptake ratios (SORs) both in the left and right striatum in clinically affected patients and also in all DYT11 mutation carriers compared to control subjects. Our findings are consistent with the theory of reduced dopamine D 2 receptor (D2R) availability in dystonia, although the possibility of increased endogenous dopamine, and consequently, competitive D2R occupancy cannot be ruled out. (orig.)

  17. A Population of Indirect Pathway Striatal Projection Neurons Is Selectively Entrained to Parkinsonian Beta Oscillations.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sharott, Andrew; Vinciati, Federica; Nakamura, Kouichi C; Magill, Peter J

    2017-10-11

    Classical schemes of basal ganglia organization posit that parkinsonian movement difficulties presenting after striatal dopamine depletion stem from the disproportionate firing rates of spiny projection neurons (SPNs) therein. There remains, however, a pressing need to elucidate striatal SPN firing in the context of the synchronized network oscillations that are abnormally exaggerated in cortical-basal ganglia circuits in parkinsonism. To address this, we recorded unit activities in the dorsal striatum of dopamine-intact and dopamine-depleted rats during two brain states, respectively defined by cortical slow-wave activity (SWA) and activation. Dopamine depletion escalated striatal net output but had contrasting effects on "direct pathway" SPNs (dSPNs) and "indirect pathway" SPNs (iSPNs); their firing rates became imbalanced, and they disparately engaged in network oscillations. Disturbed striatal activity dynamics relating to the slow (∼1 Hz) oscillations prevalent during SWA partly generalized to the exaggerated beta-frequency (15-30 Hz) oscillations arising during cortical activation. In both cases, SPNs exhibited higher incidences of phase-locked firing to ongoing cortical oscillations, and SPN ensembles showed higher levels of rhythmic correlated firing, after dopamine depletion. Importantly, in dopamine-depleted striatum, a widespread population of iSPNs, which often displayed excessive firing rates and aberrant phase-locked firing to cortical beta oscillations, preferentially and excessively synchronized their firing at beta frequencies. Conversely, dSPNs were neither hyperactive nor synchronized to a large extent during cortical activation. These data collectively demonstrate a cell type-selective entrainment of SPN firing to parkinsonian beta oscillations. We conclude that a population of overactive, excessively synchronized iSPNs could orchestrate these pathological rhythms in basal ganglia circuits. SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT Chronic depletion of dopamine

  18. Differences in the time course of haloperidol-induced up-regulation of rat striatal and mesolimbic dopamine receptors

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Prosser, E.S.; Csernansky, J.G.; Hollister, L.E.

    1988-01-01

    Regional differences in the onset and persistence of increased dopamine D2 receptor density in rat brain were studied following daily injections of haloperidol for 3, 7, 14, or 28 days. Striatal [ 3 H]-spiroperidol Bmax values were significantly increased following 3 - 28 days of haloperidol treatment, as compared to saline controls. Olfactory tubercle Bmax values were significantly increased only after 14 or 28 days of haloperidol treatment. Nucleus accumbens Bmax values were significantly increased only in the 14-day drug treatment group, suggesting that dopamine D2 receptor up-regulation in nucleus accumbens may reverse during ongoing neuroleptic treatment. These findings suggest that important differences in adaptive responses to chronic dopamine blockade may exist between dopaminergic synapses located in various rat brain regions

  19. Radiological response and dosimetry in physical phantom of head and neck for 3D conformational radiotherapy

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Thompson, Larissa

    2013-01-01

    Phantoms are tools for simulation of organs and tissues of the human body in radiology and radiotherapy. This thesis describes the development, validation and, most importantly, the use of a physical head and neck phantom in radiology and radiotherapy, with the purpose of evaluating dose distribution using Gafchromic EBT2 film in 15 MV 3D conformal radiotherapy. The work was divided in two stages, (1) development of new equivalent tissues and improvement of the physical phantom, and (2) use of the physical phantom in experimental dosimetry studies. In phase (1) parameters such as mass density, chemical composition of tissues, anatomical and biometric measurements were considered, as well as aspects of imaging by computed tomography (CT) and radiological response representation in Hounsfield Units (HU), which were compared with human data. Radiological experiments of in-phantom simulated brain pathologies were also conducted. All those results matched human-sourced data, therefore the physical phantom is a suitable simulator that may be used to enhance radiological protocols and education in medical imaging. The main objective in phase (2) was to evaluate the spatial dose distribution in a brain tumor simulator inserted inside the head and neck phantom developed by the Ionizing Radiation Research Group (NRI), exposed to 15 MV 3D conformal radiotherapy, for internal dose assessment. Radiation planning was based on CT images of the physical phantom with a brain tumor simulator made with equivalent material. The treatment planning system (TPS), CAT3D software, used CT images and prescribed a dose of 200 cGy, distributed in three fields of radiation, in a T-shaped pattern. The TPS covered the planning treatment volume (PTV) with 97% of the prescribed dose. A solid water phantom and radiochromic Gafchromic EBT2 film were used for calibration procedures, generating a dose response curve as a function of optical density (OD). After calibration and irradiation, the film

  20. Poly(vinyl alcohol) cryogel phantoms for use in ultrasound and MR imaging

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Surry, K J M; Austin, H J B; Fenster, A; Peters, T M

    2004-01-01

    Poly(vinyl alcohol) cryogel, PVA-C, is presented as a tissue-mimicking material, suitable for application in magnetic resonance (MR) imaging and ultrasound imaging. A 10% by weight poly(vinyl alcohol) in water solution was used to form PVA-C, which is solidified through a freeze-thaw process. The number of freeze-thaw cycles affects the properties of the material. The ultrasound and MR imaging characteristics were investigated using cylindrical samples of PVA-C. The speed of sound was found to range from 1520 to 1540 m s -1 , and the attenuation coefficients were in the range of 0.075-0.28 dB (cm MHz) -1 . T1 and T2 relaxation values were found to be 718-1034 ms and 108-175 ms, respectively. We also present applications of this material in an anthropomorphic brain phantom, a multi-volume stenosed vessel phantom and breast biopsy phantoms. Some suggestions are made for how best to handle this material in the phantom design and development process

  1. Phantom position dependence

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Thorson, M.R.; Endres, G.W.R.

    1981-01-01

    Sensitivity of the Hanford dosimeter response to its position relative to the phantom and the neutron source has always been recognized. A thorough investigation was performed to quantify dosimeter response according to: (a) dosimeter position on phantom, (b) dosimeter distance from phantom, and (c) angular relationship of dosimeter relative to neutron source and phantom. Results were obtained for neutron irradiation at several different energies

  2. Temporal changes of striatal dopamine release during and after a video game with a monetary reward: a PET study with [11C] raclopride continuous infusion

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Sang Eun Kim; Yearn Seong Choe; Eunjoo Kang; Dong Soo Lee; June-Key Chung; Myung-Chul Lee; Sang Soo Cho

    2004-01-01

    Purpose: In an attempt to understand the neurochemical changes associated with rewarded motor learning in human brain, we investigated the temporal changes of striatal dopamine (DA) release during and after a goal-directed psychomotor task (a video game) with a monetary incentive using [ 11 C] raclopride PET. Methods: Seven healthy, right-handed, nonsmokers were studied with PET for 120 min (50 min resting followed by 40 min video game and another 30 min resting) while receiving a bolus plus constant infusion of the DA D2 receptor radioligand [ 11 C] raclopride. During the video game (from 50 to 90 min postinjection), subjects played Tetris, which involved learning of joystick movement to fit falling jigsaw blocks, and periodically rewarded with unpredictable amount monetary incentives for improved performance. Striatal V 3 ', calculated as striatal-cerebellar/cerebellar activity ratio, was measured under equilibrium condition, at baseline and during and after the video game. Results: Striatal V 3 ' was significantly reduced during the video game compared with baseline levels, indicating increased DA release in this region (caudate, -15±6%; putamen, -30±10%). During the 30 min after the game ended, striatal [ 11 C] raclopride binding was gradually increased and the V 3 ' approached baseline levels. There was a significant correlation between the reduction in striatal V 3 ' and the task performance during the video game. Conclusions: These results demonstrate DA release in the human striatum during a psychomotor task with a monetary reward and to our knowledge for the first time a gradual DA restoration to baseline levels following the offset of stimulation. They also illustrate that acute fluctuations of synaptic DA can be measured in vivo using [ 11 C] raclopride PET. (authors)

  3. Regulation of GABA and benzodiazepine receptors following neurotoxin-induced striatal and medial forebrain bundle lesions

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Pan, H.S.I.

    1985-01-01

    GABA, a major inhibitory transmitter, is used by many projection neurons of the striatum. To investigate the role of GABA in striatal function, the GABA receptor complex was studied after lesions of the striatum or the nigrostriatal neurons. Quantitative receptor autoradiography using thaw-mounted tissue slices was developed for the study of GABA and benzodiazepine (BDZ) receptors. With the technique established, binding to GABA and BDZ receptors after unilateral striatal kainate lesions was examined. Subsequently, changes in GABA and BDZ receptors were studied following the destruction of dopaminergic nigrostriatal cells by unilateral 6-hydroxydopamine lesion of the medial forebrain bundle. In summary, quantitative receptor autoradiography allowed the detection of GABA and BDZ receptor changes in multiple small areas in each lesioned brain. This technique made it feasible to carry out kinetic saturation, and competition studies using less than 1 mg of tissue. The data suggest that dopamine is functionally inhibitory on striatopallidal neurons but is functionally excitatory on striatoentopeduncular and striatonigral cells which in turn inhibit the thalamus. This quantitative autoradiographic technique can be generalized to study other transmitter receptors and can be combined with 2-deoxyglucose uptake studies

  4. Leptin Increases Striatal Dopamine D2 Receptor Binding in Leptin-Deficient Obese (ob/ob) Mice

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Pfaffly, J.; Michaelides, M.; Wang, G-J.; Pessin, J.E.; Volkow, N.D.; Thanos, P.K.

    2010-06-01

    Peripheral and central leptin administration have been shown to mediate central dopamine (DA) signaling. Leptin-receptor deficient rodents show decreased DA D2 receptor (D2R) binding in striatum and unique DA profiles compared to controls. Leptin-deficient mice show increased DA activity in reward-related brain regions. The objective of this study was to examine whether basal D2R-binding differences contribute to the phenotypic behaviors of leptin-deficient ob/ob mice, and whether D2R binding is altered in response to peripheral leptin treatment in these mice. Leptin decreased body weight, food intake, and plasma insulin concentration in ob/ob mice but not in wild-type mice. Basal striatal D2R binding (measured with autoradiography [{sup 3}H] spiperone) did not differ between ob/ob and wild-type mice but the response to leptin did. In wild-type mice, leptin decreased striatal D2R binding, whereas, in ob/ob mice, leptin increased D2R binding. Our findings provide further evidence that leptin modulates D2R expression in striatum and that these effects are genotype/phenotype dependent.

  5. Exercise training reinstates cortico-cortical sensorimotor functional connectivity following striatal lesioning: Development and application of a subregional-level analytic toolbox for perfusion autoradiographs of the rat brain

    Science.gov (United States)

    Peng, Yu-Hao; Heintz, Ryan; Wang, Zhuo; Guo, Yumei; Myers, Kalisa; Scremin, Oscar; Maarek, Jean-Michel; Holschneider, Daniel

    2014-12-01

    Current rodent connectome projects are revealing brain structural connectivity with unprecedented resolution and completeness. How subregional structural connectivity relates to subregional functional interactions is an emerging research topic. We describe a method for standardized, mesoscopic-level data sampling from autoradiographic coronal sections of the rat brain, and for correlation-based analysis and intuitive display of cortico-cortical functional connectivity (FC) on a flattened cortical map. A graphic user interface “Cx-2D” allows for the display of significant correlations of individual regions-of-interest, as well as graph theoretical metrics across the cortex. Cx-2D was tested on an autoradiographic data set of cerebral blood flow (CBF) of rats that had undergone bilateral striatal lesions, followed by 4 weeks of aerobic exercise training or no exercise. Effects of lesioning and exercise on cortico-cortical FC were examined during a locomotor challenge in this rat model of Parkinsonism. Subregional FC analysis revealed a rich functional reorganization of the brain in response to lesioning and exercise that was not apparent in a standard analysis focused on CBF of isolated brain regions. Lesioned rats showed diminished degree centrality of lateral primary motor cortex, as well as neighboring somatosensory cortex--changes that were substantially reversed in lesioned rats following exercise training. Seed analysis revealed that exercise increased positive correlations in motor and somatosensory cortex, with little effect in non-sensorimotor regions such as visual, auditory, and piriform cortex. The current analysis revealed that exercise partially reinstated sensorimotor FC lost following dopaminergic deafferentation. Cx-2D allows for standardized data sampling from images of brain slices, as well as analysis and display of cortico-cortical FC in the rat cerebral cortex with potential applications in a variety of autoradiographic and histologic

  6. Gamma knife simulation using the MCNP4C code and the zubal phantom and comparison with experimental data

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Gholami, S.; Kamali Asl, A.; Aghamiri, M.; Allahverdi, M.

    2010-01-01

    Gamma Knife is an instrument specially designed for treating brain disorders. In Gamma Knife, there are 201 narrow beams of cobalt-60 sources that intersect at an isocenter point to treat brain tumors. The tumor is placed at the isocenter and is treated by the emitted gamma rays. Therefore, there is a high dose at this point and a low dose is delivered to the normal tissue surrounding the tumor. Material and Method: In the current work, the MCNP simulation code was used to simulate the Gamma Knife. The calculated values were compared to the experimental ones and previous works. Dose distribution was compared for different collimators in a water phantom and the Zubal brain-equivalent phantom. The dose profiles were obtained along the x, y and z axes. Result: The evaluation of the developed code was performed using experimental data and we found a good agreement between our simulation and experimental data. Discussion: Our results showed that the skull bone has a high contribution to both scatter and absorbed dose. In other words, inserting the exact material of brain and other organs of the head in digital phantom improves the quality of treatment planning. This work is regarding the measurement of absorbed dose and improving the treatment planning procedure in Gamma-Knife radiosurgery in the brain.

  7. Gamma Knife Simulation Using the MCNP4C Code and the Zubal Phantom and Comparison with Experimental Data

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Somayeh Gholami

    2010-06-01

    Full Text Available Introduction: Gamma Knife is an instrument specially designed for treating brain disorders. In Gamma Knife, there are 201 narrow beams of cobalt-60 sources that intersect at an isocenter point to treat brain tumors. The tumor is placed at the isocenter and is treated by the emitted gamma rays. Therefore, there is a high dose at this point and a low dose is delivered to the normal tissue surrounding the tumor. Material and Method: In the current work, the MCNP simulation code was used to simulate the Gamma Knife. The calculated values were compared to the experimental ones and previous works. Dose distribution was compared for different collimators in a water phantom and the Zubal brain-equivalent phantom. The dose profiles were obtained along the x, y and z axes. Result: The evaluation of the developed code was performed using experimental data and we found a good agreement between our simulation and experimental data. Discussion: Our results showed that the skull bone has a high contribution to both scatter and absorbed dose. In other words, inserting the exact material of brain and other organs of the head in digital phantom improves the quality of treatment planning. This work is regarding the measurement of absorbed dose and improving the treatment planning procedure in Gamma-Knife radiosurgery in the brain.

  8. Intrastriatal administration of botulinum neurotoxin A normalizes striatal D2 R binding and reduces striatal D1 R binding in male hemiparkinsonian rats.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wedekind, Franziska; Oskamp, Angela; Lang, Markus; Hawlitschka, Alexander; Zilles, Karl; Wree, Andreas; Bauer, Andreas

    2018-01-01

    Cerebral administration of botulinum neurotoxin A (BoNT-A) has been shown to improve disease-specific motor behavior in a rat model of Parkinson disease (PD). Since the dopaminergic system of the basal ganglia fundamentally contributes to motor function, we investigated the impact of BoNT-A on striatal dopamine receptor expression using in vitro and in vivo imaging techniques (positron emission tomography and quantitative autoradiography, respectively). Seventeen male Wistar rats were unilaterally lesioned with 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA) and assigned to two treatment groups 7 weeks later: 10 rats were treated ipsilaterally with an intrastriatal injection of 1 ng BoNT-A, while the others received vehicle (n = 7). All animals were tested for asymmetric motor behavior (apomorphine-induced rotations and forelimb usage) and for striatal expression of dopamine receptors and transporters (D 1 R, D 2 R, and DAT). The striatal D 2 R availability was also quantified longitudinally (1.5, 3, and 5 months after intervention) in 5 animals per treatment group. The 6-OHDA lesion alone induced a unilateral PD-like phenotype and a 13% increase of striatal D 2 R. BoNT-A treatment reduced the asymmetry in both apomorphine-induced rotational behavior and D 2 R expression, with the latter returning to normal values 5 months after intervention. D 1 R expression was significantly reduced, while DAT concentrations showed no alteration. Independent of the treatment, higher interhemispheric symmetry in raclopride binding to D 2 R was generally associated with reduced forelimb akinesia. Our findings indicate that striatal BoNT-A treatment diminishes motor impairment and induces changes in D 1 and D 2 binding site density in the 6-OHDA rat model of PD. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  9. Temporal changes of striatal dopamine release during and after a video game with a monetary reward: a PET study with [{sup 11}C]raclopride continuous infusion

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Kim, S. E. [Sungkyunkwon University School of Medicine, Suwon (Korea, Republic of); Cho, S. S.; Choe, Y. S.; Lee, S. Y.; Kang, E.; Kim, B. T. [Seoul National University hospital, Seoul (Korea, Republic of)

    2002-07-01

    In an attempt to understand the neurochemical changes associated with rewarded motor learning in human brain, we investigated the temporal changes of striatal dopamine (DA) release during and after a goal-directed psychomotor task (a video game) with a monetary incentive using [{sup 11}C]raclopride PET. Seven healthy, right-handed, nonsmokers were studied with PET for 120 min (50 min resting followed by 40 min video game and another 30 min resting) while receiving a bolus plus constant infusion of the DA D2 receptor radioligand [{sup 11}C]raclopride. During the video game (from 50 to 90 min postinjection), subjects played Tetris, which involved learning of joystick movement to fit falling jigsaw blocks, and periodically rewarded with unpredictable amount monetary incentives for improved performance. Striatal V3', calculated as striatal-cerebellar/cerebellar activity ratio, was measured under equilibrium condition, at baseline and during and after the video game. Striatal V3' was significantly reduced during the video game compared with baseline levels, indicating increased DA release in this region (caudate, -15{+-}6%; putamen, -30{+-}10%). During the 30 min after the game ended, striatal [{sup 11}C]raclopride binding was gradually increased and the V3' approached baseline levels. There was a significant correlation between the reduction in striatal V3' and the task performance during the video game. These results demonstrate DA release in the human striatum during a psychomotor task with a monetary reward and to our knowledge for the first time a gradual DA restoration to baseline levels following the offset of stimulation. They also illustrate that acute fluctuations of synaptic DA can be measured in vivo using [{sup 11}C]raclopride PET.

  10. Automated striatal uptake analysis of 18F-FDOPA PET images applied to Parkinson's disease patients

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Chang Icheng; Lue Kunhan; Hsieh Hungjen; Liu Shuhsin; Kao, Chinhao K.

    2011-01-01

    6-[ 18 F]Fluoro-L-DOPA (FDOPA) is a radiopharmaceutical valuable for assessing the presynaptic dopaminergic function when used with positron emission tomography (PET). More specifically, the striatal-to-occipital ratio (SOR) of FDOPA uptake images has been extensively used as a quantitative parameter in these PET studies. Our aim was to develop an easy, automated method capable of performing objective analysis of SOR in FDOPA PET images of Parkinson's disease (PD) patients. Brain images from FDOPA PET studies of 21 patients with PD and 6 healthy subjects were included in our automated striatal analyses. Images of each individual were spatially normalized into an FDOPA template. Subsequently, the image slice with the highest level of basal ganglia activity was chosen among the series of normalized images. Also, the immediate preceding and following slices of the chosen image were then selected. Finally, the summation of these three images was used to quantify and calculate the SOR values. The results obtained by automated analysis were compared with manual analysis by a trained and experienced image processing technologist. The SOR values obtained from the automated analysis had a good agreement and high correlation with manual analysis. The differences in caudate, putamen, and striatum were -0.023, -0.029, and -0.025, respectively; correlation coefficients 0.961, 0.957, and 0.972, respectively. We have successfully developed a method for automated striatal uptake analysis of FDOPA PET images. There was no significant difference between the SOR values obtained from this method and using manual analysis. Yet it is an unbiased time-saving and cost-effective program and easy to implement on a personal computer. (author)

  11. Fast oscillations in cortical-striatal networks switch frequency following rewarding events and stimulant drugs.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Berke, J D

    2009-09-01

    Oscillations may organize communication between components of large-scale brain networks. Although gamma-band oscillations have been repeatedly observed in cortical-basal ganglia circuits, their functional roles are not yet clear. Here I show that, in behaving rats, distinct frequencies of ventral striatal local field potential oscillations show coherence with different cortical inputs. The approximately 50 Hz gamma oscillations that normally predominate in awake ventral striatum are coherent with piriform cortex, whereas approximately 80-100 Hz high-gamma oscillations are coherent with frontal cortex. Within striatum, entrainment to gamma rhythms is selective to fast-spiking interneurons, with distinct fast-spiking interneuron populations entrained to different gamma frequencies. Administration of the psychomotor stimulant amphetamine or the dopamine agonist apomorphine causes a prolonged decrease in approximately 50 Hz power and increase in approximately 80-100 Hz power. The same frequency switch is observed for shorter epochs spontaneously in awake, undrugged animals and is consistently provoked for reward receipt. Individual striatal neurons can participate in these brief high-gamma bursts with, or without, substantial changes in firing rate. Switching between discrete oscillatory states may allow different modes of information processing during decision-making and reinforcement-based learning, and may also be an important systems-level process by which stimulant drugs affect cognition and behavior.

  12. Quantitative high-throughput gene expression profiling of human striatal development to screen stem cell–derived medium spiny neurons

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Marco Straccia

    Full Text Available A systematic characterization of the spatio-temporal gene expression during human neurodevelopment is essential to understand brain function in both physiological and pathological conditions. In recent years, stem cell technology has provided an in vitro tool to recapitulate human development, permitting also the generation of human models for many diseases. The correct differentiation of human pluripotent stem cell (hPSC into specific cell types should be evaluated by comparison with specific cells/tissue profiles from the equivalent adult in vivo organ. Here, we define by a quantitative high-throughput gene expression analysis the subset of specific genes of the whole ganglionic eminence (WGE and adult human striatum. Our results demonstrate that not only the number of specific genes is crucial but also their relative expression levels between brain areas. We next used these gene profiles to characterize the differentiation of hPSCs. Our findings demonstrate a temporal progression of gene expression during striatal differentiation of hPSCs from a WGE toward an adult striatum identity. Present results establish a gene expression profile to qualitatively and quantitatively evaluate the telencephalic hPSC-derived progenitors eventually used for transplantation and mature striatal neurons for disease modeling and drug-screening.

  13. Methylphenidate Attenuates Limbic Brain Inhibition after Cocaine-Cues Exposure in Cocaine Abusers

    OpenAIRE

    Volkow, Nora D.; Wang, Gene-Jack; Tomasi, Dardo; Telang, Frank; Fowler, Joanna S.; Pradhan, Kith; Jayne, Millard; Logan, Jean; Goldstein, Rita Z.; Alia-Klein, Nelly; Wong, Christopher

    2010-01-01

    Dopamine (phasic release) is implicated in conditioned responses. Imaging studies in cocaine abusers show decreases in striatal dopamine levels, which we hypothesize may enhance conditioned responses since tonic dopamine levels modulate phasic dopamine release. To test this we assessed the effects of increasing tonic dopamine levels (using oral methylphenidate) on brain activation induced by cocaine-cues in cocaine abusers. Brain metabolism (marker of brain function) was measured with PET and...

  14. Measurement of striatal dopamine metabolism with 6-[18F]-fluoro-L-dopa and PET

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kuwabara, Y.; Otsuka, M.; Ichiya, Y.; Yoshikai, T.; Fukumura, T.; Masuda, K.; Kato, M.; Taniwaki, T.

    1992-01-01

    Striatal dopamine metabolism was studied with 6-[ 18 F]-fluoro-L-dopa ( 18 F-DOPA) and PET. The subjects were normal controls, and patients with Parkinson's disease (PD), parkinsonism, multiple system atrophy (MSA), progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP), Alzheimer's disease (AD), Huntington's disease (HD) and other cerebral disorders. Cerebral glucose metabolism (CMRGlc) was also measured in these patients. Striatal dopamine metabolism was evaluated by the relative striatal uptake of 18 F-DOPA referring cerebellum (S/C ratio). In normal controls, the S/C ratio was 2.82 ± 0.32 (n = 6, mean ± SD) at 120 min after injection of 18 F-DOPA. The S/C ratio was low in patients with PD, parkinsonism, MSA and PSP compared to the normal controls and thus coincident with the symptoms of parkinsonism due to decrease in striatal dopamine concentration. The decrease in the striatal CMRGlc was also observed in patients with parkinsonism and PSP, and it was preserved in patients with PD, thus representing that more neurons were damaged in patients with parkinsonism and PSP than in patients with PD. A patient with AD having symptoms of parkinsonism also showed a decrease in S/C ratio. In a patient with HD, the striatal CMRGlc sharply decreased, but the S/C ratio was normal. The measurements of striatal dopamine and glucose metabolism with PET may be useful for studying the pathophysiological mechanism in patients with cerebral disorders. (author)

  15. Brain Events Underlying Episodic Memory Changes in Aging: A Longitudinal Investigation of Structural and Functional Connectivity.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fjell, Anders M; Sneve, Markus H; Storsve, Andreas B; Grydeland, Håkon; Yendiki, Anastasia; Walhovd, Kristine B

    2016-03-01

    Episodic memories are established and maintained by close interplay between hippocampus and other cortical regions, but degradation of a fronto-striatal network has been suggested to be a driving force of memory decline in aging. We wanted to directly address how changes in hippocampal-cortical versus striatal-cortical networks over time impact episodic memory with age. We followed 119 healthy participants (20-83 years) for 3.5 years with repeated tests of episodic verbal memory and magnetic resonance imaging for quantification of functional and structural connectivity and regional brain atrophy. While hippocampal-cortical functional connectivity predicted memory change in young, changes in cortico-striatal functional connectivity were related to change in recall in older adults. Within each age group, effects of functional and structural connectivity were anatomically closely aligned. Interestingly, the relationship between functional connectivity and memory was strongest in the age ranges where the rate of reduction of the relevant brain structure was lowest, implying selective impacts of the different brain events on memory. Together, these findings suggest a partly sequential and partly simultaneous model of brain events underlying cognitive changes in aging, where different functional and structural events are more or less important in various time windows, dismissing a simple uni-factorial view on neurocognitive aging. © The Author 2015. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

  16. Control of striatal signaling by G protein regulators

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Keqiang eXie

    2011-08-01

    Full Text Available Signaling via heterotrimeric G proteins plays a crucial role in modulating the responses of striatal neurons that ultimately shape core behaviors mediated by the basal ganglia circuitry, such as reward valuation, habit formation and movement coordination. Activation of G-protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs by extracellular signals activates heterotrimeric G proteins by promoting the binding of GTP to their α subunits. G proteins exert their effects by influencing the activity of key effector proteins in this region, including ion channels, second messenger enzymes and protein kinases. Striatal neurons express a staggering number of GPCRs whose activation results in the engagement of downstream signaling pathways and cellular responses with unique profiles but common molecular mechanisms. Studies over the last decade have revealed that the extent and duration of GPCR signaling are controlled by a conserved protein family named Regulator of G protein Signaling (RGS. RGS proteins accelerate GTP hydrolysis by the α subunits of G proteins, thus promoting deactivation of GPCR signaling. In this review, we discuss the progress made in understanding the roles of RGS proteins in controlling striatal G protein signaling and providing integration and selectivity of signal transmission. We review evidence on the formation of a macromolecular complex between RGS proteins and other components of striatal signaling pathways, their molecular regulatory mechanisms and impacts on GPCR signaling in the striatum obtained from biochemical studies and experiments involving genetic mouse models. Special emphasis is placed on RGS9-2, a member of the RGS family that is highly enriched in the striatum and plays critical roles in drug addiction and motor control.

  17. Phantom dosimetry at 15 MV conformal radiation therapy

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Thompson, Larissa; Campos, Tarcisio P.R.; Dias, Humberto G.

    2013-01-01

    The main goal of this work was to evaluate the spatial dose distribution into a tumor simulator inside a head phantom exposed to a 15MV 3D conformal radiation therapy in order to validate internal doses. A head and neck phantom developed by the Ionizing Radiation Research Group (NRI) was used on the experiments. Therapy Radiation planning (TPS) was performed based on those CT images, satisfying a 200 cGy prescribed dose split in three irradiation fields. The TPS assumed 97% of prescribed dose cover the prescribed treatment volume (PTV). Radiochromic films in a solid water phantom provided dose response as a function of optical density. Spatial dosimetric distribution was generated by radiochromic film samples inserted into tumor simulator and brain. The spatial dose profiles held 70 to 120% of the prescribed dose. In spite of the stratified profile, as opposed to the smooth dose profile from TPS, the tumor internal doses were within a 5% deviation from 214.4 cGy evaluated by TPS. 83.2% of the points with a gamma value of less than 1 (3%/3mm) for TPS and experimental values, respectively. At the tumor, a few dark spots in the film caused the appearance of outlier points in 13-15% of dose deviation percentage. As final conclusion, such dosimeter choice and the physical anthropomorphic and anthropometric phantom provided an efficient method for validating radiotherapy protocols. (author)

  18. Phantom dosimetry at 15 MV conformal radiation therapy

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Thompson, Larissa; Campos, Tarcisio P.R.

    2015-01-01

    The main goal of this work was to evaluate the spatial dose distribution into a tumor simulator inside a head phantom exposed to a 15MV 3D conformal radiation therapy in order to validate internal doses. A head and neck phantom developed by the Ionizing Radiation Research Group (NRI) was used on the experiments. Therapy Radiation planning (TPS) was performed based on those CT images, satisfying a 200 cGy prescribed dose split in three irradiation fields. The TPS assumed 97% of prescribed dose cover the prescribed treatment volume (PTV). Radiochromic films in a solid water phantom provided dose response as a function of optical density. Spatial dosimetric distribution was generated by radiochromic film samples inserted into tumor simulator and brain. The spatial dose profiles held 70 to 120% of the prescribed dose. In spite of the stratified profile, as opposed to the smooth dose profile from TPS, the tumor internal doses were within a 5% deviation from 214.4 cGy evaluated by TPS. 83.2% of the points with a gamma value of less than 1 (3%/3mm) for TPS and experimental values, respectively. At the tumor, a few dark spots in the film caused the appearance of outlier points in 13-15% of dose deviation percentage. As final conclusion, such dosimeter choice and the physical anthropomorphic and anthropometric phantom provided an efficient method for validating radiotherapy protocols. (author)

  19. In vivo evidence of methamphetamine induced attenuation of brain tissue oxygenation as measured by EPR oximetry

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Weaver, John; Yang, Yirong; Purvis, Rebecca; Weatherwax, Theodore; Rosen, Gerald M.; Liu, Ke Jian

    2014-01-01

    Abuse of methamphetamine (METH) is a major and significant societal problem in the US, as a number of studies have suggested that METH is associated with increased cerebrovascular events, hemorrhage or vasospasm. Although cellular and molecular mechanisms involved in METH-induced toxicity are not completely understood, changes in brain O 2 may play an important role and contribute to METH-induced neurotoxicity including dopaminergic receptor degradation. Given that O 2 is the terminal electron acceptor for many enzymes that are important in brain function, the impact of METH on brain tissue pO 2 in vivo remains largely uncharacterized. This study investigated striatal tissue pO 2 changes in male C57BL/6 mice (16–20 g) following METH administration using EPR oximetry, a highly sensitive modality to measure pO 2 in vivo, in situ and in real time. We demonstrate that 20 min after a single injection of METH (8 mg/kg i.v.), the striatal pO 2 was reduced to 81% of the pretreatment level and exposure to METH for 3 consecutive days further attenuated striatal pO 2 to 64%. More importantly, pO 2 did not recover fully to control levels even 24 h after administration of a single dose of METH and continual exposure to METH exacerbates the condition. We also show a reduction in cerebral blood flow associated with a decreased brain pO 2 indicating an ischemic condition. Our findings suggests that administration of METH can attenuate brain tissue pO 2 , which may lead to hypoxic insult, thus a risk factor for METH-induced brain injury and the development of stroke in young adults. - Highlights: • Explored striatal tissue pO 2 in vivo after METH administration by EPR oximetry. • pO 2 was reduced by 81% after a single dose and 64% after 3 consecutive daily doses. • pO 2 did not recover fully to control levels even 24 h after a single dose. • Decrease in brain tissue pO 2 may be associated with a decrease in CBF. • Administration of methamphetamine may lead to hypoxic

  20. In vivo evidence of methamphetamine induced attenuation of brain tissue oxygenation as measured by EPR oximetry

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Weaver, John, E-mail: jmweaver@salud.unm.edu [Center of Biomedical Research Excellence, College of Pharmacy, University of New Mexico Health Sciences Center, Albuquerque, NM 87131 (United States); Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, College of Pharmacy, University of New Mexico Health Sciences Center, Albuquerque, NM 87131 (United States); Yang, Yirong [Center of Biomedical Research Excellence, College of Pharmacy, University of New Mexico Health Sciences Center, Albuquerque, NM 87131 (United States); Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, College of Pharmacy, University of New Mexico Health Sciences Center, Albuquerque, NM 87131 (United States); Purvis, Rebecca [Center of Biomedical Research Excellence, College of Pharmacy, University of New Mexico Health Sciences Center, Albuquerque, NM 87131 (United States); Department of Neurology, University of New Mexico Health Sciences Center, Albuquerque, NM 87131 (United States); Weatherwax, Theodore [Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, College of Pharmacy, University of New Mexico Health Sciences Center, Albuquerque, NM 87131 (United States); Rosen, Gerald M. [Center for Biomedical Engineering and Technology, University of Maryland, Baltimore, MD 21201 (United States); Center for EPR Imaging In Vivo Physiology, University of Maryland, Baltimore, MD 21201 (United States); Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Maryland School of Pharmacy, Baltimore, MD 21201 (United States); Liu, Ke Jian [Center of Biomedical Research Excellence, College of Pharmacy, University of New Mexico Health Sciences Center, Albuquerque, NM 87131 (United States); Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, College of Pharmacy, University of New Mexico Health Sciences Center, Albuquerque, NM 87131 (United States); Department of Neurology, University of New Mexico Health Sciences Center, Albuquerque, NM 87131 (United States)

    2014-03-01

    Abuse of methamphetamine (METH) is a major and significant societal problem in the US, as a number of studies have suggested that METH is associated with increased cerebrovascular events, hemorrhage or vasospasm. Although cellular and molecular mechanisms involved in METH-induced toxicity are not completely understood, changes in brain O{sub 2} may play an important role and contribute to METH-induced neurotoxicity including dopaminergic receptor degradation. Given that O{sub 2} is the terminal electron acceptor for many enzymes that are important in brain function, the impact of METH on brain tissue pO{sub 2}in vivo remains largely uncharacterized. This study investigated striatal tissue pO{sub 2} changes in male C57BL/6 mice (16–20 g) following METH administration using EPR oximetry, a highly sensitive modality to measure pO{sub 2}in vivo, in situ and in real time. We demonstrate that 20 min after a single injection of METH (8 mg/kg i.v.), the striatal pO{sub 2} was reduced to 81% of the pretreatment level and exposure to METH for 3 consecutive days further attenuated striatal pO{sub 2} to 64%. More importantly, pO{sub 2} did not recover fully to control levels even 24 h after administration of a single dose of METH and continual exposure to METH exacerbates the condition. We also show a reduction in cerebral blood flow associated with a decreased brain pO{sub 2} indicating an ischemic condition. Our findings suggests that administration of METH can attenuate brain tissue pO{sub 2}, which may lead to hypoxic insult, thus a risk factor for METH-induced brain injury and the development of stroke in young adults. - Highlights: • Explored striatal tissue pO{sub 2}in vivo after METH administration by EPR oximetry. • pO{sub 2} was reduced by 81% after a single dose and 64% after 3 consecutive daily doses. • pO{sub 2} did not recover fully to control levels even 24 h after a single dose. • Decrease in brain tissue pO{sub 2} may be associated with a decrease in

  1. Gender Differences in Age-Related Striatal Dopamine Depletion in Parkinson’s Disease

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jae Jung Lee

    2015-09-01

    Full Text Available Objective Gender differences are a well-known clinical characteristic of Parkinson’s disease (PD. In-vivo imaging studies demonstrated that women have greater striatal dopamine transporter (DAT activity than do men, both in the normal population and in PD patients. We hypothesize that women exhibit more rapid aging-related striatal DAT reduction than do men, as the potential neuroprotective effect of estrogen wanes with age. Methods This study included 307 de novo PD patients (152 men and 155 women who underwent DAT scans for an initial diagnostic work-up. Gender differences in age-related DAT decline were assessed in striatal sub-regions using linear regression analysis. Results Female patients exhibited greater DAT activity compared with male patients in all striatal sub-regions. The linear regression analysis revealed that age-related DAT decline was greater in the anterior and posterior caudate, and the anterior putamen in women compared with men; we did not observe this difference in other sub-regions. Conclusions This study demonstrated the presence of gender differences in age-related DAT decline in striatal sub-regions, particularly in the antero-dorsal striatum, in patients with PD, presumably due to aging-related decrease in estrogen. Because this difference was not observed in the sensorimotor striatum, this finding also suggests that women may not have a greater capacity to tolerate PD pathogenesis than do men.

  2. Brief exposure to obesogenic diet disrupts brain dopamine networks.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Robert L Barry

    Full Text Available We have previously demonstrated that insulin signaling, through the downstream signaling kinase Akt, is a potent modulator of dopamine transporter (DAT activity, which fine-tunes dopamine (DA signaling at the synapse. This suggests a mechanism by which impaired neuronal insulin receptor signaling, a hallmark of diet-induced obesity, may contribute to impaired DA transmission. We tested whether a short-term (two-week obesogenic high-fat (HF diet could reduce striatal Akt activity, a marker of central insulin, receptor signaling and blunt striatal and dopaminergic network responsiveness to amphetamine (AMPH.We examined the effects of a two-week HF diet on striatal DAT activity in rats, using AMPH as a probe in a functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI assay, and mapped the disruption in AMPH-evoked functional connectivity between key dopaminergic targets and their projection areas using correlation and permutation analyses. We used phosphorylation of the Akt substrate GSK3α in striatal extracts as a measure of insulin receptor signaling. Finally, we confirmed the impact of HF diet on striatal DA D2 receptor (D2R availability using [18F]fallypride positron emission tomography (PET.We found that rats fed a HF diet for only two weeks have reductions in striatal Akt activity, a marker of decreased striatal insulin receptor signaling and blunted striatal responsiveness to AMPH. HF feeding also reduced interactions between elements of the mesolimbic (nucleus accumbens-anterior cingulate and sensorimotor circuits (caudate/putamen-thalamus-sensorimotor cortex implicated in hedonic feeding. D2R availability was reduced in HF-fed animals.These studies support the hypothesis that central insulin signaling and dopaminergic neurotransmission are already altered after short-term HF feeding. Because AMPH induces DA efflux and brain activation, in large part via DAT, these findings suggest that blunted central nervous system insulin receptor signaling

  3. Monte Carlo simulation studies on scintillation detectors and image reconstruction of brain-phantom tumors in TOFPET

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mondal Nagendra

    2009-01-01

    Full Text Available This study presents Monte Carlo Simulation (MCS results of detection efficiencies, spatial resolutions and resolving powers of a time-of-flight (TOF PET detector systems. Cerium activated Lutetium Oxyorthosilicate (Lu 2 SiO 5 : Ce in short LSO, Barium Fluoride (BaF 2 and BriLanCe 380 (Cerium doped Lanthanum tri-Bromide, in short LaBr 3 scintillation crystals are studied in view of their good time and energy resolutions and shorter decay times. The results of MCS based on GEANT show that spatial resolution, detection efficiency and resolving power of LSO are better than those of BaF 2 and LaBr 3 , although it possesses inferior time and energy resolutions. Instead of the conventional position reconstruction method, newly established image reconstruction (talked about in the previous work method is applied to produce high-tech images. Validation is a momentous step to ensure that this imaging method fulfills all purposes of motivation discussed by reconstructing images of two tumors in a brain phantom.

  4. Moderation of the Relationship Between Reward Expectancy and Prediction Error-Related Ventral Striatal Reactivity by Anhedonia in Unmedicated Major Depressive Disorder: Findings From the EMBARC Study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Greenberg, Tsafrir; Chase, Henry W; Almeida, Jorge R; Stiffler, Richelle; Zevallos, Carlos R; Aslam, Haris A; Deckersbach, Thilo; Weyandt, Sarah; Cooper, Crystal; Toups, Marisa; Carmody, Thomas; Kurian, Benji; Peltier, Scott; Adams, Phillip; McInnis, Melvin G; Oquendo, Maria A; McGrath, Patrick J; Fava, Maurizio; Weissman, Myrna; Parsey, Ramin; Trivedi, Madhukar H; Phillips, Mary L

    2015-09-01

    Anhedonia, disrupted reward processing, is a core symptom of major depressive disorder. Recent findings demonstrate altered reward-related ventral striatal reactivity in depressed individuals, but the extent to which this is specific to anhedonia remains poorly understood. The authors examined the effect of anhedonia on reward expectancy (expected outcome value) and prediction error- (discrepancy between expected and actual outcome) related ventral striatal reactivity, as well as the relationship between these measures. A total of 148 unmedicated individuals with major depressive disorder and 31 healthy comparison individuals recruited for the multisite EMBARC (Establishing Moderators and Biosignatures of Antidepressant Response in Clinical Care) study underwent functional MRI during a well-validated reward task. Region of interest and whole-brain data were examined in the first- (N=78) and second- (N=70) recruited cohorts, as well as the total sample, of depressed individuals, and in healthy individuals. Healthy, but not depressed, individuals showed a significant inverse relationship between reward expectancy and prediction error-related right ventral striatal reactivity. Across all participants, and in depressed individuals only, greater anhedonia severity was associated with a reduced reward expectancy-prediction error inverse relationship, even after controlling for other symptoms. The normal reward expectancy and prediction error-related ventral striatal reactivity inverse relationship concords with conditioning models, predicting a shift in ventral striatal responding from reward outcomes to reward cues. This study shows, for the first time, an absence of this relationship in two cohorts of unmedicated depressed individuals and a moderation of this relationship by anhedonia, suggesting reduced reward-contingency learning with greater anhedonia. These findings help elucidate neural mechanisms of anhedonia, as a step toward identifying potential biosignatures

  5. Phantom pain and phantom sensations in upper limb amputees : an epidemiological study

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Kooijman, CM; Dijkstra, PU; Geertzen, JHB; Elzinga, A; van der Schans, CP

    Phantom pain in subjects with an amputated limb is a well-known problem. However, estimates of the prevalence of phantom pain differ considerably in the literature. Various factors associated with phantom pain have been described including pain before the amputation, gender, dominance, and time

  6. Individual virtual phantom reconstruction for organ dosimetry based on standard available phantoms

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Babapour Mofrad, F.; Aghaeizadeh Zoroofi, R.; Abbaspour Tehran Fard, A.; Akhlaghpoor, Sh.; Chen, Y. W.; Sato, Y.

    2010-01-01

    In nuclear medicine application often it is required to use computational methods for evaluation of organ absorbed dose. Monte Carlo Simulation and phantoms have been used in many works before. The shape, size and volume In organs are varied, and this variation will produce error in dose calculation if no correction is applied. Materials and Methods: A computational framework for constructing individual phantom for dosimetry was performed on five liver CT scan data sets of Japanese normal individuals. The Zubal phantom was used as an original phantom to be adjusted by each individual data set. This registration was done by Spherical Harmonics and Thin-Plate Spline methods. Hausdorff distance was calculated for each case. Results: Result of Hausdorff distance for five lndividual phantoms showed that before registration ranged from 140.9 to 192.1, and after registration it changed to 52.5 to 76.7. This was caused by Index similarity ranged from %56.4 to %70.3. Conclusion: A new and automatic three-dimensional (3D) phantom construction approach was-suggested for individual internal dosimetry simulation via Spherical Harmonics and Thin-Plate Spline methods. The results showed that the Individual comparable phantom can be calculated with acceptable accuracy using geometric registration. This method could be used for race-specific statistical phantom modeling with major application in nuclear medicine for absorbed dose calculation.

  7. In vivo evidence of methamphetamine induced attenuation of brain tissue oxygenation as measured by EPR oximetry

    Science.gov (United States)

    Weaver, John; Yang, Yirong; Purvis, Rebecca; Weatherwax, Theodore; Rosen, Gerald M.; Liu, Ke Jian

    2014-01-01

    Abuse of methamphetamine (METH) is a major and significant societal problem in the US, as a number of studies have suggested that METH is associated with increased cerebrovascular events, hemorrhage or vasospasm. Although cellular and molecular mechanisms involved in METH-induced toxicity are not completely understood, changes in brain O2 may play an important role and contribute to METH-induced neurotoxicity including dopaminergic receptor degradation. Given that O2 is the terminal electron acceptor for many enzymes that are important in brain function, the impact of METH on brain tissue pO2 in vivo remains largely uncharacterized. This study investigated striatal tissue pO2 changes in male C57BL/6 mice (16–20g) following METH administration using EPR oximetry, a highly sensitive modality to measure pO2 in vivo, in situ and in real time. We demonstrate that 20 min after a single injection of METH (8 mg/kg i.v.), the striatal pO2 was reduced to 81% of the pretreatment level and exposure to METH for 3 consecutive days further attenuated striatal pO2 to 64%. More importantly, pO2 did not recover fully to control levels even 24 hrs after administration of a single dose of METH. and continual exposure to METH exacerbates the condition. We also show a reduction in cerebral blood flow associated with a decreased brain pO2 indicating an ischemic condition. Our findings suggests that administration of METH can attenuate brain tissue pO2, which may lead to hypoxic insult, thus a risk factor for METH-induced brain injury and the development of stroke in young adults. PMID:24412707

  8. Voxel-based analysis of whole-brain effects of age and gender on dopamine transporter SPECT imaging in healthy subjects

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Eusebio, Alexandre; Azulay, Jean-Philippe; Ceccaldi, Mathieu; Girard, Nadine; Mundler, Olivier; Guedj, Eric

    2012-01-01

    Several studies have shown age- and gender-related differences in striatal dopamine transporter (DaT) binding. These studies were based on a striatal region on interest approach that may have underestimated these effects and could not evaluate extrastriatal regions. Our aim was to determine the effects at the voxel level of age and gender on whole-brain DaT distribution using [ 123 I]FP-CIT SPECT in healthy subjects. We performed a whole-brain [ 123 I]FP-CIT SPECT voxel-based analysis using SPM8 and a standardized normalization template (p < 0.05, corrected using the false discovery rate method) in 51 healthy subjects aged from 21 to 79 years. We found an age-related DaT binding decrease in the striatum, anterior cingulate/medial frontal cortices and insulo-opercular cortices. Also DaT binding ratios were higher in women than men in the striatum and opercular cortices. This study showed both striatal and extrastriatal age-related and gender-related differences in DaT binding in healthy subjects using a whole-brain voxel-based non-a priori approach. These differences highlight the need for careful age and gender matching in DaT analyses of neuropsychiatric disorders. (orig.)

  9. Voxel-based analysis of whole-brain effects of age and gender on dopamine transporter SPECT imaging in healthy subjects

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Eusebio, Alexandre; Azulay, Jean-Philippe [APHM, Hopital de la Timone, Service de Neurologie et Pathologie du Mouvement, Marseille (France); CNRS, Aix-Marseille Univ, Institut de Neurosciences de la Timone, Marseille (France); Ceccaldi, Mathieu [APHM, Hopital de la Timone, Service de Neurologie et de Neuropsychologie, Marseille (France); Aix-Marseille Univ, UMR Inserm 1106, Institut de Neurosciences des Systemes, Marseille (France); Girard, Nadine [APHM, Hopital de la Timone, Service de Neuroradiologie diagnostique et interventionnelle, Marseille (France); Mundler, Olivier [APHM, Hopital de la Timone, Service Central de Biophysique et Medecine Nucleaire, Marseille (France); Aix-Marseille Univ, CERIMED, Marseille (France); Guedj, Eric [CNRS, Aix-Marseille Univ, Institut de Neurosciences de la Timone, Marseille (France); APHM, Hopital de la Timone, Service Central de Biophysique et Medecine Nucleaire, Marseille (France); Aix-Marseille Univ, CERIMED, Marseille (France)

    2012-11-15

    Several studies have shown age- and gender-related differences in striatal dopamine transporter (DaT) binding. These studies were based on a striatal region on interest approach that may have underestimated these effects and could not evaluate extrastriatal regions. Our aim was to determine the effects at the voxel level of age and gender on whole-brain DaT distribution using [{sup 123}I]FP-CIT SPECT in healthy subjects. We performed a whole-brain [{sup 123}I]FP-CIT SPECT voxel-based analysis using SPM8 and a standardized normalization template (p < 0.05, corrected using the false discovery rate method) in 51 healthy subjects aged from 21 to 79 years. We found an age-related DaT binding decrease in the striatum, anterior cingulate/medial frontal cortices and insulo-opercular cortices. Also DaT binding ratios were higher in women than men in the striatum and opercular cortices. This study showed both striatal and extrastriatal age-related and gender-related differences in DaT binding in healthy subjects using a whole-brain voxel-based non-a priori approach. These differences highlight the need for careful age and gender matching in DaT analyses of neuropsychiatric disorders. (orig.)

  10. Nature or Nurture? Determining the Heritability of Human Striatal Dopamine Function: an [18F]-DOPA PET Study

    Science.gov (United States)

    Stokes, Paul R A; Shotbolt, Paul; Mehta, Mitul A; Turkheimer, Eric; Benecke, Aaf; Copeland, Caroline; Turkheimer, Federico E; Lingford-Hughes, Anne R; Howes, Oliver D

    2013-01-01

    Striatal dopamine function is important for normal personality, cognitive processes and behavior, and abnormalities are linked to a number of neuropsychiatric disorders. However, no studies have examined the relative influence of genetic inheritance and environmental factors in determining striatal dopamine function. Using [18F]-DOPA positron emission tomography (PET), we sought to determine the heritability of presynaptic striatal dopamine function by comparing variability in uptake values in same sex monozygotic (MZ) twins to dizygotic (DZ) twins. Nine MZ and 10 DZ twin pairs underwent high-resolution [18F]-DOPA PET to assess presynaptic striatal dopamine function. Uptake values for the overall striatum and functional striatal subdivisions were determined by a Patlak analysis using a cerebellar reference region. Heritability, shared environmental effects and non-shared individual-specific effects were estimated using a region of interest (ROI) analysis and a confirmatory parametric analysis. Overall striatal heritability estimates from the ROI and parametric analyses were 0.44 and 0.33, respectively. We found a distinction between striatal heritability in the functional subdivisions, with the greatest heritability estimates occurring in the sensorimotor striatum and the greatest effect of individual-specific environmental factors in the limbic striatum. Our results indicate that variation in overall presynaptic striatal dopamine function is determined by a combination of genetic factors and individual-specific environmental factors, with familial environmental effects having no effect. These findings underline the importance of individual-specific environmental factors for striatal dopaminergic function, particularly in the limbic striatum, with implications for understanding neuropsychiatric disorders such as schizophrenia and addictions. PMID:23093224

  11. 'It's All Done With Mirrors': V.S. Ramachandran and the Material Culture of Phantom Limb Research.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Guenther, Katja

    2016-07-01

    This article examines the material culture of neuroscientist Vilayanur S. Ramachandran's research into phantom limbs. In the 1990s Ramachandran used a 'mirror box' to 'resurrect' phantom limbs and thus to treat the pain that often accompanied them. The experimental success of his mirror therapy led Ramachandran to see mirrors as a useful model of brain function, a tendency that explains his attraction to work on 'mirror neurons'. I argue that Ramachandran's fascination with and repeated appeal to the mirror can be explained by the way it allowed him to confront a perennial problem in the mind and brain sciences, that of the relationship between a supposedly immaterial mind and a material brain. By producing what Ramachandran called a 'virtual reality', relating in varied and complex ways to the material world, the mirror reproduced a form of psycho-physical parallelism and dualistic ontology, while conforming to the materialist norms of neuroscience today.

  12. Possible association between phantom vibration syndrome and occupational burnout

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Chen CP

    2014-12-01

    Full Text Available Chao-Pen Chen,1 Chi-Cheng Wu,2 Li-Ren Chang,3 Yu-Hsuan Lin4 1Department of Education, National Taiwan University Hospital, 2Department of Family Medicine, Min-Sheng General Hospital, Taoyuan City, 3Department of Psychiatry, National Taiwan University, College of Medicine, 4Institute of Brain Science, National Yang-Ming University, Taipei, Taiwan Background: Phantom vibration syndrome (PVS and phantom ringing syndrome (PRS occur in many cell phone users. Previous studies have indicated an association between PVS/PRS and job stress. The aim of this study was to determine if PVS/PRS were also associated with occupational burnout.Methods: This was a cross-sectional study of 384 employees of a high-tech company in northern Taiwan. They all completed a phantom vibration and ringing questionnaire, the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale, and the Chinese version of the Occupational Burnout Inventory.Results: Significantly more women and people with at least a college education were in the population with PRS and PVS, respectively. Anxiety and depression had no associations with PVS/PRS. Higher scores for personal fatigue, job fatigue, and service target fatigue had an independent impact on the presence of PVS, but only a higher score for service target fatigue had an independent impact on the presence of PRS.Conclusion: The independent association between work-related burnout and PVS/PRS suggests that PVS/PRS may be a harbinger of mental stress or a component of the clinical burnout syndrome, and may even be a more convenient and accurate predictor of occupational burnout. Keywords: phantom vibration syndrome, phantom ringing syndrome, occupational burnout

  13. BrainNetCNN: Convolutional neural networks for brain networks; towards predicting neurodevelopment.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kawahara, Jeremy; Brown, Colin J; Miller, Steven P; Booth, Brian G; Chau, Vann; Grunau, Ruth E; Zwicker, Jill G; Hamarneh, Ghassan

    2017-02-01

    We propose BrainNetCNN, a convolutional neural network (CNN) framework to predict clinical neurodevelopmental outcomes from brain networks. In contrast to the spatially local convolutions done in traditional image-based CNNs, our BrainNetCNN is composed of novel edge-to-edge, edge-to-node and node-to-graph convolutional filters that leverage the topological locality of structural brain networks. We apply the BrainNetCNN framework to predict cognitive and motor developmental outcome scores from structural brain networks of infants born preterm. Diffusion tensor images (DTI) of preterm infants, acquired between 27 and 46 weeks gestational age, were used to construct a dataset of structural brain connectivity networks. We first demonstrate the predictive capabilities of BrainNetCNN on synthetic phantom networks with simulated injury patterns and added noise. BrainNetCNN outperforms a fully connected neural-network with the same number of model parameters on both phantoms with focal and diffuse injury patterns. We then apply our method to the task of joint prediction of Bayley-III cognitive and motor scores, assessed at 18 months of age, adjusted for prematurity. We show that our BrainNetCNN framework outperforms a variety of other methods on the same data. Furthermore, BrainNetCNN is able to identify an infant's postmenstrual age to within about 2 weeks. Finally, we explore the high-level features learned by BrainNetCNN by visualizing the importance of each connection in the brain with respect to predicting the outcome scores. These findings are then discussed in the context of the anatomy and function of the developing preterm infant brain. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  14. Genetically determined measures of striatal D2 signaling predict prefrontal activity during working memory performance.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bertolino, Alessandro; Taurisano, Paolo; Pisciotta, Nicola Marco; Blasi, Giuseppe; Fazio, Leonardo; Romano, Raffaella; Gelao, Barbara; Lo Bianco, Luciana; Lozupone, Madia; Di Giorgio, Annabella; Caforio, Grazia; Sambataro, Fabio; Niccoli-Asabella, Artor; Papp, Audrey; Ursini, Gianluca; Sinibaldi, Lorenzo; Popolizio, Teresa; Sadee, Wolfgang; Rubini, Giuseppe

    2010-02-22

    Variation of the gene coding for D2 receptors (DRD2) has been associated with risk for schizophrenia and with working memory deficits. A functional intronic SNP (rs1076560) predicts relative expression of the two D2 receptors isoforms, D2S (mainly pre-synaptic) and D2L (mainly post-synaptic). However, the effect of functional genetic variation of DRD2 on striatal dopamine D2 signaling and on its correlation with prefrontal activity during working memory in humans is not known. Thirty-seven healthy subjects were genotyped for rs1076560 (G>T) and underwent SPECT with [123I]IBZM (which binds primarily to post-synaptic D2 receptors) and with [123I]FP-CIT (which binds to pre-synaptic dopamine transporters, whose activity and density is also regulated by pre-synaptic D2 receptors), as well as BOLD fMRI during N-Back working memory. Subjects carrying the T allele (previously associated with reduced D2S expression) had striatal reductions of [123I]IBZM and of [123I]FP-CIT binding. DRD2 genotype also differentially predicted the correlation between striatal dopamine D2 signaling (as identified with factor analysis of the two radiotracers) and activity of the prefrontal cortex during working memory as measured with BOLD fMRI, which was positive in GG subjects and negative in GT. Our results demonstrate that this functional SNP within DRD2 predicts striatal binding of the two radiotracers to dopamine transporters and D2 receptors as well as the correlation between striatal D2 signaling with prefrontal cortex activity during performance of a working memory task. These data are consistent with the possibility that the balance of excitatory/inhibitory modulation of striatal neurons may also affect striatal outputs in relationship with prefrontal activity during working memory performance within the cortico-striatal-thalamic-cortical pathway.

  15. Genetically determined measures of striatal D2 signaling predict prefrontal activity during working memory performance.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Alessandro Bertolino

    2010-02-01

    Full Text Available Variation of the gene coding for D2 receptors (DRD2 has been associated with risk for schizophrenia and with working memory deficits. A functional intronic SNP (rs1076560 predicts relative expression of the two D2 receptors isoforms, D2S (mainly pre-synaptic and D2L (mainly post-synaptic. However, the effect of functional genetic variation of DRD2 on striatal dopamine D2 signaling and on its correlation with prefrontal activity during working memory in humans is not known.Thirty-seven healthy subjects were genotyped for rs1076560 (G>T and underwent SPECT with [123I]IBZM (which binds primarily to post-synaptic D2 receptors and with [123I]FP-CIT (which binds to pre-synaptic dopamine transporters, whose activity and density is also regulated by pre-synaptic D2 receptors, as well as BOLD fMRI during N-Back working memory.Subjects carrying the T allele (previously associated with reduced D2S expression had striatal reductions of [123I]IBZM and of [123I]FP-CIT binding. DRD2 genotype also differentially predicted the correlation between striatal dopamine D2 signaling (as identified with factor analysis of the two radiotracers and activity of the prefrontal cortex during working memory as measured with BOLD fMRI, which was positive in GG subjects and negative in GT.Our results demonstrate that this functional SNP within DRD2 predicts striatal binding of the two radiotracers to dopamine transporters and D2 receptors as well as the correlation between striatal D2 signaling with prefrontal cortex activity during performance of a working memory task. These data are consistent with the possibility that the balance of excitatory/inhibitory modulation of striatal neurons may also affect striatal outputs in relationship with prefrontal activity during working memory performance within the cortico-striatal-thalamic-cortical pathway.

  16. Connectomic disturbances in attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder: a whole-brain tractography analysis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hong, Soon-Beom; Zalesky, Andrew; Fornito, Alex; Park, Subin; Yang, Young-Hui; Park, Min-Hyeon; Song, In-Chan; Sohn, Chul-Ho; Shin, Min-Sup; Kim, Bung-Nyun; Cho, Soo-Churl; Han, Doug Hyun; Cheong, Jae Hoon; Kim, Jae-Won

    2014-10-15

    Few studies have sought to identify, in a regionally unbiased way, the precise cortical and subcortical regions that are affected by white matter abnormalities in attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). This study aimed to derive a comprehensive, whole-brain characterization of connectomic disturbances in ADHD. Using diffusion tensor imaging, whole-brain tractography, and an imaging connectomics approach, we characterized altered white matter connectivity in 71 children and adolescents with ADHD compared with 26 healthy control subjects. White matter differences were further delineated between patients with (n = 40) and without (n = 26) the predominantly hyperactive/impulsive subtype of ADHD. A significant network comprising 25 distinct fiber bundles linking 23 different brain regions spanning frontal, striatal, and cerebellar brain regions showed altered white matter structure in ADHD patients (p attentional disturbances. Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder subtypes were differentiated by a right-lateralized network (p attentional performance underscore the functional importance of these connectomic disturbances for the clinical phenotype of ADHD. A distributed pattern of white matter microstructural integrity separately involving frontal, striatal, and cerebellar brain regions, rather than direct frontostriatal connectivity, appears to be disrupted in children and adolescents with ADHD. Copyright © 2014 Society of Biological Psychiatry. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  17. HIV infection results in ventral-striatal reward system hypo-activation during cue processing

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Plessis, Stéfan du; Vink, Matthijs; Joska, John A; Koutsilieri, Eleni; Bagadia, Asif; Stein, Dan J; Emsley, Robin

    2015-01-01

    OBJECTIVE: Functional MRI has thus far demonstrated that HIV has an impact on frontal-striatal systems involved in executive functioning. The potential impact of HIV on frontal-striatal systems involved in reward processing has yet to be examined by functional MRI. This study therefore aims to

  18. Opiate sensitization induces FosB/ΔFosB expression in prefrontal cortical, striatal and amygdala brain regions.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Gary B Kaplan

    Full Text Available Sensitization to the effects of drugs of abuse and associated stimuli contributes to drug craving, compulsive drug use, and relapse in addiction. Repeated opiate exposure produces behavioral sensitization that is hypothesized to result from neural plasticity in specific limbic, striatal and cortical systems. ΔFosB and FosB are members of the Fos family of transcription factors that are implicated in neural plasticity in addiction. This study examined the effects of intermittent morphine treatment, associated with motor sensitization, on FosB/ΔFosB levels using quantitative immunohistochemistry. Motor sensitization was tested in C57BL/6 mice that received six intermittent pre-treatments (on days 1, 3, 5, 8, 10, 12 with either subcutaneous morphine (10 mg/kg or saline followed by a challenge injection of morphine or saline on day 16. Mice receiving repeated morphine injections demonstrated significant increases in locomotor activity on days 8, 10, and 12 of treatment (vs. day 1, consistent with development of locomotor sensitization. A morphine challenge on day 16 significantly increased locomotor activity of saline pre-treated mice and produced even larger increases in motor activity in the morphine pre-treated mice, consistent with the expression of opiate sensitization. Intermittent morphine pre-treatment on these six pre-treatment days produced a significant induction of FosB/ΔFosB, measured on day 16, in multiple brain regions including prelimbic (PL and infralimbic (IL cortex, nucleus accumbens (NAc core, dorsomedial caudate-putamen (CPU, basolateral amygdala (BLA and central nucleus of the amygdala (CNA but not in a motor cortex control region. Opiate induced sensitization may develop via Fos/ΔFosB plasticity in motivational pathways (NAc, motor outputs (CPU, and associative learning (PL, IL, BLA and stress pathways (CNA.

  19. Beyond the Classic VTA: Extended Amygdala Projections to DA-Striatal Paths in the Primate.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fudge, Julie L; Kelly, Emily A; Pal, Ria; Bedont, Joseph L; Park, Lydia; Ho, Brian

    2017-07-01

    The central extended amygdala (CEA) has been conceptualized as a 'macrosystem' that regulates various stress-induced behaviors. Consistent with this, the CEA highly expresses corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF), an important modulator of stress responses. Stress alters goal-directed responses associated with striatal paths, including maladaptive responses such as drug seeking, social withdrawal, and compulsive behavior. CEA inputs to the midbrain dopamine (DA) system are positioned to influence striatal functions through mesolimbic DA-striatal pathways. However, the structure of this amygdala-CEA-DA neuron path to the striatum has been poorly characterized in primates. In primates, we combined neuronal tracer injections into various arms of the circuit through specific DA subpopulations to assess: (1) whether the circuit connecting amygdala, CEA, and DA cells follows CEA intrinsic organization, or a more direct topography involving bed nucleus vs central nucleus divisions; (2) CRF content of the CEA-DA path; and (3) striatal subregions specifically involved in CEA-DA-striatal loops. We found that the amygdala-CEA-DA path follows macrostructural subdivisions, with the majority of input/outputs converging in the medial central nucleus, the sublenticular extended amygdala, and the posterior lateral bed nucleus of the stria terminalis. The proportion of CRF+ outputs is >50%, and mainly targets the A10 parabrachial pigmented nucleus (PBP) and A8 (retrorubal field, RRF) neuronal subpopulations, with additional inputs to the dorsal A9 neurons. CRF-enriched CEA-DA projections are positioned to influence outputs to the 'limbic-associative' striatum, which is distinct from striatal regions targeted by DA cells lacking CEA input. We conclude that the concept of the CEA is supported on connectional grounds, and that CEA termination over the PBP and RRF neuronal populations can influence striatal circuits involved in associative learning.

  20. Brain volume measurement using three-dimensional magnetic resonance images

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ishimaru, Yoshihiro

    1996-01-01

    This study was designed to validate accurate measurement method of human brain volume using three dimensional (3D) MRI data on a workstation, and to establish optimal correcting method of human brain volume on diagnosis of brain atrophy. 3D MRI data were acquired by fast SPGR sequence using 1.5 T MR imager. 3D MRI data were segmented by region growing method and 3D image was displayed by surface rendering method on the workstation. Brain volume was measured by the volume measurement function of the workstation. In order to validate the accurate measurement method, phantoms and a specimen of human brain were examined. Phantom volume was measured by changing the lower level of threshold value. At the appropriate threshold value, percentage of error of phantoms and the specimen were within 0.6% and 0.08%, respectively. To establish the optimal correcting method, 130 normal volunteers were examined. Brain volumes corrected with height weight, body surface area, and alternative skull volume were evaluated. Brain volume index, which is defined as dividing brain volume by alternative skull volume, had the best correlation with age (r=0.624, p<0.05). No gender differences was observed in brain volume index in contrast to in brain volume. The clinical usefulness of this correcting method for brain atrophy diagnosis was evaluated in 85 patients. Diagnosis by 2D spin echo MR images was compared with brain volume index. Diagnosis of brain atrophy by 2D MR image was concordant with the evaluation by brain volume index. These results indicated that this measurement method had high accuracy, and it was important to set the appropriate threshold value. Brain volume index was the appropriate indication for evaluation of human brain volume, and was considered to be useful for the diagnosis of brain atrophy. (author)

  1. Phantom somatosensory evoked potentials following selective intraneural electrical stimulation in two amputees.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Granata, Giuseppe; Di Iorio, Riccardo; Romanello, Roberto; Iodice, Francesco; Raspopovic, Stanisa; Petrini, Francesco; Strauss, Ivo; Valle, Giacomo; Stieglitz, Thomas; Čvančara, Paul; Andreu, David; Divoux, Jean-Louis; Guiraud, David; Wauters, Loic; Hiairrassary, Arthur; Jensen, Winnie; Micera, Silvestro; Rossini, Paolo Maria

    2018-06-01

    The aim of the paper is to objectively demonstrate that amputees implanted with intraneural interfaces are truly able to feel a sensation in the phantom hand by recording "phantom" somatosensory evoked potentials from the corresponding brain areas. We implanted four transverse intrafascicular multichannel electrodes, available with percutaneous connections to a multichannel electrical stimulator, in the median and ulnar nerves of two left trans-radial amputees. Two channels of the implants that were able to elicit sensations during intraneural nerve stimulation were chosen, in both patients, for recording somatosensory evoked potentials. We recorded reproducible evoked responses by stimulating the median and the ulnar nerves in both cases. Latencies were in accordance with the arrival of somatosensory information to the primary somatosensory cortex. Our results provide evidence that sensations generated by intraneural stimulation are truly perceived by amputees and located in the phantom hand. Moreover, our results strongly suggest that sensations perceived in different parts of the phantom hand result in different evoked responses. Somatosensory evoked potentials obtained by selective intraneural electrical stimulation in amputee patients are a useful tool to provide an objective demonstration of somatosensory feedback in new generation bidirectional prostheses. Copyright © 2018. Published by Elsevier B.V.

  2. Brain inflammation enhances 1-methyl-4-phenylpyridinium-evoked neurotoxicity in rats

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Goralski, Kerry B.; Renton, Kenneth W.

    2004-01-01

    Experimental Parkinson's disease and Parkinson's disease in humans include a CNS inflammatory component that may contribute to the pathogenesis of the disease. CNS inflammation produces a loss in cytochrome P450 metabolism and may impair the brain's protection against neurotoxins. We have examined if preexisting inflammation in the brain could increase the toxicity of the dopaminergic toxin 1-methyl-4-phenylpyridinium (MPP + ). Lipopolysaccharide (LPS, 25 μg) or saline (control) was injected into the left lateral cerebral ventricle. A single injection of MPP + into the median forebrain bundle followed 48 h later and produced a reduction in striatal dopamine content that was dose and time dependant. Two-days after 5 μg of MPP + was administered, a 90% decrease in striatal dopamine content was observed in saline- and LPS-pretreated rats. However, 4 and 7 days after 5 μg MPP + treatment, striatal dopamine recovered up to 70-80% of control values in saline-pretreated rats but remained depressed (80-90%) in rats treated with LPS. These results suggested that CNS inflammation might create an increased risk factor for drug-induced CNS toxicity or chemically mediated Parkinson's disease. The prolonged toxicity of MPP + may be due to a decrease in brain cytochrome P450 metabolism that occurs during inflammation. As a second objective for the study, we examined if the CNS lesion produced by MPP + altered cytochrome P450 metabolic activity in the liver, kidney, and lung. We have demonstrated a novel mechanism whereby the brain pathology produced by MPP + treatment contributes to a reduction in cytochrome P450 metabolism in the kidney but not the liver or lung. Therefore, a chemically evoked CNS disorder with a chronic inflammatory component might have major effects on the renal metabolism of drugs or endogenous substrates

  3. Motor tics evoked by striatal disinhibition in the rat

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bronfeld, Maya; Yael, Dorin; Belelovsky, Katya; Bar-Gad, Izhar

    2013-01-01

    Motor tics are sudden, brief, repetitive movements that constitute the main symptom of Tourette syndrome (TS). Multiple lines of evidence suggest the involvement of the cortico-basal ganglia system, and in particular the basal ganglia input structure—the striatum in tic formation. The striatum receives somatotopically organized cortical projections and contains an internal GABAergic network of interneurons and projection neurons' collaterals. Disruption of local striatal GABAergic connectivity has been associated with TS and was found to induce abnormal movements in model animals. We have previously described the behavioral and neurophysiological characteristics of motor tics induced in monkeys by local striatal microinjections of the GABAA antagonist bicuculline. In the current study we explored the abnormal movements induced by a similar manipulation in freely moving rats. We targeted microinjections to different parts of the dorsal striatum, and examined the effects of this manipulation on the induced tic properties, such as latency, duration, and somatic localization. Tics induced by striatal disinhibition in monkeys and rats shared multiple properties: tics began within several minutes after microinjection, were expressed solely in the contralateral side, and waxed and waned around a mean inter-tic interval of 1–4 s. A clear somatotopic organization was observed only in rats, where injections to the anterior or posterior striatum led to tics in the forelimb or hindlimb areas, respectively. These results suggest that striatal disinhibition in the rat may be used to model motor tics such as observed in TS. Establishing this reliable and accessible animal model could facilitate the study of the neural mechanisms underlying motor tics, and the testing of potential therapies for tic disorders. PMID:24065893

  4. Neuroglial plasticity at striatal glutamatergic synapses in Parkinson's disease

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Rosa M Villalba

    2011-08-01

    Full Text Available Striatal dopamine denervation is the pathological hallmark of Parkinson’s disease (PD. Another major pathological change described in animal models and PD patients is a significant reduction in the density of dendritic spines on medium spiny striatal projection neurons. Simultaneously, the ultrastructural features of the neuronal synaptic elements at the remaining corticostriatal and thalamostriatal glutamatergic axo-spinous synapses undergo complex ultrastructural remodeling consistent with increased synaptic activity (Villalba et al., 2011. The concept of tripartite synapses (TS was introduced a decade ago, according to which astrocytes process and exchange information with neuronal synaptic elements at glutamatergic synapses (Araque et al., 1999a. Although there has been compelling evidence that astrocytes are integral functional elements of tripartite glutamatergic synaptic complexes in the cerebral cortex and hippocampus, their exact functional role, degree of plasticity and preponderance in other CNS regions remain poorly understood. In this review, we discuss our recent findings showing that neuronal elements at cortical and thalamic glutamatergic synapses undergo significant plastic changes in the striatum of MPTP-treated parkinsonian monkeys. We also present new ultrastructural data that demonstrate a significant expansion of the astrocytic coverage of striatal TS synapses in the parkinsonian state, providing further evidence for ultrastructural compensatory changes that affect both neuronal and glial elements at TS. Together with our limited understanding of the mechanisms by which astrocytes respond to changes in neuronal activity and extracellular transmitter homeostasis, the role of both neuronal and glial components of excitatory synapses must be considered, if one hopes to take advantage of glia-neuronal communication knowledge to better understand the pathophysiology of striatal processing in parkinsonism, and develop new PD

  5. Molecular substrates of action control in cortico-striatal circuits.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shiflett, Michael W; Balleine, Bernard W

    2011-09-15

    The purpose of this review is to describe the molecular mechanisms in the striatum that mediate reward-based learning and action control during instrumental conditioning. Experiments assessing the neural bases of instrumental conditioning have uncovered functional circuits in the striatum, including dorsal and ventral striatal sub-regions, involved in action-outcome learning, stimulus-response learning, and the motivational control of action by reward-associated cues. Integration of dopamine (DA) and glutamate neurotransmission within these striatal sub-regions is hypothesized to enable learning and action control through its role in shaping synaptic plasticity and cellular excitability. The extracellular signal regulated kinase (ERK) appears to be particularly important for reward-based learning and action control due to its sensitivity to combined DA and glutamate receptor activation and its involvement in a range of cellular functions. ERK activation in striatal neurons is proposed to have a dual role in both the learning and performance factors that contribute to instrumental conditioning through its regulation of plasticity-related transcription factors and its modulation of intrinsic cellular excitability. Furthermore, perturbation of ERK activation by drugs of abuse may give rise to behavioral disorders such as addiction. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  6. The role of striatal NMDA receptors in drug addiction.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ma, Yao-Ying; Cepeda, Carlos; Cui, Cai-Lian

    2009-01-01

    The past decade has witnessed an impressive accumulation of evidence indicating that the excitatory amino acid glutamate and its receptors, in particular the N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor subtype, play an important role in drug addiction. Various lines of research using animal models of drug addiction have demonstrated that drug-induced craving is accompanied by significant upregulation of NR2B subunit expression. Furthermore, selective blockade of NR2B-containing NMDA receptors in the striatum, especially in the nucleus accumbens (NAc) can inhibit drug craving and reinstatement. The purpose of this review is to examine the role of striatal NMDA receptors in drug addiction. After a brief description of glutamatergic innervation and NMDA receptor subunit distribution in the striatum, we discuss potential mechanisms to explain the role of striatal NMDA receptors in drug addiction by elucidating signaling cascades involved in the regulation of subunit expression and redistribution, phosphorylation of receptor subunits, as well as activation of intracellular signals triggered by drug experience. Understanding the mechanisms regulating striatal NMDA receptor changes in drug addiction will provide more specific and rational targets to counteract the deleterious effects of drug addiction.

  7. Hypercholesterolemia causes psychomotor abnormalities in mice and alterations in cortico-striatal biogenic amine neurotransmitters: Relevance to Parkinson's disease.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Paul, Rajib; Choudhury, Amarendranath; Chandra Boruah, Dulal; Devi, Rajlakshmi; Bhattacharya, Pallab; Choudhury, Manabendra Dutta; Borah, Anupom

    2017-09-01

    The symptoms of Parkinson's disease (PD) include motor behavioral abnormalities, which appear as a result of the extensive loss of the striatal biogenic amine, dopamine. Various endogenous molecules, including cholesterol, have been put forward as putative contributors in the pathogenesis of PD. Earlier reports have provided a strong link between the elevated level of plasma cholesterol (hypercholesterolemia) and onset of PD. However, the role of hypercholesterolemia on brain functions in terms of neurotransmitter metabolism and associated behavioral manifestations remain elusive. We tested in Swiss albino mice whether hypercholesterolemia induced by high-cholesterol diet would affect dopamine and serotonin metabolism in discrete brain regions that would precipitate in psychomotor behavioral manifestations. High-cholesterol diet for 12 weeks caused a significant increase in blood total cholesterol level, which validated the model as hypercholesterolemic. Tests for akinesia, catalepsy, swimming ability and gait pattern (increased stride length) have revealed that hypercholesterolemic mice develop motor behavioral abnormalities, which are similar to the behavioral phenotypes of PD. Moreover, hypercholesterolemia caused depressive-like behavior in mice, as indicated by the increased immobility time in the forced swim test. We found a significant depletion of dopamine in striatum and serotonin in cortex of hypercholesterolemic mice. The significant decrease in tyrosine hydroxylase immunoreactivity in striatum supports the observed depleted level dopamine in striatum, which is relevant to the pathophysiology of PD. In conclusion, hypercholesterolemia-induced depleted levels of cortical and striatal biogenic amines reported hereby are similar to the PD pathology, which might be associated with the observed psychomotor behavioral abnormalities. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  8. Brain Lateralization in Mice Is Associated with Zinc Signaling and Altered in Prenatal Zinc Deficient Mice That Display Features of Autism Spectrum Disorder

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Stefanie Grabrucker

    2018-01-01

    Full Text Available A number of studies have reported changes in the hemispheric dominance in autism spectrum disorder (ASD patients on functional, biochemical, and morphological level. Since asymmetry of the brain is also found in many vertebrates, we analyzed whether prenatal zinc deficient (PZD mice, a mouse model with ASD like behavior, show alterations regarding brain lateralization on molecular and behavioral level. Our results show that hemisphere-specific expression of marker genes is abolished in PZD mice on mRNA and protein level. Using magnetic resonance imaging, we found an increased striatal volume in PZD mice with no change in total brain volume. Moreover, behavioral patterns associated with striatal lateralization are altered and the lateralized expression of dopamine receptor 1 (DR1 in the striatum of PZD mice was changed. We conclude that zinc signaling during brain development has a critical role in the establishment of brain lateralization in mice.

  9. Delayed post-treatment with bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells is neurorestorative of striatal medium-spiny projection neurons and improves motor function after neonatal rat hypoxia-ischemia.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cameron, Stella H; Alwakeel, Amr J; Goddard, Liping; Hobbs, Catherine E; Gowing, Emma K; Barnett, Elizabeth R; Kohe, Sarah E; Sizemore, Rachel J; Oorschot, Dorothy E

    2015-09-01

    Perinatal hypoxia-ischemia is a major cause of striatal injury and may lead to cerebral palsy. This study investigated whether delayed administration of bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs), at one week after neonatal rat hypoxia-ischemia, was neurorestorative of striatal medium-spiny projection neurons and improved motor function. The effect of a subcutaneous injection of a high-dose, or a low-dose, of MSCs was investigated in stereological studies. Postnatal day (PN) 7 pups were subjected to hypoxia-ischemia. At PN14, pups received treatment with either MSCs or diluent. A subset of high-dose pups, and their diluent control pups, were also injected intraperitoneally with bromodeoxyuridine (BrdU), every 24h, on PN15, PN16 and PN17. This permitted tracking of the migration and survival of neuroblasts originating from the subventricular zone into the adjacent injured striatum. Pups were euthanized on PN21 and the absolute number of striatal medium-spiny projection neurons was measured after immunostaining for DARPP-32 (dopamine- and cAMP-regulated phosphoprotein-32), double immunostaining for BrdU and DARPP-32, and after cresyl violet staining alone. The absolute number of striatal immunostained calretinin interneurons was also measured. There was a statistically significant increase in the absolute number of DARPP-32-positive, BrdU/DARPP-32-positive, and cresyl violet-stained striatal medium-spiny projection neurons, and fewer striatal calretinin interneurons, in the high-dose mesenchymal stem cell (MSC) group compared to their diluent counterparts. A high-dose of MSCs restored the absolute number of these neurons to normal uninjured levels, when compared with previous stereological data on the absolute number of cresyl violet-stained striatal medium-spiny projection neurons in the normal uninjured brain. For the low-dose experiment, in which cresyl violet-stained striatal medium-spiny neurons alone were measured, there was a lower statistically

  10. [3H]Dopamine accumulation and release from striatal slices in young, mature and senescent rats

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Thompson, J.M.

    1981-01-01

    Examinations of [ 3 H]dopamine ([ 3 H]DA) release following KCl or amphetamine administration in striatal slices from young (7 month), mature (12 month) and senescent (24 month) Wistar rats showed no age-related changes. Further, the amount of [ 3 H]DA accumulated in the striatal slices showed no changes with age. Thus, previously reported age-related deficits in motor behavior (i.e. rotational) are not produced by changes in striatal DA accumulation or release. (Auth.)

  11. Moderation of the Relationship Between Reward Expectancy and Prediction Error-Related Ventral Striatal Reactivity by Anhedonia in Unmedicated Major Depressive Disorder: Findings From the EMBARC Study

    Science.gov (United States)

    Greenberg, Tsafrir; Chase, Henry W.; Almeida, Jorge R.; Stiffler, Richelle; Zevallos, Carlos R.; Aslam, Haris A.; Deckersbach, Thilo; Weyandt, Sarah; Cooper, Crystal; Toups, Marisa; Carmody, Thomas; Kurian, Benji; Peltier, Scott; Adams, Phillip; McInnis, Melvin G.; Oquendo, Maria A.; McGrath, Patrick J.; Fava, Maurizio; Weissman, Myrna; Parsey, Ramin; Trivedi, Madhukar H.; Phillips, Mary L.

    2016-01-01

    Objective Anhedonia, disrupted reward processing, is a core symptom of major depressive disorder. Recent findings demonstrate altered reward-related ventral striatal reactivity in depressed individuals, but the extent to which this is specific to anhedonia remains poorly understood. The authors examined the effect of anhedonia on reward expectancy (expected outcome value) and prediction error-(discrepancy between expected and actual outcome) related ventral striatal reactivity, as well as the relationship between these measures. Method A total of 148 unmedicated individuals with major depressive disorder and 31 healthy comparison individuals recruited for the multisite EMBARC (Establishing Moderators and Biosignatures of Antidepressant Response in Clinical Care) study underwent functional MRI during a well-validated reward task. Region of interest and whole-brain data were examined in the first- (N=78) and second- (N=70) recruited cohorts, as well as the total sample, of depressed individuals, and in healthy individuals. Results Healthy, but not depressed, individuals showed a significant inverse relationship between reward expectancy and prediction error-related right ventral striatal reactivity. Across all participants, and in depressed individuals only, greater anhedonia severity was associated with a reduced reward expectancy-prediction error inverse relationship, even after controlling for other symptoms. Conclusions The normal reward expectancy and prediction error-related ventral striatal reactivity inverse relationship concords with conditioning models, predicting a shift in ventral striatal responding from reward outcomes to reward cues. This study shows, for the first time, an absence of this relationship in two cohorts of unmedicated depressed individuals and a moderation of this relationship by anhedonia, suggesting reduced reward-contingency learning with greater anhedonia. These findings help elucidate neural mechanisms of anhedonia, as a step toward

  12. Increased cortico-striatal connectivity during motor practice contributes to the consolidation of motor memory in writer's cramp patients

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    C. Gallea

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available Sensorimotor representations of movements are created in the sensorimotor network through repeated practice to support successful and effortless performance. Writer's cramp (WC is a disorder acquired through extensive practice of finger movements, and it is likely associated with the abnormal acquisition of sensorimotor representations. We investigated (i the activation and connectivity changes in the brain network supporting the acquisition of sensorimotor representations of finger sequences in patients with WC and (ii the link between these changes and consolidation of motor performance 24 h after the initial practice. Twenty-two patients with WC and 22 age-matched healthy volunteers practiced a complex sequence with the right (pathological hand during functional MRI recording. Speed and accuracy were measured immediately before and after practice (day 1 and 24 h after practice (day 2. The two groups reached equivalent motor performance on day 1 and day 2. During motor practice, patients with WC had (i reduced hippocampal activation and hippocampal–striatal functional connectivity; and (ii overactivation of premotor–striatal areas, whose connectivity correlated with motor performance after consolidation. These results suggest that patients with WC use alternative networks to reach equiperformance in the acquisition of new motor memories.

  13. The acute effect of cannabis on plasma, liver and brain ammonia dynamics, a translational study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Abulseoud, Osama A; Zuccoli, Maria Laura; Zhang, Lifeng; Barnes, Allan; Huestis, Marilyn A; Lin, Da-Ting

    2017-07-01

    Recent reports of ammonia released during cannabis smoking raise concerns about putative neurotoxic effects. Cannabis (54mg) was administered in a double-blind, placebo-controlled design to healthy cannabis users (n=15) either orally, or through smoking (6.9%THC cigarette) or inhalation of vaporized cannabis (Volcano®). Serial assay of plasma ammonia concentrations at 0, 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 15, 30, and 90min from onset of cannabis administration showed significant time (P=0.016), and treatment (P=0.0004) effects with robust differences between placebo and edible at 30 (P=0.002), and 90min (P=0.007) and between placebo and vaporized (P=0.02) and smoking routes (P=0.01) at 90min. Furthermore, plasma ammonia positively correlated with blood THC concentrations (P=0.03). To test the hypothesis that this delayed increase in plasma ammonia originates from the brain we administered THC (3 and 10mg/kg) to mice and measured plasma, liver, and brain ammonia concentrations at 1, 3, 5 and 30min post-injection. Administration of THC to mice did not cause significant change in plasma ammonia concentrations within the first 5min, but significantly reduced striatal glutamine-synthetase (GS) activity (P=0.046) and increased striatal ammonia concentration (P=0.016). Furthermore, plasma THC correlated positively with striatal ammonia concentration (Pcannabis intake caused time and route-dependent increases in plasma ammonia concentrations in human cannabis users and reduced brain GS activity and increased brain and plasma ammonia concentrations in mice. Published by Elsevier B.V.

  14. Role of contingency in striatal response to incentive in adolescents with anxiety.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Benson, Brenda E; Guyer, Amanda E; Nelson, Eric E; Pine, Daniel S; Ernst, Monique

    2015-03-01

    This study examines the effect of contingency on reward function in anxiety. We define contingency as the aspect of a situation in which the outcome is determined by one's action-that is, when there is a direct link between one's action and the outcome of the action. Past findings in adolescents with anxiety or at risk for anxiety have revealed hypersensitive behavioral and neural responses to higher value rewards with correct performance. This hypersensitivity to highly valued (salient) actions suggests that the value of actions is determined not only by outcome magnitude, but also by the degree to which the outcome is contingent on correct performance. Thus, contingency and incentive value might each modulate reward responses in unique ways in anxiety. Using fMRI with a monetary reward task, striatal response to cue anticipation is compared in 18 clinically anxious and 20 healthy adolescents. This task manipulates orthogonally reward contingency and incentive value. Findings suggest that contingency modulates the neural response to incentive magnitude differently in the two groups. Specifically, during the contingent condition, right-striatal response tracks incentive value in anxious, but not healthy, adolescents. During the noncontingent condition, striatal response is bilaterally stronger to low than to high incentive in anxious adolescents, while healthy adolescents exhibit the expected opposite pattern. Both contingency and reward magnitude differentiate striatal activation in anxious versus healthy adolescents. These findings may reflect exaggerated concern about performance and/or alterations of striatal coding of reward value in anxious adolescents. Abnormalities in reward function in anxiety may have treatment implications.

  15. A CT-based method for fully quantitative TI SPECT

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Willowson, Kathy; Bailey, Dale; Baldock, Clive

    2009-01-01

    Full text: Objectives: To develop and validate a method for quantitative 2 0 l TI SPECT data based on corrections derived from X-ray CT data, and to apply the method in the clinic for quantitative determination of recurrence of brain tumours. Method: A previously developed method for achieving quantitative SPECT with 9 9 m Tc based on corrections derived from xray CT data was extended to apply to 2 0 l Tl. Experimental validation was performed on a cylindrical phantom by comparing known injected activity and measured concentration to quantitative calculations. Further evaluation was performed on a RSI Striatal Brain Phantom containing three 'lesions' with activity to background ratios of 1: 1, 1.5: I and 2: I. The method was subsequently applied to a series of scans from patients with suspected recurrence of brain tumours (principally glioma) to determine an SUV-like measure (Standardised Uptake Value). Results: The total activity and concentration in the phantom were calculated to within 3% and I % of the true values, respectively. The calculated values for the concentration of activity in the background and corresponding lesions of the brain phantom (in increasing ratios) were found to be within 2%,10%,1% and 2%, respectively, of the true concentrations. Patient studies showed that an initial SUV greater than 1.5 corresponded to a 56% mortality rate in the first 12 months, as opposed to a 14% mortality rate for those with a SUV less than 1.5. Conclusion: The quantitative technique produces accurate results for the radionuclide 2 0 l Tl. Initial investigation in clinical brain SPECT suggests correlation between quantitative uptake and survival.

  16. Phantom pain after eye amputation

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Rasmussen, Marie L R; Prause, Jan U; Toft, Peter B

    2011-01-01

    Purpose: To characterize the quality of phantom pain, its intensity and frequency following eye amputation. Possible triggers and relievers of phantom pain are investigated. Methods: The hospital database was searched using surgery codes for patients who received ocular evisceration, enucleation...... was conducted by a trained interviewer. Results: Of the 173 patients in the study, 39 experienced phantom pain. The median age of patients who had experienced phantom pain was 45 years (range: 19–88). Follow-up time from eye amputation to participation in the investigation was 4 years (range: 2–46). Phantom...... scale, ranging from 0 to 100, was 36 (range: 1–89). One-third of the patients experienced phantom pain every day. Chilliness, windy weather and psychological stress/fatigue were the most commonly reported triggers for pain. Conclusions: Phantom pain after eye amputation is relatively common. The pain...

  17. Study of the CT peripheral dose variation in a head phantom

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Mourao, Arnaldo P.

    2009-01-01

    The computed tomography is frequently used for the brain diagnosis and it is responsible for the largest doses in the head among the X-ray examinations. Established indexes define a reference dose value for a scan routine; however the dose value has a longitudinal variation in the scan. The purpose of this study is to investigate the variation of the peripheral doses in the head scan using a polymethylmethacrylate head phantom. The studies were performed using two different computed tomography scanners in the option single slice with a routine of a head adult protocol (i.e. default protocol in the scanner software). Radiation doses were measured using thermoluminescent dosimeter (LiF - TLD) rod model, distributed inside the PMMA head phantom in periphery and central area. The results allowed registering the variation dose curve, longitudinally the scan, for the peripheral area and to determine the MSAD value. The peripheral maximum dose value measured can be compared with the maximum dose value in the center of the phantom in each different routine (author)

  18. In vivo neurochemical characterization of clothianidin induced striatal dopamine release.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Faro, L R F; Oliveira, I M; Durán, R; Alfonso, M

    2012-12-16

    Clothianidin (CLO) is a neonicotinoid insecticide with selective action on nicotinic acetylcholine receptors. The aim of this study was to determine the neurochemical basis for CLO-induced striatal dopamine release using the microdialysis technique in freely moving and conscious rats. Intrastriatal administration of CLO (3.5mM), produced an increase in both spontaneous (2462 ± 627% with respect to basal values) and KCl-evoked (4672 ± 706% with respect to basal values) dopamine release. This effect was attenuated in Ca(2+)-free medium, and was prevented in reserpine pre-treated animals or in presence of tetrodotoxin (TTX). To investigate the involvement of dopamine transporter (DAT), the effect of CLO was observed in presence of nomifensine. The coadministration of CLO and nomifensine produced an additive effect on striatal dopamine release. The results suggest that the effect of CLO on striatal dopamine release is predominantly mediated by an exocytotic mechanism, Ca(2+), vesicular and TTX-dependent and not by a mechanism mediated by dopamine transporter. Published by Elsevier Ireland Ltd.

  19. Hybrid pregnant reference phantom series based on adult female ICRP reference phantom

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rafat-Motavalli, Laleh; Miri-Hakimabad, Hashem; Hoseinian-Azghadi, Elie

    2018-03-01

    This paper presents boundary representation (BREP) models of pregnant female and her fetus at the end of each trimester. The International Commission on Radiological Protection (ICRP) female reference voxel phantom was used as a base template in development process of the pregnant hybrid phantom series. The differences in shape and location of the displaced maternal organs caused by enlarging uterus were also taken into account. The CT and MR images of fetus specimens and pregnant patients of various ages were used to replace the maternal abdominal pelvic organs of template phantom and insert the fetus inside the gravid uterus. Each fetal model contains 21 different organs and tissues. The skeletal model of the fetus also includes age-dependent cartilaginous and ossified skeletal components. The replaced maternal organ models were converted to NURBS surfaces and then modified to conform to reference values of ICRP Publication 89. The particular feature of current series compared to the previously developed pregnant phantoms is being constructed upon the basis of ICRP reference phantom. The maternal replaced organ models are NURBS surfaces. With this great potential, they might have the feasibility of being converted to high quality polygon mesh phantoms.

  20. Adversity in childhood linked to elevated striatal dopamine function in adulthood.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Egerton, Alice; Valmaggia, Lucia R; Howes, Oliver D; Day, Fern; Chaddock, Christopher A; Allen, Paul; Winton-Brown, Toby T; Bloomfield, Michael A P; Bhattacharyya, Sagnik; Chilcott, Jack; Lappin, Julia M; Murray, Robin M; McGuire, Philip

    2016-10-01

    Childhood adversity increases the risk of psychosis in adulthood. Theoretical and animal models suggest that this effect may be mediated by increased striatal dopamine neurotransmission. The primary objective of this study was to examine the relationship between adversity in childhood and striatal dopamine function in early adulthood. Secondary objectives were to compare exposure to childhood adversity and striatal dopamine function in young people at ultra high risk (UHR) of psychosis and healthy volunteers. Sixty-seven young adults, comprising 47 individuals at UHR for psychosis and 20 healthy volunteers were recruited from the same geographic area and were matched for age, gender and substance use. Presynaptic dopamine function in the associative striatum was assessed using 18F-DOPA positron emission tomography. Childhood adversity was assessed using the Childhood Experience of Care and Abuse questionnaire. Within the sample as a whole, both severe physical or sexual abuse (T63=2.92; P=0.005), and unstable family arrangements (T57=2.80; P=0.007) in childhood were associated with elevated dopamine function in the associative striatum in adulthood. Comparison of the UHR and volunteer subgroups revealed similar incidence of childhood adverse experiences, and there was no significant group difference in dopamine function. This study provides evidence that childhood adversity is linked to elevated striatal dopamine function in adulthood. Copyright © 2016 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  1. Atrophy of reward-related striatal structures in fatigued MS patients is independent of physical disability.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Damasceno, Alfredo; Damasceno, Benito Pereira; Cendes, Fernando

    2016-05-01

    MRI studies have shown gray-matter abnormalities in fatigued multiple sclerosis (MS) patients. However, given that physical disability is highly correlated to MS fatigue, it is often difficult to disentangle its effect in these MRI findings. The objective of this research paper is to investigate gray-matter damage in mildly disabled MS patients, addressing which variables were better related to fatigue while controlling for physical disability and depression. Forty-nine relapsing-remitting MS (RRMS) patients and 30 controls underwent MRI (3T). Fatigue was assessed using the Fatigue Severity Scale (FSS). Multivariate logistic regression was performed to assess the contribution of clinical and MRI metrics to fatigue. Statistical analyses were performed controlling for disability and depression. Fatigue was present in 22 (44.9%) patients. FSS score was highly correlated with EDSS (p = 0.00001). Patients with fatigue had lower brain cortical and subcortical gray-matter volumes. However, after controlling for EDSS, only the caudate and the accumbens volumes remained statistically significant. Fatigued MS patients have a global cortical and subcortical gray-matter atrophy that seems largely related to higher physical disability. However, striatal structures involved in effort-reward functions exhibited smaller volumes in fatigued patients, independently of physical disability and depressive symptoms, supporting the theory of cortico-striatal network impairment in MS fatigue. © The Author(s), 2015.

  2. Striatal dopamine release codes uncertainty in pathological gambling

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Linnet, Jakob; Mouridsen, Kim; Peterson, Ericka

    2012-01-01

    Two mechanisms of midbrain and striatal dopaminergic projections may be involved in pathological gambling: hypersensitivity to reward and sustained activation toward uncertainty. The midbrain—striatal dopamine system distinctly codes reward and uncertainty, where dopaminergic activation is a linear...... function of expected reward and an inverse U-shaped function of uncertainty. In this study, we investigated the dopaminergic coding of reward and uncertainty in 18 pathological gambling sufferers and 16 healthy controls. We used positron emission tomography (PET) with the tracer [11C]raclopride to measure...... dopamine release, and we used performance on the Iowa Gambling Task (IGT) to determine overall reward and uncertainty. We hypothesized that we would find a linear function between dopamine release and IGT performance, if dopamine release coded reward in pathological gambling. If, on the other hand...

  3. Striatal dopamine release codes uncertainty in pathological gambling

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Linnet, Jakob; Mouridsen, Kim; Peterson, Ericka

    2012-01-01

    Two mechanisms of midbrain and striatal dopaminergic projections may be involved in pathological gambling: hypersensitivity to reward and sustained activation toward uncertainty. The midbrain-striatal dopamine system distinctly codes reward and uncertainty, where dopaminergic activation is a linear...... function of expected reward and an inverse U-shaped function of uncertainty. In this study, we investigated the dopaminergic coding of reward and uncertainty in 18 pathological gambling sufferers and 16 healthy controls. We used positron emission tomography (PET) with the tracer [(11)C......]raclopride to measure dopamine release, and we used performance on the Iowa Gambling Task (IGT) to determine overall reward and uncertainty. We hypothesized that we would find a linear function between dopamine release and IGT performance, if dopamine release coded reward in pathological gambling. If, on the other hand...

  4. Clinical evaluation of FMPSPGR sequence of the brain MR imaging

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Takahashi, Mitsuyuki; Hasegawa, Makoto; Mori, Naohiko; Yamanoguchi, Minoru; Matsubara, Tadashi

    1998-01-01

    In order to apply the FMPSPGR (fast multi planar spoiled GRASS) method to diagnose brain diseases, authors obtained the optimal condition for imaging by the phantom experiments and examined the clinical usefulness. Six kinds of the phantom, which were 4 of diluted Gd solution with different concentrations, olive oil and physiological saline solution were used. From the phantom experiments, TR/TE/FR=300/3.3/90 degrees was the optimal condition. The evaluation of the clinical images was performed on the same section by the ST method and the FMPSPGR method. Fifteen patients (9 men and 6 women, aged from 17 to 80 years) suspected of brain diseases were examined, including 8 of cerebral infarction, 1 of pontine infarction, 1 of brain contusion, 1 of intracerebral bleeding and 4 of brain tumors. Four cases of brain tumor were evaluated on the contrast imaging and the others were on the plain imaging. In the plain imaging, the FMPSPGR method was better than the SE method on the low signal region in the T1 weighted imaging. Furthermore, in the contrast imaging, it could give more clear images of the lesion in anterior cranial pit by suppressing artifacts of blood flow. The present results indicate that the FMPSPGR method is useful to diagnose brain diseases. (K.H.)

  5. Opposite Effects of Stimulant and Antipsychotic Drugs on Striatal Fast-Spiking Interneurons

    OpenAIRE

    Wiltschko, Alexander B; Pettibone, Jeffrey R; Berke, Joshua D

    2010-01-01

    Psychomotor stimulants and typical antipsychotic drugs have powerful but opposite effects on mood and behavior, largely through alterations in striatal dopamine signaling. Exactly how these drug actions lead to behavioral change is not well understood, as previous electrophysiological studies have found highly heterogeneous changes in striatal neuron firing. In this study, we examined whether part of this heterogeneity reflects the mixture of distinct cell types present in the striatum, by di...

  6. Altered effect of dopamine transporter 3'UTR VNTR genotype on prefrontal and striatal function in schizophrenia.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Prata, Diana P; Mechelli, Andrea; Picchioni, Marco M; Fu, Cynthia H Y; Toulopoulou, Timothea; Bramon, Elvira; Walshe, Muriel; Murray, Robin M; Collier, David A; McGuire, Philip

    2009-11-01

    The dopamine transporter plays a key role in the regulation of central dopaminergic transmission, which modulates cognitive processing. Disrupted dopamine function and impaired executive processing are robust features of schizophrenia. To examine the effect of a polymorphism in the dopamine transporter gene (the variable number of tandem repeats in the 3' untranslated region) on brain function during executive processing in healthy volunteers and patients with schizophrenia. We hypothesized that this variation would have a different effect on prefrontal and striatal activation in schizophrenia, reflecting altered dopamine function. Case-control study. Psychiatric research center. Eighty-five subjects, comprising 44 healthy volunteers (18 who were 9-repeat carriers and 26 who were 10-repeat homozygotes) and 41 patients with DSM-IV schizophrenia (18 who were 9-repeat carriers and 23 who were 10-repeat homozygotes). Regional brain activation during word generation relative to repetition in an overt verbal fluency task measured by functional magnetic resonance imaging. Main effects of genotype and diagnosis on activation and their interaction were estimated with analysis of variance in SPM5. Irrespective of diagnosis, the 10-repeat allele was associated with greater activation than the 9-repeat allele in the left anterior insula and right caudate nucleus. Trends for the same effect in the right insula and for greater deactivation in the rostral anterior cingulate cortex were also detected. There were diagnosis x genotype interactions in the left middle frontal gyrus and left nucleus accumbens, where the 9-repeat allele was associated with greater activation than the 10-repeat allele in patients but not controls. Insular, cingulate, and striatal function during an executive task is normally modulated by variation in the dopamine transporter gene. Its effect on activation in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex and ventral striatum is altered in patients with schizophrenia

  7. Repeated cocaine administration results in supersensitivity of striatal D-2 dopamine autoreceptors to pergolide

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Dwoskin, L.P.; Peris, J.; Yasuda, R.P.; Philpott, K.; Zahniser, N.R.

    1988-01-01

    Groups of rats administered cocaine-HCl (10 mg/kg, i.p.) or saline either acutely or once daily for 8 or 14 days were killed 24 hrs after the last dose. In striatal slices prelabelled with [ 3 H]DA, modulation of [ 3 H]-overflow by pergolide was used to measure D-2 autoreceptor activity. Compared to the contemporaneous control group pergolide produced a greater inhibition only in striatal slices from rats treated repeatedly with cocaine. In radioligand binding studies using striatal membranes from control rats, pergolide had a 500-fold greater affinity for the D-2, as opposed to the D-1, dopamine (DA) receptor subtype. These results indicate that repeated treatment with cocaine produces supersensitive striatal D-2 release-modulating autoreceptors consistent with a compensatory change to diminish the effect of elevated synaptic concentrations of DA produced by cocaine. In contrast, supersensitivity of D-2 receptors was not detected in [ 3 H]spiperone binding assays. 31 references, 2 figures, 1 table

  8. Rostrocaudal gradients of dopamine D2/3 receptor binding in striatal subregions measured with [11C]raclopride and high-resolution positron emission tomography

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Alakurtti, Kati; Johansson, Jarkko J; Tuokkola, Terhi

    2013-01-01

    scanned with brain-dedicated high-resolution research tomography (HRRT, Siemens Medical Solutions, Knoxville, TN, USA) and [(11)C]raclopride. Coronally defined regions of interest (ROIs) of the caudate nucleus, putamen and ventral striatum (VST) were sampled plane-by-plane, 1.5mm apart, on spatially...... observed in the VST. The novelty of this study lies in the presentation, for the first time, of the D2/3 receptor binding gradients in each striatal subregion in the brains of living healthy humans. The high spatial resolution provided by HRRT enables frequent sampling of BPND along the longitudinal extent...

  9. Development of realistic physical breast phantoms matched to virtual breast phantoms based on human subject data

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kiarashi, Nooshin; Nolte, Adam C.; Sturgeon, Gregory M.; Ghate, Sujata V.; Segars, William P.; Nolte, Loren W.; Samei, Ehsan

    2015-01-01

    Purpose: Physical phantoms are essential for the development, optimization, and evaluation of x-ray breast imaging systems. Recognizing the major effect of anatomy on image quality and clinical performance, such phantoms should ideally reflect the three-dimensional structure of the human breast. Currently, there is no commercially available three-dimensional physical breast phantom that is anthropomorphic. The authors present the development of a new suite of physical breast phantoms based on human data. Methods: The phantoms were designed to match the extended cardiac-torso virtual breast phantoms that were based on dedicated breast computed tomography images of human subjects. The phantoms were fabricated by high-resolution multimaterial additive manufacturing (3D printing) technology. The glandular equivalency of the photopolymer materials was measured relative to breast tissue-equivalent plastic materials. Based on the current state-of-the-art in the technology and available materials, two variations were fabricated. The first was a dual-material phantom, the Doublet. Fibroglandular tissue and skin were represented by the most radiographically dense material available; adipose tissue was represented by the least radiographically dense material. The second variation, the Singlet, was fabricated with a single material to represent fibroglandular tissue and skin. It was subsequently filled with adipose-equivalent materials including oil, beeswax, and permanent urethane-based polymer. Simulated microcalcification clusters were further included in the phantoms via crushed eggshells. The phantoms were imaged and characterized visually and quantitatively. Results: The mammographic projections and tomosynthesis reconstructed images of the fabricated phantoms yielded realistic breast background. The mammograms of the phantoms demonstrated close correlation with simulated mammographic projection images of the corresponding virtual phantoms. Furthermore, power

  10. Development of realistic physical breast phantoms matched to virtual breast phantoms based on human subject data

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Kiarashi, Nooshin [Carl E. Ravin Advanced Imaging Laboratories, Department of Radiology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, North Carolina 27710 and Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina 27708 (United States); Nolte, Adam C. [Carl E. Ravin Advanced Imaging Laboratories, Department of Radiology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, North Carolina 27710 and Department of Biomedical Engineering, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina 27708 (United States); Sturgeon, Gregory M.; Ghate, Sujata V. [Carl E. Ravin Advanced Imaging Laboratories, Department of Radiology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, North Carolina 27710 (United States); Segars, William P. [Carl E. Ravin Advanced Imaging Laboratories, Department of Radiology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, North Carolina 27710 and Medical Physics Graduate Program, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina 27708 (United States); Nolte, Loren W. [Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina 27708 and Department of Biomedical Engineering, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina 27708 (United States); Samei, Ehsan [Carl E. Ravin Advanced Imaging Laboratories, Department of Radiology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, North Carolina 27710 (United States); Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina 27708 (United States); Department of Biomedical Engineering, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina 27708 (United States); Medical Physics Graduate Program, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina 27708 (United States); Department of Physics, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina 27708 (United States); and others

    2015-07-15

    Purpose: Physical phantoms are essential for the development, optimization, and evaluation of x-ray breast imaging systems. Recognizing the major effect of anatomy on image quality and clinical performance, such phantoms should ideally reflect the three-dimensional structure of the human breast. Currently, there is no commercially available three-dimensional physical breast phantom that is anthropomorphic. The authors present the development of a new suite of physical breast phantoms based on human data. Methods: The phantoms were designed to match the extended cardiac-torso virtual breast phantoms that were based on dedicated breast computed tomography images of human subjects. The phantoms were fabricated by high-resolution multimaterial additive manufacturing (3D printing) technology. The glandular equivalency of the photopolymer materials was measured relative to breast tissue-equivalent plastic materials. Based on the current state-of-the-art in the technology and available materials, two variations were fabricated. The first was a dual-material phantom, the Doublet. Fibroglandular tissue and skin were represented by the most radiographically dense material available; adipose tissue was represented by the least radiographically dense material. The second variation, the Singlet, was fabricated with a single material to represent fibroglandular tissue and skin. It was subsequently filled with adipose-equivalent materials including oil, beeswax, and permanent urethane-based polymer. Simulated microcalcification clusters were further included in the phantoms via crushed eggshells. The phantoms were imaged and characterized visually and quantitatively. Results: The mammographic projections and tomosynthesis reconstructed images of the fabricated phantoms yielded realistic breast background. The mammograms of the phantoms demonstrated close correlation with simulated mammographic projection images of the corresponding virtual phantoms. Furthermore, power

  11. Striatal kinetics of [11C]-(+)-nomifensine and 6-[18F]fluoro-L-dopa in Parkinson's disease measured with positron emission tomography

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Tedroff, J.; Aquilonius, S.-M.; Laihinen, A.; Rinne, U.; Hartvig, P.; Anderson, J.; Lundqvist, H.; Haaparanta, M.; Solin, O.; Antoni, G.; Gee, A.D.; Ulin, J.; Laangstroem, B.

    1990-01-01

    The kinetics in brain of the dopamine reuptake blocking agent [ 11 C]-(+)-nomifensine and the L-dopa analogue 6-[ 18 F]fluoro-L-dopa were compared in 3 patients with idopathic Parkinson's disease and agematched healthy volunteers using positron emission tomography. Regional uptake was analyzed and quantified according to a 3-compartment model. Retention of both tracers in striatal regions of the parkinsonian patients were reduced compared with the healthy volunteers mainly in the putamen, while the caudate nuclleus was only mildly affected. The reductions were considerably less than the decrease previously reported postmortem for striatal dopamine content in the basal ganglia of patients with Parkinson's disease. A fairly constant ratio between 6-[ 18 F]fluoro-L-dopa utilization and [ 11 C]-(+)-nomifensine binding in the caudate nucleus and the putamen were found in both groups unrelated to the size of the estimated parameters. This indicates that a limiting factor for the utilization of exogenous levodopa in Parkinsons's disease may be a reduced transport capacity for the amino acid into the dopaminergic terminals. (author)

  12. Striatal pre-enkephalin overexpression improves Huntington's disease symptoms in the R6/2 mouse model of Huntington's disease.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Stéphanie Bissonnette

    Full Text Available The reduction of pre-enkephalin (pENK mRNA expression might be an early sign of striatal neuronal dysfunction in Huntington's disease (HD, due to mutated huntingtin protein. Indeed, striatopallidal (pENK-containing neurodegeneration occurs at earlier stage of the disease, compare to the loss of striatonigral neurons. However, no data are available about the functional role of striatal pENK in HD. According to the neuroprotective properties of opioids that have been recognized recently, the objective of this study was to investigate whether striatal overexpression of pENK at early stage of HD can improve motor dysfunction, and/or reduce striatal neuronal loss in the R6/2 transgenic mouse model of HD. To achieve this goal recombinant adeno-associated-virus (rAAV2-containing green fluorescence protein (GFP-pENK was injected bilaterally in the striatum of R6/2 mice at 5 weeks old to overexpress opioid peptide pENK. Striatal injection of rAAV2-GFP was used as a control. Different behavioral tests were carried out before and/or after striatal injections of rAAV2. The animals were euthanized at 10 weeks old. Our results demonstrate that striatal overexpression of pENK had beneficial effects on behavioral symptoms of HD in R6/2 by: delaying the onset of decline in muscular force; reduction of clasping; improvement of fast motor activity, short-term memory and recognition; as well as normalization of anxiety-like behavior. The improvement of behavioral dysfunction in R6/2 mice having received rAAV2-GFP-pENK associated with upregulation of striatal pENK mRNA; the increased level of enkephalin peptide in the striatum, globus pallidus and substantia nigra; as well as the slight increase in the number of striatal neurons compared with other groups of R6/2. Accordingly, we suggest that at early stage of HD upregulation of striatal enkephalin might play a key role at attenuating illness symptoms.

  13. Adrenergic receptor-mediated modulation of striatal firing patterns.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ohta, Hiroyuki; Kohno, Yu; Arake, Masashi; Tamura, Risa; Yukawa, Suguru; Sato, Yoshiaki; Morimoto, Yuji; Nishida, Yasuhiro; Yawo, Hiromu

    2016-11-01

    Although noradrenaline and adrenaline are some of the most important neurotransmitters in the central nervous system, the effects of noradrenergic/adrenergic modulation on the striatum have not been determined. In order to explore the effects of adrenergic receptor (AR) agonists on the striatal firing patterns, we used optogenetic methods which can induce continuous firings. We employed transgenic rats expressing channelrhodopsin-2 (ChR2) in neurons. The medium spiny neuron showed a slow rising depolarization during the 1-s long optogenetic striatal photostimulation and a residual potential with 8.6-s half-life decay after the photostimulation. As a result of the residual potential, five repetitive 1-sec long photostimulations with 20-s onset intervals cumulatively increased the number of spikes. This 'firing increment', possibly relating to the timing control function of the striatum, was used to evaluate the AR modulation. The β-AR agonist isoproterenol decreased the firing increment between the 1st and 5th stimulation cycles, while the α 1 -AR agonist phenylephrine enhanced the firing increment. Isoproterenol and adrenaline increased the early phase (0-0.5s of the photostimulation) firing response. This adrenergic modulation was inhibited by the β-antagonist propranolol. Conversely, phenylephrine and noradrenaline reduced the early phase response. β-ARs and α 1 -ARs work in opposition controlling the striatal firing initiation and the firing increment. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ireland Ltd and Japan Neuroscience Society. All rights reserved.

  14. NMR-CT image and symbol phantoms

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hongo, Syozo; Yamaguchi, Hiroshi; Takeshita, Hiroshi

    1990-01-01

    We have developed Japanese phantoms in two procedures. One is described as a mathematical expression. Another is 'symbol phantoms' in 3 dimensional picture-elements, each of which symbolize an organ name. The concept and the algorithm of the symbol phantom enables us to make a phantom for a individual in terms of all his transversal section images. We got 85 transversal section images of head and trunk parts, and those of 40 legs parts by using NMR-CT. We have made the individual phantom for computation of organ doses. The transversal section images were not so clear to identify all organs needed to dose estimation that we had to do hand-editing the shapes of organs with viewing a typical section images: we could not yet make symbol phantom in a automatic editing. Symbols were coded to be visual cords as ASCII characters. After we got the symbol phantom of the first stage, we can edit it easily using a word-processor. Symbol phantom could describe more freely the shape of organs than mathematical phantom. Symbol phantom has several advantages to be an individual phantom, but the only difficult point is how to determine its end-point as a reference man when we apply the method to build the reference man. (author)

  15. Brain kinetics of L-[β-11C]DOPA in humans studied by positron emission tomography

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hartvig, P.; Agren, H.; Reibring, L.; Tedroff, J.; Bjurling, P.; Kihlberg, T.; Langstroem, B.

    1991-01-01

    The in vivo dopamine precursor L-3,4-dihydroxyphenylalanine (L-DOPA) labelled with 11 C in the β position has been used for positron emission tomography studies of L-DOPA utilization in the brain. The brain uptake and kinetics of L-[ 11 C]DOPA-derived radioactivity were studied in healthy male volunteers, and the specific utilization, i.e. decarboxylation rate of L-[ 11 C]DOPA in different brain areas, was quantified using a brain region devoid of specific L-[ 11 C]DOPA utilization as reference. Total uptake of L-[ 11 C]DOPA-derived radioactivity measured in the brain varied two- to three-fold between subjects, with highest radioactivity in the striatal region. Specific utilization of L-[ 11 C]DOPA radioactivity in the striatal region and in the prefrontal cortex varied twofold between subjects. No specific utilization was observed in other regions of the brain. The uptake of radioactivity in the brain increased dose-dependently with the simultaneous administration of unlabelled L-DOPA up to 10 mg. On the other hand, a decrease in brain radioactivity uptake was measured after pretreatment with 1 mg/kg oral L-DOPA, indicating competition for transport across the blood-brain barrier. Benserazide 0.5mg/kg orally increased somewhat the radioactivity uptake to the brain. None of these pharmacological perturbations demonstrated any clearcut effect on specific utilization of L-[ 11 C]DOPA. Thus, 11 C-labelled L-DOPA is introduced as an alternative to the well-established L-6-[ 18 F]fluoro-DOPA methodology in clinical studies on brain L-DOPA uptake and dopamine synthesis. (authors)

  16. Changes in motor function, cognition, and emotion-related behavior after right hemispheric intracerebral hemorrhage in various brain regions of mouse.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhu, Wei; Gao, Yufeng; Wan, Jieru; Lan, Xi; Han, Xiaoning; Zhu, Shanshan; Zang, Weidong; Chen, Xuemei; Ziai, Wendy; Hanley, Daniel F; Russo, Scott J; Jorge, Ricardo E; Wang, Jian

    2018-03-01

    Intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) is a detrimental type of stroke. Mouse models of ICH, induced by collagenase or blood infusion, commonly target striatum, but not other brain sites such as ventricular system, cortex, and hippocampus. Few studies have systemically investigated brain damage and neurobehavioral deficits that develop in animal models of ICH in these areas of the right hemisphere. Therefore, we evaluated the brain damage and neurobehavioral dysfunction associated with right hemispheric ICH in ventricle, cortex, hippocampus, and striatum. The ICH model was induced by autologous whole blood or collagenase VII-S (0.075 units in 0.5 µl saline) injection. At different time points after ICH induction, mice were assessed for brain tissue damage and neurobehavioral deficits. Sham control mice were used for comparison. We found that ICH location influenced features of brain damage, microglia/macrophage activation, and behavioral deficits. Furthermore, the 24-point neurologic deficit scoring system was most sensitive for evaluating locomotor abnormalities in all four models, especially on days 1, 3, and 7 post-ICH. The wire-hanging test was useful for evaluating locomotor abnormalities in models of striatal, intraventricular, and cortical ICH. The cylinder test identified locomotor abnormalities only in the striatal ICH model. The novel object recognition test was effective for evaluating recognition memory dysfunction in all models except for striatal ICH. The tail suspension test, forced swim test, and sucrose preference test were effective for evaluating emotional abnormality in all four models but did not correlate with severity of brain damage. These results will help to inform future preclinical studies of ICH outcomes. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  17. Frequent ice cream consumption is associated with reduced striatal response to receipt of an ice cream-based milkshake.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Burger, Kyle S; Stice, Eric

    2012-04-01

    Weight gain leads to reduced reward-region responsivity to energy-dense food receipt, and consumption of an energy-dense diet compared with an isocaloric, low-energy-density diet leads to reduced dopamine receptors. Furthermore, phasic dopamine signaling to palatable food receipt decreases after repeated intake of that food, which collectively suggests that frequent intake of an energy-dense food may reduce striatal response to receipt of that food. We tested the hypothesis that frequent ice cream consumption would be associated with reduced activation in reward-related brain regions (eg, striatum) in response to receipt of an ice cream-based milkshake and examined the influence of adipose tissue and the specificity of this relation. Healthy-weight adolescents (n = 151) underwent fMRI during receipt of a milkshake and during receipt of a tasteless solution. Percentage body fat, reported food intake, and food craving and liking were assessed. Milkshake receipt robustly activated the striatal regions, yet frequent ice cream consumption was associated with a reduced response to milkshake receipt in these reward-related brain regions. Percentage body fat, total energy intake, percentage of energy from fat and sugar, and intake of other energy-dense foods were not related to the neural response to milkshake receipt. Our results provide novel evidence that frequent consumption of ice cream, independent of body fat, is related to a reduction in reward-region responsivity in humans, paralleling the tolerance observed in drug addiction. Data also imply that intake of a particular energy-dense food results in attenuated reward-region responsivity specifically to that food, which suggests that sensory aspects of eating and reward learning may drive the specificity.

  18. Striatal-enriched Tyrosine Protein Phosphatase (STEP) in the Mechanisms of Depressive Disorders.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kulikova, Elizabeth; Kulikov, Alexander

    2017-08-30

    Striatal-enriched tyrosine protein phosphatase (STEP) is expressed mainly in the brain. Its dysregulation is associated with Alzheimer's and Huntington's diseases, schizophrenia, fragile X syndrome, drug abuse and stroke/ischemia. However, an association between STEP and depressive disorders is still obscure. The review discusses the theoretical foundations and experimental facts concerning possible relationship between STEP dysregulation and depression risk. STEP dephosphorylates and inactivates several key neuronal signaling proteins such as extracellular signal-regulating kinase 1 and 2 (ERK1/2), stress activated protein kinases p38, the Src family tyrosine kinases Fyn, Pyk2, NMDA and AMPA glutamate receptors. The inactivation of these proteins decreases the expression of brain derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) necessary for neurogenesis and neuronal survival. The deficit of BDNF results in progressive degeneration of neurons in the hippocampus and cortex and increases depression risk. At the same time, a STEP inhibitor, 8-(trifluoromethyl)-1,2,3,4,5-benzopentathiepin-6-amine hydrochloride (TC-2153), increases BDNF expression in the hippocampus and attenuated the depressivelike behavior in mice. Thus, STEP is involved in the mechanism of depressive disorders and it is a promising molecular target for atypical antidepressant drugs of new generation. Copyright© Bentham Science Publishers; For any queries, please email at epub@benthamscience.org.

  19. Construction of Chinese reference female phantom

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Sheng Yinxiangzi; Liu Lixing; Xia Xiaobin

    2013-01-01

    In this study, a Voxel-based Chinese Reference female Phantom (VCRP-woman) is developed from an individual female phantom which was based on high resolution cross-sectional color photographs. An in-house C ++ program was developed to adjust the phantom. Finally, a reference female phantom with have the same height, weighte and similar organs masses with the Chinese reference adult female data. The adjusted phantom is then imported to MCNPX to calculate the organs absorbed dose and effective dose conversion coefficients. Results are compared between VCRP-woman and the ICRP adult reference female phantom. (authors)

  20. SPECT imaging of dopamine and serotonin transporters with [[sup 123]I][beta]-CIT. Binding kinetics in the human brain

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Bruecke, T; Asenbaum, S; Frassine, H; Podreka, I [Vienna Univ. (Austria). Neurologische Klinik; Kornhuber, J [Wuerzburg Univ. (Germany); Angelberger, P [Oesterreichisches Forschungszentrum Seibersdorf GmbH (Austria)

    1993-01-01

    Single photon emission computerized tomography (SPECT) studies in non-human primates have previously shown that the cocaine derivative [[sup 123]I]-2-[beta]-carbomethoxy-3-[beta]-(4-iodophenyl)-tropane ([[sup 123]I][beta]-CIT) labels dopamine transporters in the striatum and serotonin transporters in the hypothalamus-midbrain area. Here, we report on the regional kinetic uptake of [[sup 123]I][beta]-CIT in the brain of 4 normal volunteers and 2 patients with Parkinson's disease. In healthy subjects striatal activity increased slowly to reach peak values at about 20 hours post injection. In the hypothalamus-midbrain area peak activities were observed at about 4 hours with a slow decrease thereafter. Low activity was observed in cortical and cerebellar areas. The striatal to cerebellar ratio was about 4 after 5 hours and 9 after 20 hours. In 2 patients with idiopathic Parkinson's disease striatal activity was markedly decreased while the activity in hypothalamus-midbrain areas was only diminished. Uptake into cortical and cerebellar areas appeared to be unchanged in Parkinson's disease. Consequently, in Parkinson's disease the striatal to cerebellar ratio was decreased to values around 2.5 after 20 hours. These preliminary methodological studies suggest that [[sup 123]I][beta]-CIT is a useful SPECT ligand for studying dopamine and possibly also serotonin transporters in the living human brain.

  1. 21. Phantom pain.

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Wolff, A.P.; Vanduynhoven, E.; Kleef, M. van; Huygen, F.; Pope, J.E.; Mekhail, N.

    2011-01-01

    Phantom pain is pain caused by elimination or interruption of sensory nerve impulses by destroying or injuring the sensory nerve fibers after amputation or deafferentation. The reported incidence of phantom limb pain after trauma, injury or peripheral vascular diseases is 60% to 80%. Over half the

  2. Validation of a method for accurate and highly reproducible quantification of brain dopamine transporter SPECT studies

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Jensen, Peter S; Ziebell, Morten; Skouboe, Glenna

    2011-01-01

    In nuclear medicine brain imaging, it is important to delineate regions of interest (ROIs) so that the outcome is both accurate and reproducible. The purpose of this study was to validate a new time-saving algorithm (DATquan) for accurate and reproducible quantification of the striatal dopamine t...... transporter (DAT) with appropriate radioligands and SPECT and without the need for structural brain scanning....

  3. Influences of Dietary Added Sugar Consumption on Striatal Food-Cue Reactivity and Postprandial GLP-1 Response

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Hilary M. Dorton

    2018-01-01

    Full Text Available Sugar consumption in the United States exceeds recommendations from the American Heart Association. Overconsumption of sugar is linked to risk for obesity and metabolic disease. Animal studies suggest that high-sugar diets alter functions in brain regions associated with reward processing, including the dorsal and ventral striatum. Human neuroimaging studies have shown that these regions are responsive to food cues, and that the gut-derived satiety hormones, glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1, and peptide YY (PYY, suppress striatal food-cue responsivity. We aimed to determine the associations between dietary added sugar intake, striatal responsivity to food cues, and postprandial GLP-1 and PYY levels. Twenty-two lean volunteers underwent a functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI scan during which they viewed pictures of food and non-food items after a 12-h fast. Before scanning, participants consumed a glucose drink. A subset of 19 participants underwent an additional fMRI session in which they consumed water as a control condition. Blood was sampled for GLP-1, and PYY levels and hunger ratings were assessed before and ~75 min after drink consumption. In-person 24-h dietary recalls were collected from each participant on three to six separate occasions over a 2-month period. Average percent calories from added sugar were calculated using information from 24-h dietary recalls. A region-of-interest analysis was performed to compare the blood oxygen level-dependent (BOLD response to food vs. non-food cues in the bilateral dorsal striatum (caudate/putamen and ventral striatum (nucleus accumbens. The relationships between added sugar, striatal responses, and hormone changes after drink consumption were assessed using Spearman’s correlations. We observed a positive correlation between added sugar intake and BOLD response to food cues in the dorsal striatum and a similar trend in the nucleus accumbens after glucose, but not water, consumption

  4. Diffusion Capillary Phantom vs. Human Data: Outcomes for Reconstruction Methods Depend on Evaluation Medium

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Sarah D. Lichenstein

    2016-09-01

    Full Text Available Purpose: Diffusion MRI provides a non-invasive way of estimating structural connectivity in the brain. Many studies have used diffusion phantoms as benchmarks to assess the performance of different tractography reconstruction algorithms and assumed that the results can be applied to in vivo studies. Here we examined whether quality metrics derived from a common, publically available, diffusion phantom can reliably predict tractography performance in human white matter tissue. Material and Methods: We compared estimates of fiber length and fiber crossing among a simple tensor model (diffusion tensor imaging, a more complicated model (ball-and-sticks and model-free (diffusion spectrum imaging, generalized q-sampling imaging reconstruction methods using a capillary phantom and in vivo human data (N=14. Results: Our analysis showed that evaluation outcomes differ depending on whether they were obtained from phantom or human data. Specifically, the diffusion phantom favored a more complicated model over a simple tensor model or model-free methods for resolving crossing fibers. On the other hand, the human studies showed the opposite pattern of results, with the model-free methods being more advantageous than model-based methods or simple tensor models. This performance difference was consistent across several metrics, including estimating fiber length and resolving fiber crossings in established white matter pathways. Conclusions: These findings indicate that the construction of current capillary diffusion phantoms tends to favor complicated reconstruction models over a simple tensor model or model-free methods, whereas the in vivo data tends to produce opposite results. This brings into question the previous phantom-based evaluation approaches and suggests that a more realistic phantom or simulation is necessary to accurately predict the relative performance of different tractography reconstruction methods. Acronyms: BSM: ball-and-sticks model; d

  5. Mathematical development of a 10 years old child phantom for use in internal dosimetry

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Deus, S.F.; Poston, J.W.; Watanabe, S.

    1989-08-01

    The main objectives of this work are: 1) to develop a project of a mathematical phantom representing as far as possible a child of 10 years old and 2)to use this phantom as a base for the specific absorbed fractions (SAF) calculations in the internal organs and skeleton due to the radioisotopes most used in nuclear medicine. This phantom was similar in shape to the Fisher and Snyder one, but several changes were introduced to make the phantom more realistic. Those changes included the addition of a neck region, puting the arms outside the trunk region, changes in the trunk, head and genitalia regions shapes. Several modifications were also done in the skeleton. For instance, the head bones, rib cage, pelvis, vertebral column, scapula, clavicles and the arms and legs bones were made very close to the real anatomic shapes. Some internal organs as the brain, lungs, liver, small and large intestines were also changed as a consenquence of the above modifications. In all those cases, the changes were made not only in the shapes but also in the organs and bones position in such a way to be more representative of the 10 years old anatomic age. Estimates of the SAF obtained by the use of this phantom, resulted, as expected, significantly different from those obtained by the use of a simpler model. In other words, the ratio between the SAF in the organs of the phantom developed in this project and the SAF in the organs of the phantom similar to the adult (obtained by reducing each region of the adult phantom by the use of appropriate factor) vary from 0.37 to 5. Those differences and their meaning are also discussed. (author) [pt

  6. Rats classified as low or high cocaine locomotor responders: A unique model involving striatal dopamine transporters that predicts cocaine addiction-like behaviors

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yamamoto, Dorothy J.; Nelson, Anna M.; Mandt, Bruce H.; Larson, Gaynor A.; Rorabaugh, Jacki M.; Ng, Christopher M.C.; Barcomb, Kelsey M.; Richards, Toni L.; Allen, Richard M.; Zahniser, Nancy R.

    2013-01-01

    Individual differences are a hallmark of drug addiction. Here, we describe a rat model based on differential initial responsiveness to low dose cocaine. Despite similar brain cocaine levels, individual outbred Sprague-Dawley rats exhibit markedly different magnitudes of acute cocaine-induced locomotor activity and, thereby, can be classified as low or high cocaine responders (LCRs or HCRs). LCRs and HCRs differ in drug-induced, but not novelty-associated, hyperactivity. LCRs have higher basal numbers of striatal dopamine transporters (DATs) than HCRs and exhibit marginal cocaine inhibition of in vivo DAT activity and cocaine-induced increases in extracellular DA. Importantly, lower initial cocaine response predicts greater locomotor sensitization, conditioned place preference and greater motivation to self-administer cocaine following low dose acquisition. Further, outbred Long-Evans rats classified as LCRs, versus HCRs, are more sensitive to cocaine’s discriminative stimulus effects. Overall, results to date with the LCR/HCR model underscore the contribution of striatal DATs to individual differences in initial cocaine responsiveness and the value of assessing the influence of initial drug response on subsequent expression of addiction-like behaviors. PMID:23850581

  7. Transient and steady-state selection in the striatal microcircuit

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Adam eTomkins

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available Although the basal ganglia have been widely studied and implicated in signal processing and action selection, little information is known about the active role the striatal microcircuit plays in action selection in the basal ganglia-thalamo-cortical loops. To address this knowledge gap we use a large scale three dimensional spiking model of the striatum, combined with a rate coded model of the basal ganglia-thalamo-cortical loop, to asses the computational role the striatum plays in action selection. We identify a robust transient phenomena generated by the striatal microcircuit, which temporarily enhances the difference between two competing cortical inputs. We show that this transient is sufficient to modulate decision making in the basal ganglia-thalamo-cortical circuit. We also find that the transient selection originates from a novel adaptation effect in single striatal projection neurons, which is amenable to experimental testing. Finally, we compared transient selection with models implementing classical steady-state selection. We challenged both forms of model to account for recent reports of paradoxically enhanced response selection in Huntington's Disease patients. We found that steady-state selection was uniformly impaired under all simulated Huntington's conditions, but transient selection was enhanced given a sufficient Huntington's-like increase in NMDA receptor sensitivity. Thus our models provide an intriguing hypothesis for the mechanisms underlying the paradoxical cognitive improvements in manifest Huntington's patients.

  8. Organ dose evaluation for CT scans based on in-phantom measurements

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Liu Haikuan; Zhuo Weihai; Chen Bo; Yi Yanling; Li Dehong

    2009-01-01

    Objective: To explore the organ doses and their distributions in different projections of CT scans. Methods: The CT values were measured and the linear absorption coefficients were derived for the main organs of the anthropomorphic phantom to compare with the normal values of human beings. The radiophotoluminescent glass dosimeters were set into various tissues or organs of the phantom for mimic measurements of the organ doses undergoing the head, chest, abdomen and pelvis CT scans, respectively. Results: The tissue equivalence of the phantom used in this study was good. The brain had the largest organ dose undergoing the head CT scan. The organ doses in thyroid, breast, lung and oesophagus were relatively large in performing the chest CT scan, while the liver, stomach, colon and lung had relatively hrge organ doses in abdomen CT practice. The doses in bone surface and colon exceeded by 50 mGy in a single pelvis CT scan. Conclusions: The organ doses and their distributions largely vary with different projections of CT scans. The organ doses of colon, bone marrow,gonads and bladder are fairly large in performing pelvis CT scan, which should be paid attention in the practice. (authors)

  9. An innovative phantom for quantitative and qualitative investigation of advanced x-ray imaging technologies

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Chiarot, C B; Siewerdsen, J H; Haycocks, T; Moseley, D J; Jaffray, D A

    2005-01-01

    Development, characterization, and quality assurance of advanced x-ray imaging technologies require phantoms that are quantitative and well suited to such modalities. This note reports on the design, construction, and use of an innovative phantom developed for advanced imaging technologies (e.g., multi-detector CT and the numerous applications of flat-panel detectors in dual-energy imaging, tomosynthesis, and cone-beam CT) in diagnostic and image-guided procedures. The design addresses shortcomings of existing phantoms by incorporating criteria satisfied by no other single phantom: (1) inserts are fully 3D-spherically symmetric rather than cylindrical; (2) modules are quantitative, presenting objects of known size and contrast for quality assurance and image quality investigation; (3) features are incorporated in ideal and semi-realistic (anthropomorphic) contexts; and (4) the phantom allows devices to be inserted and manipulated in an accessible module (right lung). The phantom consists of five primary modules: (1) head, featuring contrast-detail spheres approximate to brain lesions; (2) left lung, featuring contrast-detail spheres approximate to lung modules; (3) right lung, an accessible hull in which devices may be placed and manipulated; (4) liver, featuring conrast-detail spheres approximate to metastases; and (5) abdomen/pelvis, featuring simulated kidneys, colon, rectum, bladder, and prostate. The phantom represents a two-fold evolution in design philosophy-from 2D (cylindrically symmetric) to fully 3D, and from exclusively qualitative or quantitative to a design accommodating quantitative study within an anatomical context. It has proven a valuable tool in investigations throughout our institution, including low-dose CT, dual-energy radiography, and cone-beam CT for image-guided radiation therapy and surgery. (note)

  10. Hybrid computational phantoms of the male and female newborn patient: NURBS-based whole-body models

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lee, Choonsik; Lodwick, Daniel; Hasenauer, Deanna; Williams, Jonathan L; Lee, Choonik; Bolch, Wesley E

    2007-01-01

    phantom is performed in three steps: polygonization of the voxel phantom, organ modeling via NURBS surfaces and phantom voxelization. Two 3D graphic tools, 3D-DOCTOR(TM) and Rhinoceros(TM), were utilized to polygonize the newborn voxel phantom and generate NURBS surfaces, while an in-house MATLAB(TM) code was used to voxelize the resulting NURBS model into a final computational phantom ready for use in Monte Carlo radiation transport calculations. A total of 126 anatomical organ and tissue models, including 38 skeletal sites and 31 cartilage sites, were described within the hybrid phantom using either NURBS or polygon surfaces. A male hybrid newborn phantom was constructed following the development of the female phantom through the replacement of female-specific organs with male-specific organs. The outer body contour and internal anatomy of the NURBS-based phantoms were adjusted to match anthropometric and reference newborn data reported by the International Commission on Radiological Protection in their Publication 89. The voxelization process was designed to accurately convert NURBS models to a voxel phantom with minimum volumetric change. A sensitivity study was additionally performed to better understand how the meshing tolerance and voxel resolution would affect volumetric changes between the hybrid-NURBS and hybrid-voxel phantoms. The male and female hybrid-NURBS phantoms were constructed in a manner so that all internal organs approached their ICRP reference masses to within 1%, with the exception of the skin (-6.5% relative error) and brain (-15.4% relative error). Both hybrid-voxel phantoms were constructed with an isotropic voxel resolution of 0.663 mm-equivalent to the ICRP 89 reference thickness of the newborn skin (dermis and epidermis). Hybrid-NURBS phantoms used to create their voxel counterpart retain the non-uniform scalability of stylized phantoms, while maintaining the anatomic realism of segmented voxel phantoms with respect to organ shape, depth and

  11. Altered resting state cortico-striatal connectivity in mild to moderate stage Parkinson’s disease

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Youngbin Kwak

    2010-09-01

    Full Text Available Parkinson’s disease (PD is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder that is characterized by dopamine depletion in the striatum. One consistent pathophysiological hallmark of PD is an increase in spontaneous oscillatory activity in the basal ganglia thalamocortical networks. We evaluated these effects using resting state functional connectivity MRI (fcMRI in mild to moderate stage Parkinson’s patients on and off L-DOPA and age-matched controls using six different striatal seed regions. We observed an overall increase in the strength of cortico-striatal functional connectivity in PD patients off L-DOPA compared to controls. This enhanced connectivity was down-regulated by L-DOPA as shown by an overall decrease in connectivity strength, particularly within motor cortical regions. We also performed a frequency content analysis of the BOLD signal time course extracted from the six striatal seed regions. PD off L-DOPA exhibited increased power in the frequency band 0.02 – 0.05 Hz compared to controls and to PD on L-DOPA. The L-DOPA associated decrease in the power of this frequency range modulated the L-DOPA associated decrease in connectivity strength between striatal seeds and the thalamus. In addition, the L-DOPA associated decrease in power in this frequency band also correlated with the L-DOPA associated improvement in cognitive performance. Our results demonstrate that PD and L-DOPA modulate striatal resting state BOLD signal oscillations and corticostriatal network coherence.

  12. Striatal lesions produce distinctive impairments in reaction time performance in two different operant chambers.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Brasted, P J; Döbrössy, M D; Robbins, T W; Dunnett, S B

    1998-08-01

    The dorsal striatum plays a crucial role in mediating voluntary movement. Excitotoxic striatal lesions in rats have previously been shown to impair the initiation but not the execution of movement in a choice reaction time task in an automated lateralised nose-poke apparatus (the "nine-hole box"). Conversely, when a conceptually similar reaction time task has been applied in a conventional operant chamber (or "Skinner box"), striatal lesions have been seen to impair the execution rather than the initiation of the lateralised movement. The present study was undertaken to compare directly these two results by training the same group of rats to perform a choice reaction time task in the two chambers and then comparing the effects of a unilateral excitotoxic striatal lesion in both chambers in parallel. Particular attention was paid to adopting similar parameters and contingencies in the control of the task in the two test chambers. After striatal lesions, the rats showed predominantly contralateral impairments in both tasks. However, they showed a deficit in reaction time in the nine-hole box but an apparent deficit in response execution in the Skinner box. This finding confirms the previous studies and indicates that differences in outcome are not simply attributable to procedural differences in the lesions, training conditions or tasks parameters. Rather, the pattern of reaction time deficit after striatal lesions depends critically on the apparatus used and the precise response requirements for each task.

  13. Prolonged striatal disinhibition as a chronic animal model of tic disorders.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Vinner, Esther; Israelashvili, Michal; Bar-Gad, Izhar

    2017-12-01

    Experimental findings and theoretical models have associated Tourette syndrome with abnormal striatal inhibition. The expression of tics, the hallmark symptom of this disorder, has been transiently induced in non-human primates and rodents by the injection of GABA A antagonists into the striatum, leading to temporary disinhibition. The novel chronic model of tic expression utilizes mini-osmotic pumps implanted subcutaneously in the rat's back for prolonged infusion of bicuculline into the dorsolateral striatum. Tics were expressed on the contralateral side to the infusion over a period of multiple days. Tic expression was stable, and maintained similar properties throughout the infusion period. Electrophysiological recordings revealed the existence of tic-related local field potential spikes and individual neuron activity changes that remained stable throughout the infusion period. The striatal disinhibition model provides a unique combination of face validity (tic expression) and construct validity (abnormal striatal inhibition) but is limited to sub-hour periods. The new chronic model extends the period of tic expression to multiple days and thus enables the study of tic dynamics and the effects of behavior and pharmacological agents on tic expression. The chronic model provides similar behavioral and neuronal correlates of tics as the acute striatal disinhibition model but over prolonged periods of time, thus providing a unique, basal ganglia initiated model of tic expression. Chronic expression of symptoms is the key to studying the time varying properties of Tourette syndrome and the effects of multiple internal and external factors on this disorder. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  14. Striatal Transcriptome and Interactome Analysis of Shank3-overexpressing Mice Reveals the Connectivity between Shank3 and mTORC1 Signaling

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Yeunkum Lee

    2017-06-01

    Full Text Available Mania causes symptoms of hyperactivity, impulsivity, elevated mood, reduced anxiety and decreased need for sleep, which suggests that the dysfunction of the striatum, a critical component of the brain motor and reward system, can be causally associated with mania. However, detailed molecular pathophysiology underlying the striatal dysfunction in mania remains largely unknown. In this study, we aimed to identify the molecular pathways showing alterations in the striatum of SH3 and multiple ankyrin repeat domains 3 (Shank3-overexpressing transgenic (TG mice that display manic-like behaviors. The results of transcriptome analysis suggested that mammalian target of rapamycin complex 1 (mTORC1 signaling may be the primary molecular signature altered in the Shank3 TG striatum. Indeed, we found that striatal mTORC1 activity, as measured by mTOR S2448 phosphorylation, was significantly decreased in the Shank3 TG mice compared to wild-type (WT mice. To elucidate the potential underlying mechanism, we re-analyzed previously reported protein interactomes, and detected a high connectivity between Shank3 and several upstream regulators of mTORC1, such as tuberous sclerosis 1 (TSC1, TSC2 and Ras homolog enriched in striatum (Rhes, via 94 common interactors that we denominated “Shank3-mTORC1 interactome”. We noticed that, among the 94 common interactors, 11 proteins were related to actin filaments, the level of which was increased in the dorsal striatum of Shank3 TG mice. Furthermore, we could co-immunoprecipitate Shank3, Rhes and Wiskott-Aldrich syndrome protein family verprolin-homologous protein 1 (WAVE1 proteins from the striatal lysate of Shank3 TG mice. By comparing with the gene sets of psychiatric disorders, we also observed that the 94 proteins of Shank3-mTORC1 interactome were significantly associated with bipolar disorder (BD. Altogether, our results suggest a protein interaction-mediated connectivity between Shank3 and certain upstream

  15. Mitochondrial fragmentation in neuronal degeneration: Toward an understanding of HD striatal susceptibility

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Cherubini, Marta; Ginés, Silvia

    2017-01-01

    Huntington's disease (HD) is an autosomal-dominant progressive neurodegenerative disorder that primarily affects medium spiny neurons within the striatum. HD is caused by inheritance of an expanded CAG repeat in the HTT gene, resulting in a mutant huntingtin (mHtt) protein containing extra glutamine residues. Despite the advances in understanding the molecular mechanisms involved in HD the preferential vulnerability of the striatum remains an intriguing question. This review discusses current knowledge that links altered mitochondrial dynamics with striatal susceptibility in HD. We also highlight how the modulation of mitochondrial function may constitute an attractive therapeutic approach to reduce mHtt-induced toxicity and therefore prevent the selective striatal neurodegeneration. - Highlights: • Mitochondrial dynamics is unbalanced towards fission in HD. • Excessive mitochondrial fragmentation plays a critical role in the selective vulnerability of the striatum in HD. • Therapeutic approaches aimed to inhibit mitochondrial fission could contribute to prevent striatal neurodegeneration in HD.

  16. Distinctive striatal dopamine signaling after dieting and gastric bypass.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hankir, Mohammed K; Ashrafian, Hutan; Hesse, Swen; Horstmann, Annette; Fenske, Wiebke K

    2015-05-01

    Highly palatable and/or calorically dense foods, such as those rich in fat, engage the striatum to govern and set complex behaviors. Striatal dopamine signaling has been implicated in hedonic feeding and the development of obesity. Dieting and bariatric surgery have markedly different outcomes on weight loss, yet how these interventions affect central homeostatic and food reward processing remains poorly understood. Here, we propose that dieting and gastric bypass produce distinct changes in peripheral factors with known roles in regulating energy homeostasis, resulting in differential modulation of nigrostriatal and mesolimbic dopaminergic reward circuits. Enhancement of intestinal fat metabolism after gastric bypass may also modify striatal dopamine signaling contributing to its unique long-term effects on feeding behavior and body weight in obese individuals. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  17. SU-E-T-114: Analysis of MLC Errors On Gamma Pass Rates for Patient-Specific and Conventional Phantoms

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Sterling, D; Ehler, E [University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN (United States)

    2015-06-15

    Purpose: To evaluate whether a 3D patient-specific phantom is better able to detect known MLC errors in a clinically delivered treatment plan than conventional phantoms. 3D printing may make fabrication of such phantoms feasible. Methods: Two types of MLC errors were introduced into a clinically delivered, non-coplanar IMRT, partial brain treatment plan. First, uniformly distributed random errors of up to 3mm, 2mm, and 1mm were introduced into the MLC positions for each field. Second, systematic MLC-bank position errors of 5mm, 3.5mm, and 2mm due to simulated effects of gantry and MLC sag were introduced. The original plan was recalculated with these errors on the original CT dataset as well as cylindrical and planar IMRT QA phantoms. The original dataset was considered to be a perfect 3D patient-specific phantom. The phantoms were considered to be ideal 3D dosimetry systems with no resolution limitations. Results: Passing rates for Gamma Index (3%/3mm and no dose threshold) were calculated on the 3D phantom, cylindrical phantom, and both on a composite and field-by-field basis for the planar phantom. Pass rates for 5mm systematic and 3mm random error were 86.0%, 89.6%, 98% and 98.3% respectively. For 3.5mm systematic and 2mm random error the pass rates were 94.7%, 96.2%, 99.2% and 99.2% respectively. For 2mm systematic error with 1mm random error the pass rates were 99.9%, 100%, 100% and 100% respectively. Conclusion: A 3D phantom with the patient anatomy is able to discern errors, both severe and subtle, that are not seen using conventional phantoms. Therefore, 3D phantoms may be beneficial for commissioning new treatment machines and modalities, patient-specific QA and end-to-end testing.

  18. SU-E-T-114: Analysis of MLC Errors On Gamma Pass Rates for Patient-Specific and Conventional Phantoms

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Sterling, D; Ehler, E

    2015-01-01

    Purpose: To evaluate whether a 3D patient-specific phantom is better able to detect known MLC errors in a clinically delivered treatment plan than conventional phantoms. 3D printing may make fabrication of such phantoms feasible. Methods: Two types of MLC errors were introduced into a clinically delivered, non-coplanar IMRT, partial brain treatment plan. First, uniformly distributed random errors of up to 3mm, 2mm, and 1mm were introduced into the MLC positions for each field. Second, systematic MLC-bank position errors of 5mm, 3.5mm, and 2mm due to simulated effects of gantry and MLC sag were introduced. The original plan was recalculated with these errors on the original CT dataset as well as cylindrical and planar IMRT QA phantoms. The original dataset was considered to be a perfect 3D patient-specific phantom. The phantoms were considered to be ideal 3D dosimetry systems with no resolution limitations. Results: Passing rates for Gamma Index (3%/3mm and no dose threshold) were calculated on the 3D phantom, cylindrical phantom, and both on a composite and field-by-field basis for the planar phantom. Pass rates for 5mm systematic and 3mm random error were 86.0%, 89.6%, 98% and 98.3% respectively. For 3.5mm systematic and 2mm random error the pass rates were 94.7%, 96.2%, 99.2% and 99.2% respectively. For 2mm systematic error with 1mm random error the pass rates were 99.9%, 100%, 100% and 100% respectively. Conclusion: A 3D phantom with the patient anatomy is able to discern errors, both severe and subtle, that are not seen using conventional phantoms. Therefore, 3D phantoms may be beneficial for commissioning new treatment machines and modalities, patient-specific QA and end-to-end testing

  19. Frequent ice cream consumption is associated with reduced striatal response to receipt of an ice cream–based milkshake123

    Science.gov (United States)

    Stice, Eric

    2012-01-01

    Background: Weight gain leads to reduced reward-region responsivity to energy-dense food receipt, and consumption of an energy-dense diet compared with an isocaloric, low-energy-density diet leads to reduced dopamine receptors. Furthermore, phasic dopamine signaling to palatable food receipt decreases after repeated intake of that food, which collectively suggests that frequent intake of an energy-dense food may reduce striatal response to receipt of that food. Objective: We tested the hypothesis that frequent ice cream consumption would be associated with reduced activation in reward-related brain regions (eg, striatum) in response to receipt of an ice cream–based milkshake and examined the influence of adipose tissue and the specificity of this relation. Design: Healthy-weight adolescents (n = 151) underwent fMRI during receipt of a milkshake and during receipt of a tasteless solution. Percentage body fat, reported food intake, and food craving and liking were assessed. Results: Milkshake receipt robustly activated the striatal regions, yet frequent ice cream consumption was associated with a reduced response to milkshake receipt in these reward-related brain regions. Percentage body fat, total energy intake, percentage of energy from fat and sugar, and intake of other energy-dense foods were not related to the neural response to milkshake receipt. Conclusions: Our results provide novel evidence that frequent consumption of ice cream, independent of body fat, is related to a reduction in reward-region responsivity in humans, paralleling the tolerance observed in drug addiction. Data also imply that intake of a particular energy-dense food results in attenuated reward-region responsivity specifically to that food, which suggests that sensory aspects of eating and reward learning may drive the specificity. PMID:22338036

  20. A new framework for cortico-striatal plasticity: behavioural theory meets in vitro data at the reinforcement-action interface.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kevin N Gurney

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available Operant learning requires that reinforcement signals interact with action representations at a suitable neural interface. Much evidence suggests that this occurs when phasic dopamine, acting as a reinforcement prediction error, gates plasticity at cortico-striatal synapses, and thereby changes the future likelihood of selecting the action(s coded by striatal neurons. But this hypothesis faces serious challenges. First, cortico-striatal plasticity is inexplicably complex, depending on spike timing, dopamine level, and dopamine receptor type. Second, there is a credit assignment problem-action selection signals occur long before the consequent dopamine reinforcement signal. Third, the two types of striatal output neuron have apparently opposite effects on action selection. Whether these factors rule out the interface hypothesis and how they interact to produce reinforcement learning is unknown. We present a computational framework that addresses these challenges. We first predict the expected activity changes over an operant task for both types of action-coding striatal neuron, and show they co-operate to promote action selection in learning and compete to promote action suppression in extinction. Separately, we derive a complete model of dopamine and spike-timing dependent cortico-striatal plasticity from in vitro data. We then show this model produces the predicted activity changes necessary for learning and extinction in an operant task, a remarkable convergence of a bottom-up data-driven plasticity model with the top-down behavioural requirements of learning theory. Moreover, we show the complex dependencies of cortico-striatal plasticity are not only sufficient but necessary for learning and extinction. Validating the model, we show it can account for behavioural data describing extinction, renewal, and reacquisition, and replicate in vitro experimental data on cortico-striatal plasticity. By bridging the levels between the single synapse and

  1. Evolution of dosimetric phantoms

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Reddy, A.R.

    2010-01-01

    In this oration evolution of the dosimetric phantoms for radiation protection and for medical use is briefly reviewed. Some details of the development of Indian Reference Phantom for internal dose estimation are also presented

  2. Development of striatal patch/matrix organization in organotypic co-cultures of perinatal striatum, cortex and substantia nigra.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Snyder-Keller, A; Costantini, L C; Graber, D J

    2001-01-01

    Organotypic cultures of fetal or early postnatal striatum were used to assess striatal patch formation and maintenance in the presence or absence of dopaminergic and glutamatergic influences. Vibratome-cut slices of the striatum prepared from embryonic day 19 to postnatal day 4 rat pups were maintained in static culture on clear membrane inserts in Dulbecco's modified Eagle's medium/F12 (1:1) with 20% horse serum. Some were co-cultured with embryonic day 12-16 ventral mesencephalon and/or embryonic day 19 to postnatal day 4 cortex, which produced a dense dopaminergic innervation and a modest cortical innervation. Donors of striatal and cortical tissue were previously injected with bromo-deoxyuridine (BrdU) on embryonic days 13 and 14 in order to label striatal neurons destined to populate the patch compartment of the striatum. Patches of BrdU-immunoreactive cells were maintained in organotypic cultures of late prenatal (embryonic days 20-22) or early postnatal striatum in the absence of nigral dopaminergic or cortical glutamatergic influences. In slices taken from embryonic day 19 fetuses prior to the time of in vivo patch formation, patches were observed to form after 10 days in vitro, in 39% of nigral-striatal co-cultures compared to 6% of striatal slices cultured alone or in the presence of cortex only. Patches of dopaminergic fibers, revealed by tyrosine hydroxylase immunoreactivity, were observed in the majority of nigral-striatal co-cultures. Immunostaining for the AMPA-type glutamate receptor GluR1 revealed a dense patch distribution in nearly all cultures, which developed in embryonic day 19 cultures after at least six days in vitro. These findings indicate that striatal patch/matrix organization is maintained in organotypic culture, and can be induced to form in vitro in striatal slices removed from fetuses prior to the time of in vivo patch formation. Furthermore, dopaminergic innervation from co-cultured pieces of ventral mesencephalon enhances patch

  3. Effects of intravenous glucose on Dopaminergic function in the human brain in vivo

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Haltia, Lauri T.; Rinne, Juha O.; Merisaari, Harri; Maguire, Ralph P.; Savontaus, Eriika; Helin, Semi; Nagren, Kjell; Kaasinen, Valtteri

    Dopamine is known to regulate food intake by modulating food reward via the mesolimbic circuitry of the brain. The objective of this study was to compare the effects of high energy input (i.v. glucose) on striatal and thalamic dopamine release in overweight and lean individuals. We hypothesized that

  4. Ability of 18F-DOPA PET/CT and fused 18F-DOPA PET/MRI to assess striatal involvement in paediatric glioma

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Morana, Giovanni; Severino, Mariasavina; Tortora, Domenico; Rossi, Andrea; Puntoni, Matteo; Garre, Maria Luisa; Massollo, Michela; Naseri, Merhdad; Piccardo, Arnoldo; Lopci, Egesta

    2016-01-01

    To assess the diagnostic performance of 18 F-DOPA PET/CT and fused 18 F-DOPA PET/MRI in detecting striatal involvement in children with gliomas. This retrospective study included 28 paediatric patients referred to our institution for the presence of primary, residual or recurrent glioma (12 boys, 16 girls; mean age 10.7 years) and investigated with 18 F-DOPA PET/CT and brain MRI. Fused 18 F-DOPA PET/MR images were obtained and compared with PET/CT and MRI images. Accuracy, sensitivity, specificity, negative predictive value (NPV) and positive predictive value (PPV) for striatal involvement were calculated for each diagnostic tool. Univariate and multivariate logistic analyses were applied to evaluate the associations between 18 F-DOPA PET/CT and fused 18 F-DOPA PET/MRI diagnostic results and tumour uptake outside the striatum, grade, dimension and site of striatal involvement (ventral and/or dorsal). Accuracy, sensitivity, specificity, PPV, and NPV were 100 % for MRI, 93 %, 89 %, 100 %, 100 % and 82 % for 18 F-DOPA PET/MRI, and 75 %, 74 %, 78 %, 88 % and 58 % for 18 F-DOPA PET/CT, respectively. 18 F-DOPA PET/MRI showed a trend towards higher accuracy compared with 18 F-DOPA PET/CT (p = 0.06). MRI showed significantly higher accuracy compared with 18 F-DOPA PET/CT (p = 0.01), but there was no significant difference between MRI and 18 F-DOPA PET/MRI. Both univariate and multivariate logistic analyses showed a significant association (OR 8.0 and 7.7, respectively) between the tumour-to-normal striatal uptake (T/S) ratio and the diagnostic ability of 18 F-DOPA PET/CT (p = 0.03). A strong significant association was also found between involvement of the dorsal striatum and the 18 F-DOPA PET/CT results (p = 0.001), with a perfect prediction of involvement of the dorsal striatum by 18 F-DOPA PET/MRI. Physiological striatal 18 F-DOPA uptake does not appear to be a main limitation in the evaluation of basal ganglia involvement. 18 F-DOPA PET/CT correctly detected

  5. Striatal kinetics of ( sup 11 C)-(+)-nomifensine and 6-( sup 18 F)fluoro-L-dopa in Parkinson's disease measured with positron emission tomography

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Tedroff, J; Aquilonius, S -M [Department of Neurology, University Hospital (Sweden); Laihinen, A; Rinne, U [Department of Neurology, University of Turku (Finland); Hartvig, P [Department of Hospital Pharmacy, University Hospital (Sweden); Anderson, J [Department of Radiation Sciences, University Hospital (Sweden); Lundqvist, H [Svenberg Laboratory, Uppsala University (Sweden); Haaparanta, M; Solin, O [Medical Cyclotron Laboratory, University of Turku (Finland); Antoni, G; Gee, A D; Ulin, J; Laangstroem, B [Department of Organic Chemistry, University Hospital (Sweden)

    1990-01-01

    The kinetics in brain of the dopamine reuptake blocking agent ({sup 11}C)-(+)-nomifensine and the L-dopa analogue 6-({sup 18}F)fluoro-L-dopa were compared in 3 patients with idopathic Parkinson's disease and agematched healthy volunteers using positron emission tomography. Regional uptake was analyzed and quantified according to a 3-compartment model. Retention of both tracers in striatal regions of the parkinsonian patients were reduced compared with the healthy volunteers mainly in the putamen, while the caudate nuclleus was only mildly affected. The reductions were considerably less than the decrease previously reported postmortem for striatal dopamine content in the basal ganglia of patients with Parkinson's disease. A fairly constant ratio between 6-({sup 18}F)fluoro-L-dopa utilization and ({sup 11}C)-(+)-nomifensine binding in the caudate nucleus and the putamen were found in both groups unrelated to the size of the estimated parameters. This indicates that a limiting factor for the utilization of exogenous levodopa in Parkinsons's disease may be a reduced transport capacity for the amino acid into the dopaminergic terminals. (author).

  6. Long-term high-dose oral morphine in phantom limb pain with no addiction risk

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Vinod Kumar

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available Chronic phantom limb pain (PLP is a type of neuropathic pain, which is located in the missing/amputated limb. Phantom pain is difficult to treat as the exact basis of pain mechanism is still unknown. Various methods of treatment for PLP have been described, including pharmacological (NSAIDs, opioids, antiepileptic, antidepressants and non-pharmacological (TENS, sympathectomy, deep brain stimulation and motor cortex stimulation. Opioids are used for the treatment of neuropathic pain and dose of opioid is determined based on its effect and thus there is no defined ceiling dose for opioids. We report a case where a patient receiving high-dose oral morphine for chronic cancer pain did not demonstrate signs of addiction.

  7. High-resolution brain SPECT imaging by combination of parallel and tilted detector heads.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Suzuki, Atsuro; Takeuchi, Wataru; Ishitsu, Takafumi; Morimoto, Yuichi; Kobashi, Keiji; Ueno, Yuichiro

    2015-10-01

    To improve the spatial resolution of brain single-photon emission computed tomography (SPECT), we propose a new brain SPECT system in which the detector heads are tilted towards the rotation axis so that they are closer to the brain. In addition, parallel detector heads are used to obtain the complete projection data set. We evaluated this parallel and tilted detector head system (PT-SPECT) in simulations. In the simulation study, the tilt angle of the detector heads relative to the axis was 45°. The distance from the collimator surface of the parallel detector heads to the axis was 130 mm. The distance from the collimator surface of the tilted detector heads to the origin on the axis was 110 mm. A CdTe semiconductor panel with a 1.4 mm detector pitch and a parallel-hole collimator were employed in both types of detector head. A line source phantom, cold-rod brain-shaped phantom, and cerebral blood flow phantom were evaluated. The projection data were generated by forward-projection of the phantom images using physics models, and Poisson noise at clinical levels was applied to the projection data. The ordered-subsets expectation maximization algorithm with physics models was used. We also evaluated conventional SPECT using four parallel detector heads for the sake of comparison. The evaluation of the line source phantom showed that the transaxial FWHM in the central slice for conventional SPECT ranged from 6.1 to 8.5 mm, while that for PT-SPECT ranged from 5.3 to 6.9 mm. The cold-rod brain-shaped phantom image showed that conventional SPECT could visualize up to 8-mm-diameter rods. By contrast, PT-SPECT could visualize up to 6-mm-diameter rods in upper slices of a cerebrum. The cerebral blood flow phantom image showed that the PT-SPECT system provided higher resolution at the thalamus and caudate nucleus as well as at the longitudinal fissure of the cerebrum compared with conventional SPECT. PT-SPECT provides improved image resolution at not only upper but also at

  8. Upregulation of gene expression in reward-modulatory striatal opioid systems by sleep loss.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Baldo, Brian A; Hanlon, Erin C; Obermeyer, William; Bremer, Quentin; Paletz, Elliott; Benca, Ruth M

    2013-12-01

    Epidemiological studies have shown a link between sleep loss and the obesity 'epidemic,' and several observations indicate that sleep curtailment engenders positive energy balance via increased palatable-food 'snacking.' These effects suggest alterations in reward-modulatory brain systems. We explored the effects of 10 days of sleep deprivation in rats on the expression of striatal opioid peptide (OP) genes that subserve food motivation and hedonic reward, and compared effects with those seen in hypothalamic energy balance-regulatory systems. Sleep-deprived (Sleep-Dep) rats were compared with yoked forced-locomotion apparatus controls (App-Controls), food-restricted rats (Food-Restrict), and unmanipulated controls (Home-Cage). Detection of mRNA levels with in situ hybridization revealed a subregion-specific upregulation of striatal preproenkephalin and prodynorhin gene expression in the Sleep-Dep group relative to all other groups. Neuropeptide Y (NPY) gene expression in the hippocampal dentate gyrus and throughout neocortex was also robustly upregulated selectively in the Sleep-Dep group. In contrast, parallel gene expression changes were observed in the Sleep-Dep and Food-Restrict groups in hypothalamic energy-sensing systems (arcuate nucleus NPY was upregulated, and cocaine- and amphetamine-regulated transcript was downregulated), in alignment with leptin suppression in both groups. Together, these results reveal a novel set of sleep deprivation-induced transcriptional changes in reward-modulatory peptide systems, which are dissociable from the energy-balance perturbations of sleep loss or the potentially stressful effects of the forced-locomotion procedure. The recruitment of telencephalic food-reward systems may provide a feeding drive highly resistant to feedback control, which could engender obesity through the enhancement of palatable feeding.

  9. Akinetic Crisis in Parkinson's Disease Is Associated with a Severe Loss of Striatal Dopamine Transporter Function: A Report of Two Cases

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Valtteri Kaasinen

    2014-11-01

    Full Text Available Akinetic crisis or acute akinesia is a life-threatening complication of Parkinson's disease (PD with unknown pathophysiological mechanisms. Clinically, it resembles the neuroleptic malignant syndrome, and dopaminergic drugs are transiently ineffective in the acute phase of the condition. There are no published dopaminergic functional imaging studies on PD patients with akinetic crisis. Here we report 2 advanced PD patients with akinetic crisis who were scanned with SPECT using brain dopamine transporter ligand [123I]FP-CIT. The first patient was additionally scanned before the condition developed, and the second patient was scanned after recovery. Striatal dopamine transporter binding was lower during than before the crisis, and both patients showed a nearly complete loss of dopamine transporter binding during the crisis. Serial imaging showed that the uptake remained negligible despite an improvement in motor function after recovery. Akinetic crisis in PD appears to be associated with a particularly severe loss of presynaptic striatal dopamine function that does not improve after recovery. Apart from presynaptic dopaminergic function, other dopaminergic or nondopaminergic mechanisms are involved in the clinical improvement of motor functions after akinetic crisis in PD.

  10. Serotonin mediates rapid changes of striatal glucose and lactate metabolism after systemic 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA, "Ecstasy") administration in awake rats

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Gramsbergen, Jan Bert; Cumming, Paul

    2007-01-01

     The pathway for selective serotonergic toxicity of 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA, "Ecstasy") is poorly understood, but has been linked to hyperthermia and disturbed energy metabolism. We investigated the dose-dependency and time-course of MDMA-induced perturbations of cerebral glucose...... was monitored by telemetry. A single dose of MDMA (2-10-20 mg/kg i.v.) evoked a transient increase of interstitial glucose concentrations in striatum (139-223%) with rapid onset and of less than 2h duration, a concomitant but more prolonged lactate increase (>187%) at the highest MDMA dose and no significant...... depletions of striatal serotonin. Blood glucose and lactate levels were also transiently elevated (163 and 135%) at the highest MDMA doses. The blood glucose rises were significantly related to brain glucose and brain lactate changes. The metabolic perturbations in striatum and the hyperthermic response (+1...

  11. ADHD- and Medication-Related Brain Activation Effects in Concordantly Affected Parent-Child Dyads with ADHD

    Science.gov (United States)

    Epstein, Jeffery N.; Casey, B. J.; Tonev, Simon T.; Davidson, Matthew C.; Reiss, Allan L.; Garrett, Amy; Hinshaw, Stephen P.; Greenhill, Laurence L.; Glover, Gary; Shafritz, Keith M.; Vitolo, Alan; Kotler, Lisa A.; Jarrett, Matthew A.; Spicer, Julie

    2007-01-01

    Background: Several studies have documented fronto-striatal dysfunction in children and adolescents with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) using response inhibition tasks. Our objective was to examine functional brain abnormalities among youths and adults with ADHD and to examine the relations between these neurobiological…

  12. Resting state functional MRI in Parkinson's disease: the impact of deep brain stimulation on 'effective' connectivity.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kahan, Joshua; Urner, Maren; Moran, Rosalyn; Flandin, Guillaume; Marreiros, Andre; Mancini, Laura; White, Mark; Thornton, John; Yousry, Tarek; Zrinzo, Ludvic; Hariz, Marwan; Limousin, Patricia; Friston, Karl; Foltynie, Tom

    2014-04-01

    Depleted of dopamine, the dynamics of the parkinsonian brain impact on both 'action' and 'resting' motor behaviour. Deep brain stimulation has become an established means of managing these symptoms, although its mechanisms of action remain unclear. Non-invasive characterizations of induced brain responses, and the effective connectivity underlying them, generally appeals to dynamic causal modelling of neuroimaging data. When the brain is at rest, however, this sort of characterization has been limited to correlations (functional connectivity). In this work, we model the 'effective' connectivity underlying low frequency blood oxygen level-dependent fluctuations in the resting Parkinsonian motor network-disclosing the distributed effects of deep brain stimulation on cortico-subcortical connections. Specifically, we show that subthalamic nucleus deep brain stimulation modulates all the major components of the motor cortico-striato-thalamo-cortical loop, including the cortico-striatal, thalamo-cortical, direct and indirect basal ganglia pathways, and the hyperdirect subthalamic nucleus projections. The strength of effective subthalamic nucleus afferents and efferents were reduced by stimulation, whereas cortico-striatal, thalamo-cortical and direct pathways were strengthened. Remarkably, regression analysis revealed that the hyperdirect, direct, and basal ganglia afferents to the subthalamic nucleus predicted clinical status and therapeutic response to deep brain stimulation; however, suppression of the sensitivity of the subthalamic nucleus to its hyperdirect afferents by deep brain stimulation may subvert the clinical efficacy of deep brain stimulation. Our findings highlight the distributed effects of stimulation on the resting motor network and provide a framework for analysing effective connectivity in resting state functional MRI with strong a priori hypotheses.

  13. Centrality of striatal cholinergic transmission in basal ganglia function

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Paola eBonsi

    2011-02-01

    Full Text Available Work over the past two decades revealed a previously unexpected role for striatal cholinergic interneurons in the context of basal ganglia function. The recognition that these interneurons are essential in synaptic plasticity and motor learning represents a significant step ahead in deciphering how the striatum processes cortical inputs, and why pathological circumstances cause motor dysfunction.Loss of the reciprocal modulation between dopaminergic inputs and the intrinsic cholinergic innervation within the striatum appears to be the trigger for pathophysiological changes occurring in basal ganglia disorders. Accordingly, there is now compelling evidence showing profound changes in cholinergic markers in these disorders, in particular Parkinson’s disease and dystonia.Based on converging experimental and clinical evidence, we provide an overview of the role of striatal cholinergic transmission in physiological and pathological conditions, in the context of the pathogenesis of movement disorders.

  14. Tamoxifen counteracts estradiol induced effects on striatal and hypophyseal dopamine receptors

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ferretti, C.; Blengio, M.; Ghi, P.; Racca, S.; Genazzani, E.; Portaleone, P.

    1988-01-01

    We investigated the ability of Tamoxifen (TAM), an antiestrogen drug, to counteract the modification induced by estrogens on dopamine (DA) receptors on striatum and on adenohypophysis of ovex female rats. Subacute treatment with 17β-estradiol (E 2 ) at both low (0.1 μg/kg) and high (20 μg/kg) doses confirmed its ability to increase the number of striatal 3 H-Spiperone ( 3 H-SPI) binding sites in a dose dependent manner. By contrast in the pituitary, only high doses of estrogen were effective in reducing the number of DA receptors. We treated ovex female rats for 15 days with TAM alone or associated with E 2 , to see if these estrogenic effects could be suppressed by an antiestrogenic drug. TAM did not affect the number of striatal DA receptors, but significantly increased the adenohypophy-seal DA binding sites, without varying their affinity. No changes were observed in pituitary and striatal DA receptor density, even when TAM was injected in association with estradiol. In conclusions: TAM is able to counteract the effects estrogens have on DA receptors. However there is some evidence that it could influence the pituitary DA systems independently of it antiestrogenic activity

  15. NOTE: An innovative phantom for quantitative and qualitative investigation of advanced x-ray imaging technologies

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chiarot, C. B.; Siewerdsen, J. H.; Haycocks, T.; Moseley, D. J.; Jaffray, D. A.

    2005-11-01

    Development, characterization, and quality assurance of advanced x-ray imaging technologies require phantoms that are quantitative and well suited to such modalities. This note reports on the design, construction, and use of an innovative phantom developed for advanced imaging technologies (e.g., multi-detector CT and the numerous applications of flat-panel detectors in dual-energy imaging, tomosynthesis, and cone-beam CT) in diagnostic and image-guided procedures. The design addresses shortcomings of existing phantoms by incorporating criteria satisfied by no other single phantom: (1) inserts are fully 3D—spherically symmetric rather than cylindrical; (2) modules are quantitative, presenting objects of known size and contrast for quality assurance and image quality investigation; (3) features are incorporated in ideal and semi-realistic (anthropomorphic) contexts; and (4) the phantom allows devices to be inserted and manipulated in an accessible module (right lung). The phantom consists of five primary modules: (1) head, featuring contrast-detail spheres approximate to brain lesions; (2) left lung, featuring contrast-detail spheres approximate to lung modules; (3) right lung, an accessible hull in which devices may be placed and manipulated; (4) liver, featuring conrast-detail spheres approximate to metastases; and (5) abdomen/pelvis, featuring simulated kidneys, colon, rectum, bladder, and prostate. The phantom represents a two-fold evolution in design philosophy—from 2D (cylindrically symmetric) to fully 3D, and from exclusively qualitative or quantitative to a design accommodating quantitative study within an anatomical context. It has proven a valuable tool in investigations throughout our institution, including low-dose CT, dual-energy radiography, and cone-beam CT for image-guided radiation therapy and surgery.

  16. Monte Carlo and experimental internal radionuclide dosimetry in RANDO head phantom

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ghahraman Asl, Ruhollah; Nasseri, Shahrokh; Parach, Ali Asghar; Zakavi, Seyed Rasoul; Momennezhad Mehdi; Davenport, David

    2015-01-01

    Monte Carlo techniques are widely employed in internal dosimetry to obtain better estimates of absorbed dose distributions from irradiation sources in medicine. Accurate 3D absorbed dosimetry would be useful for risk assessment of inducing deterministic and stochastic biological effects for both therapeutic and diagnostic radiopharmaceuticals in nuclear medicine. The goal of this study was to experimentally evaluate the use of Geant4 application for tomographic emission (GATE) Monte Carlo package for 3D internal dosimetry using the head portion of the RANDO phantom. GATE package (version 6.1) was used to create a voxel model of a human head phantom from computed tomography (CT) images. Matrix dimensions consisted of 319 × 216 × 30 voxels (0.7871 × 0.7871 × 5 mm 3 ). Measurements were made using thermoluminescent dosimeters (TLD-100). One rod-shaped source with 94 MBq activity of 99m Tc was positioned in the brain tissue of the posterior part of the human head phantom in slice number 2. The results of the simulation were compared with measured mean absorbed dose per cumulative activity (S value). Absorbed dose was also calculated for each slice of the digital model of the head phantom and dose volume histograms (DVHs) were computed to analyze the absolute and relative doses in each slice from the simulation data. The S-values calculated by GATE and TLD methods showed a significant correlation (correlation coefficient, r 2 ≥ 0.99, p < 0.05) with each other. The maximum relative percentage differences were ≤14 % for most cases. DVHs demonstrated dose decrease along the direction of movement toward the lower slices of the head phantom. Based on the results obtained from GATE Monte Carlopackage it can be deduced that a complete dosimetry simulation study, from imaging to absorbed dose map calculation, is possible to execute in a single framework.

  17. Striatal dopamine in Parkinson disease: A meta-analysis of imaging studies.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kaasinen, Valtteri; Vahlberg, Tero

    2017-12-01

    A meta-analysis of 142 positron emission tomography and single photon emission computed tomography studies that have investigated striatal presynaptic dopamine function in Parkinson disease (PD) was performed. Subregional estimates of striatal dopamine metabolism are presented. The aromatic L-amino-acid decarboxylase (AADC) defect appears to be consistently smaller than the dopamine transporter and vesicular monoamine transporter 2 defects, suggesting upregulation of AADC function in PD. The correlation between disease severity and dopamine loss appears linear, but the majority of longitudinal studies point to a negative exponential progression pattern of dopamine loss in PD. Ann Neurol 2017;82:873-882. © 2017 American Neurological Association.

  18. The impact of anthropometric patient-phantom matching on organ dose: A hybrid phantom study for fluoroscopy guided interventions

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Johnson, Perry B.; Geyer, Amy; Borrego, David; Ficarrotta, Kayla; Johnson, Kevin; Bolch, Wesley E.

    2011-01-01

    Purpose: To investigate the benefits and limitations of patient-phantom matching for determining organ dose during fluoroscopy guided interventions. Methods: In this study, 27 CT datasets representing patients of different sizes and genders were contoured and converted into patient-specific computational models. Each model was matched, based on height and weight, to computational phantoms selected from the UF hybrid patient-dependent series. In order to investigate the influence of phantom type on patient organ dose, Monte Carlo methods were used to simulate two cardiac projections (PA/left lateral) and two abdominal projections (RAO/LPO). Organ dose conversion coefficients were then calculated for each patient-specific and patient-dependent phantom and also for a reference stylized and reference hybrid phantom. The coefficients were subsequently analyzed for any correlation between patient-specificity and the accuracy of the dose estimate. Accuracy was quantified by calculating an absolute percent difference using the patient-specific dose conversion coefficients as the reference. Results: Patient-phantom matching was shown most beneficial for estimating the dose to heavy patients. In these cases, the improvement over using a reference stylized phantom ranged from approximately 50% to 120% for abdominal projections and for a reference hybrid phantom from 20% to 60% for all projections. For lighter individuals, patient-phantom matching was clearly superior to using a reference stylized phantom, but not significantly better than using a reference hybrid phantom for certain fields and projections. Conclusions: The results indicate two sources of error when patients are matched with phantoms: Anatomical error, which is inherent due to differences in organ size and location, and error attributed to differences in the total soft tissue attenuation. For small patients, differences in soft tissue attenuation are minimal and are exceeded by inherent anatomical differences

  19. The Aomori Prefecture Brain Blood Flow SPECT Phantom Study (First information). Comparison between reference image and each facility to aim at grasp of the situation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ishikura, Makihito; Narita, Kazuo; Terayama, Yoshio; Kudou, Sukehiro

    2008-01-01

    As the single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) image has rather big between-facility and -machine differences, a questionnaire was done to 18 SPECT facilities in Aomori Prefecture in May, 03, 15 of which answered, for the purpose of standardization of the brain blood flow images in the prefecture. The questionnaire concerned the condition of data collection, image display and reconstruction, and quantitative analysis, based on whose results the Phantom Study was then conducted to see the relationship between the average count and Butterworth filter (BWF) cut-off value by comparison of reference and facilities' images. The gamma camera PRISM 200XP, processor Odyssey Fx and low-energy high-resolution (LEHR) collimator were used for the reference image with collection matrix 128 x 128, 3.5 mm pixel size, Ramp reconstruction filter, Chang decay correction (coefficient μ=0.09) and null scattering correction. Used was the Hoffman phantom containing 30-37 MBq of 99m Tc or 8-18 MBq of 123 I. It was found that the fluctuation of cut-off values became small depending on the increase of count and the collection count was low for both nuclides in those facilities, and thus further study of the measure for increasing the collection count was thought necessary. (R.T.)

  20. 3D Printing Openable Imaging Phantom Design

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kim, Myoung Keun; Won, Jun Hyeok; Lee, Seung Wook

    2017-01-01

    The purpose of this study is to design an openable phantom that can replace the internal measurement bar used for contrast comparison in order to increase the efficiency of manufacturing imaging phantom used in the medical industry and to improve convenience using 3D printer. Phantom concept design, 3D printing, and Image reconstruction were defined as the scope of the thesis. Also, we study metal artifact reduction with openable phantom. We have designed a Openable phantom using 3D printing, and have investigated metal artifact reduction after inserting a metallic material inside the phantom. The openable phantom can be adjusted at any time to suit the user's experiment and can be easily replaced and useful.

  1. Striatal [[sup 11]C]-N-methyl-spiperone binding in patients with focal dystonia (torticollis) using positron emission tomography

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Leenders, K [Paul Scherrer Inst. (PSI), Villigen (Switzerland); Hartvig, P [Hospital Pharmacy, Univ. Hospital, Uppsala (Sweden); Forsgren, L; Holmgren, G; Almay, B [Dept. of Neurology, Umeaa Univ., Umeaa (Sweden); Eckernaes, S A [Dept. of Neurology, Univ. Hospital, Uppsala (Sweden); Lundqvist, H; Laangstroem, B [Uppsala Univ. PET-Center, Uppsala (Sweden)

    1993-01-01

    Specific binding of [[sup 11]C]-N-methyl-spiperone to striatal dopamine D2 receptors was assessed using positron emission tomography (PET) in 6 patients with adult-onset focal dystonia (predominantly spasmodic torticollis) and in 5 healthy subjects. No significant difference in average specific striatal tracer uptake between patients and healthy subjects was found. However, in the 5 patients showing lateralisation of clinical signs a trend to higher striatal tracer uptake in the contralateral hemisphere was observed. (authors).

  2. Loud Noise Exposure Produces DNA, Neurotransmitter and Morphological Damage within Specific Brain Areas

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Giada Frenzilli

    2017-06-01

    Full Text Available Exposure to loud noise is a major environmental threat to public health. Loud noise exposure, apart from affecting the inner ear, is deleterious for cardiovascular, endocrine and nervous systems and it is associated with neuropsychiatric disorders. In this study we investigated DNA, neurotransmitters and immune-histochemical alterations induced by exposure to loud noise in three major brain areas (cerebellum, hippocampus, striatum of Wistar rats. Rats were exposed to loud noise (100 dBA for 12 h. The effects of noise on DNA integrity in all three brain areas were evaluated by using Comet assay. In parallel studies, brain monoamine levels and morphology of nigrostriatal pathways, hippocampus and cerebellum were analyzed at different time intervals (24 h and 7 days after noise exposure. Loud noise produced a sudden increase in DNA damage in all the brain areas under investigation. Monoamine levels detected at 7 days following exposure were differently affected depending on the specific brain area. Namely, striatal but not hippocampal dopamine (DA significantly decreased, whereas hippocampal and cerebellar noradrenaline (NA was significantly reduced. This is in line with pathological findings within striatum and hippocampus consisting of a decrease in striatal tyrosine hydroxylase (TH combined with increased Bax and glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP. Loud noise exposure lasting 12 h causes immediate DNA, and long-lasting neurotransmitter and immune-histochemical alterations within specific brain areas of the rat. These alterations may suggest an anatomical and functional link to explain the neurobiology of diseases which prevail in human subjects exposed to environmental noise.

  3. Elevated Striatal Dopamine Function in Immigrants and Their Children: A Risk Mechanism for Psychosis

    OpenAIRE

    Egerton, A.; Howes, O. D.; Houle, S.; McKenzie, K.; Valmaggia, L. R.; Bagby, M. R.; Tseng, H-H; Bloomfield, M. A. P.; Kenk, M.; Bhattacharyya, S.; Suridjan, I.; Chaddock, C. A.; Winton-Brown, T. T.; Allen, P.; Rusjan, P.

    2017-01-01

    Migration is a major risk factor for schizophrenia but the neurochemical processes involved are unknown. One candidate mechanism is through elevations in striatal dopamine synthesis and release. The objective of this research was to determine whether striatal dopamine function is elevated in immigrants compared to nonimmigrants and the relationship with psychosis. Two complementary case–control studies of in vivo dopamine function (stress-induced dopamine release and dopamine synthesis capaci...

  4. Construction of Korean adult voxel phantoms for radiation dosimetry and their applications

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Lee, Choon Sik

    2002-08-15

    stomach, thyroid, tests depending on the photon energy and the irradiation direction. These are caused by difference in trunk thickness between MIRD-type phantom and Korean voxel phantom, and differences of organ positions in the body. In the second example, dose to a brain tumor for a patient undergoing boronneutron- capture therapy(BNCT) was examined using head part of the KRMAN to demonstrate utility of voxel phantoms precisely describing an individual patient. In conclusion, although the MIRD-type phantoms are considered satisfactory for general purposes of external radiation protection dosimetry, partial modifications are needed for location and shape of some specific organs to improve accuracy of organ equivalent doses. Voxel phantoms can be used as tools providing references dosimetric values in this process. Since organ equivalent doses in internal exposure mode are sensitive to organ size and relative location, use of voxel phantoms is vital to enhance accuracy of patient dose assessment in therapy level of nuclear medicine. Refinement of KRMAN and KRWOMAN using additional image data is prerequisite of further applications. Development of methodology for accelerating voxel Monte Carlo calculations are also essential.

  5. Radiation brain dose to vascular surgeons during fluoroscopically guided interventions is not effectively reduced by wearing lead equivalent surgical caps.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kirkwood, Melissa L; Arbique, Gary M; Guild, Jeffrey B; Zeng, Katie; Xi, Yin; Rectenwald, John; Anderson, Jon A; Timaran, Carlos

    2018-03-12

    Radiation to the interventionalist's brain during fluoroscopically guided interventions (FGIs) may increase the incidence of cerebral neoplasms. Lead equivalent surgical caps claim to reduce radiation brain doses by 50% to 95%. We sought to determine the efficacy of the RADPAD (Worldwide Innovations & Technologies, Lenexa, Kan) No Brainer surgical cap (0.06 mm lead equivalent at 90 kVp) in reducing radiation dose to the surgeon's and trainee's head during FGIs and to a phantom to determine relative brain dose reductions. Optically stimulated, luminescent nanoDot detectors (Landauer, Glenwood, Ill) inside and outside of the cap at the left temporal position were used to measure cap attenuation during FGIs. To check relative brain doses, nanoDot detectors were placed in 15 positions within an anthropomorphic head phantom (ATOM model 701; CIRS, Norfolk, Va). The phantom was positioned to represent a primary operator performing femoral access. Fluorography was performed on a plastic scatter phantom at 80 kVp for an exposure of 5 Gy reference air kerma with or without the hat. For each brain location, the percentage dose reduction with the hat was calculated. Means and standard errors were calculated using a pooled linear mixed model with repeated measurements. Anatomically similar locations were combined into five groups: upper brain, upper skull, midbrain, eyes, and left temporal position. This was a prospective, single-center study that included 29 endovascular aortic aneurysm procedures. The average procedure reference air kerma was 2.6 Gy. The hat attenuation at the temporal position for the attending physician and fellow was 60% ± 20% and 33% ± 36%, respectively. The equivalent phantom measurements demonstrated an attenuation of 71% ± 2.0% (P < .0001). In the interior phantom locations, attenuation was statistically significant for the skull (6% ± 1.4%) and upper brain (7.2% ± 1.0%; P < .0001) but not for the middle brain (1.4% ± 1.0%; P = .15

  6. Calibrating Doppler imaging of preterm intracerebral circulation using a microvessel flow phantom

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Fleur A. Camfferman

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available Introduction. Preterm infants are born during critical stages of brain development, in which the adaptive capacity of the fetus to extra-uterine environment is limited. Inadequate brain perfusion has been directly linked to preterm brain damage. Advanced high-frequency ultrasound probes and processing algorithms allow visualization of microvessels and depiction of regional variation. To assess whether visualization and flow velocity estimates of preterm cerebral perfusion using Doppler techniques is accurate, we conducted an in vitro experiment using a microvessel flow phantom.Materials and Methods. An in-house developed flow phantom containing two microvessels (inner diameter 200 and 700 microns with attached syringe pumps, filled with blood-mimicking fluid, was used to generate non-pulsatile perfusion of variable flow. Measurements were performed using an Esaote MyLab70 scanner.Results. Microvessel mimicking catheters with velocities as low as 1cm/sec were adequately visualized with a linear ultrasound probe. With a convex probe velocities <2 cm/sec could not be depicted. Within settings, velocity and diameter measurements were highly reproducible (intra class correlation 0.997 (95% CI 0.996-0.998 and 0.914 (0.864-0.946. Overall, mean velocity was overestimated up to 3-fold, especially in high velocity ranges. Significant differences were seen in velocity measurements when using steer angle correction and in vessel diameter estimation (p<0.05.Conclusion. Visualization of microvessel size catheters mimicking small brain vessels is feasible. Reproducible velocity and diameter results can be obtained, although important overestimation of the values is observed. Before velocity estimates of microcirculation can find its use in clinical practice, calibration of the ultrasound machine for any specific Doppler purpose is essential. The ultimate goal is to develop a sonographic tool that can be used for objective study of regional perfusion in routine

  7. Detection of phasic dopamine by D1 and D2 striatal medium spiny neurons.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yapo, Cedric; Nair, Anu G; Clement, Lorna; Castro, Liliana R; Hellgren Kotaleski, Jeanette; Vincent, Pierre

    2017-12-15

    Brief dopamine events are critical actors of reward-mediated learning in the striatum; the intracellular cAMP-protein kinase A (PKA) response of striatal medium spiny neurons to such events was studied dynamically using a combination of biosensor imaging in mouse brain slices and in silico simulations. Both D1 and D2 medium spiny neurons can sense brief dopamine transients in the sub-micromolar range. While dopamine transients profoundly change cAMP levels in both types of medium spiny neurons, the PKA-dependent phosphorylation level remains unaffected in D2 neurons. At the level of PKA-dependent phosphorylation, D2 unresponsiveness depends on protein phosphatase-1 (PP1) inhibition by DARPP-32. Simulations suggest that D2 medium spiny neurons could detect transient dips in dopamine level. The phasic release of dopamine in the striatum determines various aspects of reward and action selection, but the dynamics of the dopamine effect on intracellular signalling remains poorly understood. We used genetically encoded FRET biosensors in striatal brain slices to quantify the effect of transient dopamine on cAMP or PKA-dependent phosphorylation levels, and computational modelling to further explore the dynamics of this signalling pathway. Medium-sized spiny neurons (MSNs), which express either D 1 or D 2 dopamine receptors, responded to dopamine by an increase or a decrease in cAMP, respectively. Transient dopamine showed similar sub-micromolar efficacies on cAMP in both D1 and D2 MSNs, thus challenging the commonly accepted notion that dopamine efficacy is much higher on D 2 than on D 1 receptors. However, in D2 MSNs, the large decrease in cAMP level triggered by transient dopamine did not translate to a decrease in PKA-dependent phosphorylation level, owing to the efficient inhibition of protein phosphatase 1 by DARPP-32. Simulations further suggested that D2 MSNs can also operate in a 'tone-sensing' mode, allowing them to detect transient dips in basal dopamine

  8. MRI quality assurance using the ACR phantom in a multi-unit imaging center

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ihalainen, Toni M.; Kuusela, Linda J.; Savolainen, Sauli E.; Loennroth, Nadja T.; Peltonen, Juha I.; Uusi-Simola, Jouni K.; Timonen, Marjut H.; Sipilae, Outi E.

    2011-01-01

    Background. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) instrumentation is vulnerable to technical and image quality problems, and quality assurance is essential. In the studied regional imaging center the long-term quality assurance has been based on MagNET phantom measurements. American College of Radiology (ACR) has an accreditation program including a standardized image quality measurement protocol and phantom. The ACR protocol includes recommended acceptance criteria for clinical sequences and thus provides possibility to assess the clinical relevance of quality assurance. The purpose of this study was to test the ACR MRI phantom in quality assurance of a multi-unit imaging center. Material and methods. The imaging center operates 11 MRI systems of three major manufacturers with field strengths of 3.0 T, 1.5 T and 1.0 T. Images of the ACR phantom were acquired using a head coil following the ACR scanning instructions. Both ACR T1- and T2-weighted sequences as well as T1- and T2-weighted brain sequences in clinical use at each site were acquired. Measurements were performed twice. The images were analyzed and the results were compared with the ACR acceptance levels. Results. The acquisition procedure with the ACR phantom was faster than with the MagNET phantoms. On the first and second measurement rounds 91% and 73% of the systems passed the ACR test. Measured slice thickness accuracies were not within the acceptance limits in site T2 sequences. Differences in the high contrast spatial resolution between the ACR and the site sequences were observed. In 3.0 T systems the image intensity uniformity was slightly lower than the ACR acceptance limit. Conclusion. The ACR method was feasible in quality assurance of a multi-unit imaging center and the ACR protocol could replace the MagNET phantom tests. An automatic analysis of the images will further improve cost-effectiveness and objectiveness of the ACR protocol

  9. Striatal output markers do not alter in response to circling behaviour in 6-OHDA lesioned rats produced by acute or chronic administration of the monoamine uptake inhibitor BTS 74 398.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lane, E L; Cheetham, S; Jenner, P

    2008-01-01

    The monoamine uptake inhibitor BTS 74 398 induces ipsilateral circling in 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA) lesioned rats without induction of abnormal motor behaviours associated with L-dopa administration. We examined whether this was reflected in the expression of peptide mRNA in the direct and indirect striatal output pathways.6-OHDA lesioning of the nigrostriatal pathway increased striatal expression of PPE-A mRNA and decreased levels of PPT mRNA with PPE-B mRNA expression remaining unchanged. Acute L-dopa administration normalised PPE-A mRNA and elevated PPT mRNA while PPE-B mRNA expression remained unchanged. Acute administration of BTS 74 398 did not alter striatal peptide mRNA levels. Following chronic treatment with L-dopa, PPE-A mRNA expression in the lesioned striatum continued to be normalised and PPT mRNA was increased compared to the intact side. PPE-B mRNA expression was also markedly increased relative to the non-lesioned striatum. Chronic BTS 74 398 administration did not alter mRNA expression in the 6-OHDA lesioned striatum although small increases in PPT mRNA expression in the intact and sham lesioned striatum were observed. The failure of BTS 74 398 to induce changes in striatal neuropeptide mRNA correlated with its failure to induce abnormal motor behaviours or behavioural sensitisation but does not explain how it produces a reversal of motor deficits. An action in another area of the brain appears likely and may explain the subsequent failure of BTS 74 398 and related compounds to exert anti-parkinsonian actions in man.

  10. Interactions between lysergic acid diethylamide and dopamine-sensitive adenylate cyclase systems in rat brain.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hungen, K V; Roberts, S; Hill, D F

    1975-08-22

    Investigations were carried out on the interactions of the hallucinogenic drug, D-lysergic acid diethylamide (D-LSD), and other serotonin antagonists with catecholamine-sensitive adenylate cyclase systems in cell-free preparations from different regions of rat brain. In equimolar concentration, D-LSD, 2-brono-D-lysergic acid diethylamide (BOL), or methysergide (UML) strongly blocked maximal stimulation of adenylate cyclase activity by either norepinephrine or dopamine in particulate preparations from cerebral cortices of young adult rats. D-LSD also eliminated the stimulation of adenylate cyclase activity of equimolar concentrations of norepinephrine or dopamine in particulate preparations from rat hippocampus. The effects of this hallucinogenic agent on adenylate cyclase activity were most striking in particulate preparations from corpus striatum. Thus, in 10 muM concentration, D-LSD not only completely eradicated the response to 10 muM dopamine in these preparations but also consistently stimulated adenylate cyclase activity. L-LSD (80 muM) was without effect. Significant activation of striatal adenylate cyclase was produced by 0.1 muM D-LSD. Activation of striatal adenylate cyclase of either D-LSD or dopamine was strongly blocked by the dopamine-blocking agents trifluoperazine, thioridazine, chlorpromazine, and haloperidol. The stimulatory effects of D-LSD and dopamine were also inhibited by the serotonin-blocking agents, BOL, 1-methyl-D-lysergic acid diethylamide (MLD), and cyproheptadine, but not by the beta-adrenergic-blocking agent, propranolol. However, these serotonin antagonists by themselves were incapable of stimulating adenylate cyclase activity in the striatal preparations. Several other hallucinogens, which were structurally related to serotonin, were also inactive in this regard, e.g., mescaline, N,N-dimethyltryptamine, psilocin and bufotenine. Serotonin itself produced a small stimulation of adenylate cyclase activity in striatal preparations and

  11. Assessment of striatal & postural deformities in patients with Parkinson's disease

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Sanjay Pandey

    2016-01-01

    Interpretation & conclusions: Our results showed that striatal and postural deformities were common and present in about half of the patients with PD. These deformities we more common in patients with advanced stage of PD.

  12. [Effects of acupuncture stimulation of different acupoint groups on sleeping duration and serum and striatal dopamine contents in rats with gastric mucosal injury].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yang, Ping; Peng, Lei; Li, Jie-Ting; Ma, Hui-Fang

    2014-02-01

    To observe the effect of acupuncture intervention on gastric ulcer (GU) and sleeping quality from the viewpoint of brain-gut axis which plays an important role in the regulation of many vital functions in health and disease. Forty male Wistar rats were randomized into normal control, GU model, acupuncture of "Zhongwan" (CV 12)-"Zusanli" (ST 36, gastric treatment acupoints), acupuncture of "Shenmai" (BL 62)-"Zhaohai" (KI 6, sleep-promotion acupoints), and acupuncture of CV 12-ST 36-BL 62-KI 6 (combined treatment) groups, with 8 rats in each group. GU model was established by intragastric perfusion of dehydrated alcohol (1 mL/rat), and sleep model established by intraperitoneal injection of pentobarbital sodium (40 mg/kg) after the last treatment. The abovementioned acupoints were punctured with filiform needles and stimulated by manipulating the needle for about 30 s, once every 5 mm during 20 mm of needle retention. The treatment was conducted once daily for five days. Gastric mucosal lesion index was assessed by Guth's method, and the mucosal pathological changes were observed under microscope after H. E. staining. The contents of dopamine (DA) in the serum and striatal tissues were detected by ELISA kit. Compared with the normal control group, the rats' sleeping duration, and serum DA content were markedly decreased and the gastric mucosal lesion index, and the striatal DA content remarkably increased in the model group (P sleeping duration, and serum DA content were significantly increased, and the gastric mucosal lesion index, and the striatal DA content remarkably down-regulated in the CV 12-ST 36 (gastric treatment acupoints), BL 62-KI 6 (sleep-promotion acupoints) and CV 12-ST 36-BL 62-KI 6 (combined treatment) groups (P sleep promotion acupoints group in reducing mucosal lesion index and in increasing serum DA level (P sleeping duration in gastric lesion rats, which may be related to its effects in increasing blood DA and lowering striatal DA level

  13. A computer-simulated liver phantom (virtual liver phantom) for multidetector computed tomography evaluation

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Funama, Yoshinori [Kumamoto University, Department of Radiological Sciences, School of Health Sciences, Kumamoto (Japan); Awai, Kazuo; Nakayama, Yoshiharu; Liu, Da; Yamashita, Yasuyuki [Kumamoto University, Department of Diagnostic Radiology, Graduate School of Medical Sciences, Kumamoto (Japan); Miyazaki, Osamu; Goto, Taiga [Hitachi Medical Corporation, Tokyo (Japan); Hori, Shinichi [Gate Tower Institute of Image Guided Therapy, Osaka (Japan)

    2006-04-15

    The purpose of study was to develop a computer-simulated liver phantom for hepatic CT studies. A computer-simulated liver phantom was mathematically constructed on a computer workstation. The computer-simulated phantom was calibrated using real CT images acquired by an actual four-detector CT. We added an inhomogeneous texture to the simulated liver by referring to CT images of chronically damaged human livers. The mean CT number of the simulated liver was 60 HU and we added numerous 5-to 10-mm structures with 60{+-}10 HU/mm. To mimic liver tumors we added nodules measuring 8, 10, and 12 mm in diameter with CT numbers of 60{+-}10, 60{+-}15, and 60{+-}20 HU. Five radiologists visually evaluated similarity of the texture of the computer-simulated liver phantom and a real human liver to confirm the appropriateness of the virtual liver images using a five-point scale. The total score was 44 in two radiologists, and 42, 41, and 39 in one radiologist each. They evaluated that the textures of virtual liver were comparable to those of human liver. Our computer-simulated liver phantom is a promising tool for the evaluation of the image quality and diagnostic performance of hepatic CT imaging. (orig.)

  14. Validation of dose planning calculations for boron neutron capture therapy using cylindrical and anthropomorphic phantoms

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Koivunoro, Hanna; Seppaelae, Tiina; Uusi-Simola, Jouni; Merimaa, Katja; Savolainen, Sauli [Department of Physics, POB 64, FI-00014 University of Helsinki (Finland); Kotiluoto, Petri; Seren, Tom; Auterinen, Iiro [VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland, Espoo, POB 1000, FI-02044 VTT (Finland); Kortesniemi, Mika, E-mail: hanna.koivunoro@helsinki.f [HUS Helsinki Medical Imaging Center, University of Helsinki, POB 340, FI-00029 HUS (Finland)

    2010-06-21

    In this paper, the accuracy of dose planning calculations for boron neutron capture therapy (BNCT) of brain and head and neck cancer was studied at the FiR 1 epithermal neutron beam. A cylindrical water phantom and an anthropomorphic head phantom were applied with two beam aperture-to-surface distances (ASD). The calculations using the simulation environment for radiation application (SERA) treatment planning system were compared to neutron activation measurements with Au and Mn foils, photon dose measurements with an ionization chamber and the reference simulations with the MCNP5 code. Photon dose calculations using SERA differ from the ionization chamber measurements by 2-13% (disagreement increased along the depth in the phantom), but are in agreement with the MCNP5 calculations within 2%. The {sup 55}Mn(n,{gamma}) and {sup 197}Au(n,{gamma}) reaction rates calculated using SERA agree within 10% and 8%, respectively, with the measurements and within 5% with the MCNP5 calculations at depths >0.5 cm from the phantom surface. The {sup 55}Mn(n,{gamma}) reaction rate represents the nitrogen and boron depth dose within 1%. Discrepancy in the SERA fast neutron dose calculation (of up to 37%) is corrected if the biased fast neutron dose calculation option is not applied. Reduced voxel cell size ({<=}0.5 cm) improves the SERA calculation accuracy on the phantom surface. Despite the slight overestimation of the epithermal neutrons and underestimation of the thermal neutrons in the beam model, neutron calculation accuracy with the SERA system is sufficient for reliable BNCT treatment planning with the two studied treatment distances. The discrepancy between measured and calculated photon dose remains unsatisfactorily high for depths >6 cm from the phantom surface. Increasing discrepancy along the phantom depth is expected to be caused by the inaccurately determined effective point of the ionization chamber.

  15. Dopamine D2-receptor imaging with [sup 123]I-iodobenzamide SPECT in migraine patients abusing ergotamine: does ergotamine cross the blood brain barrier

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Verhoeff, N.P.; Visser, W.H.; Ferrari, M.D.; Saxena, P.R.; Royen, E.A. van (Erasmus Univ., Rotterdam (Netherlands))

    1993-10-01

    Two migraine patients were studied by in vivo SPECT using the dopamine D2-receptor specific radioligand [sup 123]I-3-iodo-6-methoxybenzamide ([sup 123]I-IBZM) during ergotamine abuse and after withdrawal. Results were compared with 15 healthy controls. Striatum/cerebellum and striatum/occipital cortex ratios of count rate density were calculated as a semiquantitative measurement for striatal dopamine D2-receptor binding potential. No differences were found in striatal uptake of [sup 123]I-IBZM between healthy controls and the patients when on or off ergotamine. Preliminary evidence suggests that ergotamine may not occupy striatal dopamine D2-receptors to a large extent and thus may not cross the blood brain barrier in large quantities. 23 refs., 3 figs.

  16. Tamoxifen counteracts estradiol induced effects on striatal and hypophyseal dopamine receptors

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Ferretti, C.; Blengio, M.; Ghi, P.; Racca, S.; Genazzani, E.; Portaleone, P.

    1988-01-01

    We investigated the ability of Tamoxifen (TAM), an antiestrogen drug, to counteract the modification induced by estrogens on dopamine (DA) receptors on striatum and on adenohypophysis of ovex female rats. Subacute treatment with 17..beta..-estradiol (E/sub 2/) at both low (0.1 ..mu..g/kg) and high (20 ..mu..g/kg) doses confirmed its ability to increase the number of striatal /sup 3/H-Spiperone (/sup 3/H-SPI) binding sites in a dose dependent manner. By contrast in the pituitary, only high doses of estrogen were effective in reducing the number of DA receptors. We treated ovex female rats for 15 days with TAM alone or associated with E/sub 2/, to see if these estrogenic effects could be suppressed by an antiestrogenic drug. TAM did not affect the number of striatal DA receptors, but significantly increased the adenohypophy-seal DA binding sites, without varying their affinity. No changes were observed in pituitary and striatal DA receptor density, even when TAM was injected in association with estradiol. In conclusions: TAM is able to counteract the effects estrogens have on DA receptors. However there is some evidence that it could influence the pituitary DA systems independently of it antiestrogenic activity.

  17. A negative relationship between ventral striatal loss anticipation response and impulsivity in borderline personality disorder

    OpenAIRE

    Herbort, Maike C.; Soch, Joram; W?stenberg, Torsten; Krauel, Kerstin; Pujara, Maia; Koenigs, Michael; Gallinat, J?rgen; Walter, Henrik; Roepke, Stefan; Schott, Bj?rn H.

    2016-01-01

    Patients with borderline personality disorder (BPD) frequently exhibit impulsive behavior, and self-reported impulsivity is typically higher in BPD patients when compared to healthy controls. Previous functional neuroimaging studies have suggested a link between impulsivity, the ventral striatal response to reward anticipation, and prediction errors. Here we investigated the striatal neural response to monetary gain and loss anticipation and their relationship with impulsivity in 21 female BP...

  18. Blunted striatal response to monetary reward anticipation during smoking abstinence predicts lapse during a contingency-managed quit attempt.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sweitzer, Maggie M; Geier, Charles F; Denlinger, Rachel; Forbes, Erika E; Raiff, Bethany R; Dallery, Jesse; McClernon, F J; Donny, Eric C

    2016-03-01

    Tobacco smoking is associated with dysregulated reward processing within the striatum, characterized by hypersensitivity to smoking rewards and hyposensitivity to non-smoking rewards. This bias toward smoking reward at the expense of alternative rewards is further exacerbated by deprivation from smoking, which may contribute to difficulty maintaining abstinence during a quit attempt. We examined whether abstinence-induced changes in striatal processing of rewards predicted lapse likelihood during a quit attempt supported by contingency management (CM), in which abstinence from smoking was reinforced with money. Thirty-six non-treatment-seeking smokers participated in two functional MRI (fMRI) sessions, one following 24-h abstinence and one following smoking as usual. During each scan, participants completed a rewarded guessing task designed to elicit striatal activation in which they could earn smoking and monetary rewards delivered after the scan. Participants then engaged in a 3-week CM-supported quit attempt. As previously reported, 24-h abstinence was associated with increased striatal activation in anticipation of smoking reward and decreased activation in anticipation of monetary reward. Individuals exhibiting greater decrements in right striatal activation to monetary reward during abstinence (controlling for activation during non-abstinence) were more likely to lapse during CM (p reward. These results are consistent with a growing number of studies indicating the specific importance of disrupted striatal processing of non-drug reward in nicotine dependence and highlight the importance of individual differences in abstinence-induced deficits in striatal function for smoking cessation.

  19. Brain dopamine and serotonin transporter binding are associated with visual attention bias for food in lean men

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Koopman, K. E.; Roefs, A.; Elbers, D. C. E.; Fliers, E.; Booij, J.; Serlie, M. J.; La Fleur, S. E.

    2016-01-01

    In rodents, the striatal dopamine (DA) system and the (hypo)thalamic serotonin (5-HT) system are involved in the regulation of feeding behavior. In lean humans, little is known about the relationship between these brain neurotransmitter systems and feeding. We studied the relationship between

  20. Single photon emission tomography in neurological studies: Instrumentation and clinical applications

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Nikkinen, P.

    1999-01-01

    One triple head and two single head gamma camera systems were used for single photon emission tomography (SPET) imaging of both patients and brain phantoms. Studies with an anatomical brain phantom were performed for evaluation of reconstruction and correction methods in brain perfusion SPET studies. The use of the triple head gamma camera system resulted in a significant increase in image contrast and resolution. This was mainly due to better imaging geometry and the use of a high resolution collimator. The conventional Chang attenuation correction was found suitable for the brain perfusion studies. In the brain perfusion studies region of interest (ROI) based semiquantitation methods were used. A ROI map based on anatomical areas was used in 70 elderly persons (age range 55-85 years) without neurological diseases and in patients suffering from encephalitis or having had a cardiac arrest. Semiquantitative reference values are presented. For the 14 patients with encephalitis the right-to-left side differences were calculated. Defect volume indexes were calculated for 64 patients with brain infarcts. For the 30 cardiac arrest patients the defect percentages and the anteroposterior ratios were used for semiquantitation. It is concluded that different semiquantitation methods are needed for the various patient groups. Age-related reference values will improve the interpretation of SPET data. For validation of the basal ganglia receptor studies measurements were performed using a cylindrical and an anatomical striatal phantom. In these measurements conventional and transmission imaging based non-uniform attenuation corrections were compared. A calibration curve was calculated for the determination of the specific receptor uptake ratio. In the phantom studies using the triple head camera the uptake ratio obtained from simultaneous transmission-emission protocol (STEP) acquisition and iterative reconstruction was closest to the true activity ratio. Conventional

  1. Single photon emission tomography in neurological studies: Instrumentation and clinical applications

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nikkinen, Paivi Helena

    One triple head and two single head gamma camera systems were used for single photon emission tomography (SPET) imaging of both patients and brain phantoms. Studies with an anatomical brain phantom were performed for evaluation of reconstruction and correction methods in brain perfusion SPET studies. The use of the triple head gamma camera system resulted in a significant increase in image contrast and resolution. This was mainly due to better imaging geometry and the use of a high resolution collimator. The conventional Chang attenuation correction was found suitable for the brain perfusion studies. In the brain perfusion studies region of interest (ROI) based semiquantitation methods were used. A ROI map based on anatomical areas was used in 70 elderly persons (age range 55-85 years) without neurological diseases and in patients suffering from encephalitis or having had a cardiac arrest. Semiquantitative reference values are presented. For the 14 patients with encephalitis the right-to-left side differences were calculated. Defect volume indexes were calculated for 64 patients with brain infarcts. For the 30 cardiac arrest patients the defect percentages and the anteroposterior ratios were used for semiquantitation. It is concluded that different semiquantitation methods are needed for the various patient groups. Age-related reference values will improve the interpretation of SPET data. For validation of the basal ganglia receptor studies measurements were performed using a cylindrical and an anatomical striatal phantom. In these measurements conventional and transmission imaging based non-uniform attenuation corrections were compared. A calibration curve was calculated for the determination of the specific receptor uptake ratio. In the phantom studies using the triple head camera the uptake ratio obtained from simultaneous transmission-emission protocol (STEP) acquisition and iterative reconstruction was closest to the true activity ratio. Conventional

  2. Striatal dopamine transmission is subtly modified in human A53Tα-synuclein overexpressing mice.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Nicola J Platt

    Full Text Available Mutations in, or elevated dosage of, SNCA, the gene for α-synuclein (α-syn, cause familial Parkinson's disease (PD. Mouse lines overexpressing the mutant human A53Tα-syn may represent a model of early PD. They display progressive motor deficits, abnormal cellular accumulation of α-syn, and deficits in dopamine-dependent corticostriatal plasticity, which, in the absence of overt nigrostriatal degeneration, suggest there are age-related deficits in striatal dopamine (DA signalling. In addition A53Tα-syn overexpression in cultured rodent neurons has been reported to inhibit transmitter release. Therefore here we have characterized for the first time DA release in the striatum of mice overexpressing human A53Tα-syn, and explored whether A53Tα-syn overexpression causes deficits in the release of DA. We used fast-scan cyclic voltammetry to detect DA release at carbon-fibre microelectrodes in acute striatal slices from two different lines of A53Tα-syn-overexpressing mice, at up to 24 months. In A53Tα-syn overexpressors, mean DA release evoked by a single stimulus pulse was not different from wild-types, in either dorsal striatum or nucleus accumbens. However the frequency responsiveness of DA release was slightly modified in A53Tα-syn overexpressors, and in particular showed slight deficiency when the confounding effects of striatal ACh acting at presynaptic nicotinic receptors (nAChRs were antagonized. The re-release of DA was unmodified after single-pulse stimuli, but after prolonged stimulation trains, A53Tα-syn overexpressors showed enhanced recovery of DA release at old age, in keeping with elevated striatal DA content. In summary, A53Tα-syn overexpression in mice causes subtle changes in the regulation of DA release in the striatum. While modest, these modifications may indicate or contribute to striatal dysfunction.

  3. Effect of phantom voxelization in CT simulations

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Goertzen, Andrew L.; Beekman, Freek J.; Cherry, Simon R.

    2002-01-01

    In computer simulations of x-ray CT systems one can either use continuous geometrical descriptions for phantoms or a voxelized representation. The voxelized approach allows arbitrary phantoms to be defined without being confined to geometrical shapes. The disadvantage of the voxelized approach is that inherent errors are introduced due to the phantom voxelization. To study effects of phantom discretization, analytical CT simulations were run for a fan-beam geometry with phantom voxel sizes ranging from 0.0625 to 2 times the reconstructed pixel size and noise levels corresponding to 10 3 -10 7 photons per detector pixel prior to attenuation. The number of rays traced per detector element was varied from 1 to 16. Differences in the filtered backprojection images caused by changing the phantom matrix sizes and number of rays traced were assessed by calculating the difference between reconstructions based on the finest matrix and coarser matrix simulations. In noise free simulations, all phantom matrix sizes produced a measurable difference in comparison with the finest phantom matrix used. When even a small amount of noise was added to the projection data, the differences due to the phantom discretization were masked by the noise, and in all cases there was almost no improvement by using a phantom matrix that was more than twice as fine as the reconstruction matrix. No substantial improvement was achieved by tracing more than 4 rays per detector pixel

  4. Advancement in PET quantification using 3D-OP-OSEM point spread function reconstruction with the HRRT

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Varrone, Andrea; Sjoeholm, Nils; Gulyas, Balazs; Halldin, Christer; Farde, Lars [Karolinska Hospital, Karolinska Institutet, Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Psychiatry Section and Stockholm Brain Institute, Stockholm (Sweden); Eriksson, Lars [Karolinska Hospital, Karolinska Institutet, Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Psychiatry Section and Stockholm Brain Institute, Stockholm (Sweden); Siemens Molecular Imaging, Knoxville, TN (United States); University of Stockholm, Department of Physics, Stockholm (Sweden)

    2009-10-15

    Image reconstruction including the modelling of the point spread function (PSF) is an approach improving the resolution of the PET images. This study assessed the quantitative improvements provided by the implementation of the PSF modelling in the reconstruction of the PET data using the High Resolution Research Tomograph (HRRT). Measurements were performed on the NEMA-IEC/2001 (Image Quality) phantom for image quality and on an anthropomorphic brain phantom (STEPBRAIN). PSF reconstruction was also applied to PET measurements in two cynomolgus monkeys examined with [{sup 18}F]FE-PE2I (dopamine transporter) and with [{sup 11}C]MNPA (D{sub 2} receptor), and in one human subject examined with [{sup 11}C]raclopride (D{sub 2} receptor). PSF reconstruction increased the recovery coefficient (RC) in the NEMA phantom by 11-40% and the grey to white matter ratio in the STEPBRAIN phantom by 17%. PSF reconstruction increased binding potential (BP{sub ND}) in the striatum and midbrain by 14 and 18% in the [{sup 18}F]FE-PE2I study, and striatal BP{sub ND} by 6 and 10% in the [{sup 11}C]MNPA and [{sup 11}C]raclopride studies. PSF reconstruction improved quantification by increasing the RC and thus reducing the partial volume effect. This method provides improved conditions for PET quantification in clinical studies with the HRRT system, particularly when targeting receptor populations in small brain structures. (orig.)

  5. Waiting to win: elevated striatal and orbitofrontal cortical activity during reward anticipation in euthymic bipolar disorder adults

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nusslock, Robin; Almeida, Jorge RC; Forbes, Erika E; Versace, Amelia; Frank, Ellen; LaBarbara, Edmund J; Klein, Crystal R; Phillips, Mary L

    2012-01-01

    Objective Bipolar disorder may be characterized by a hypersensitivity to reward-relevant stimuli, potentially underlying the emotional lability and dysregulation that characterizes the illness. In parallel, research highlights the predominant role of striatal and orbitofrontal cortical (OFC) regions in reward-processing and approach-related affect. We aimed to examine whether bipolar disorder, relative to healthy, participants displayed elevated activity in these regions during reward processing. Methods Twenty-one euthymic bipolar I disorder and 20 healthy control participants with no lifetime history of psychiatric disorder underwent functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) scanning during a card-guessing paradigm designed to examine reward-related brain function to anticipation and receipt of monetary reward and loss. Data were collected using a 3T Siemens Trio scanner. Results Region-of-interest analyses revealed that bipolar disorder participants displayed greater ventral striatal and right-sided orbitofrontal [Brodmann area (BA) 11] activity during anticipation, but not outcome, of monetary reward, relative to healthy controls (p anticipation (p anticipation may represent a neural mechanism for predisposition to expansive mood and hypo/mania in response to reward-relevant cues that characterizes bipolar disorder. Our findings contrast with research reporting blunted activity in the ventral striatum during reward processing in unipolar depressed individuals, relative to healthy controls. Examination of reward-related neural activity in bipolar disorder is a promising research focus to facilitate identification of biological markers of the illness. PMID:22548898

  6. Comparison between a dual-head and a brain-dedicated SPECT system in the measurement of the loss of dopamine transporters with [123I]FP-CIT

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Varrone, Andrea; Sansone, Valeria; Pappata, Sabina; Salvatore, Marco; Pellecchia, Maria T.; Salvatore, Elena; de Michele, Giuseppe; Filla, Alessandro; Barone, Paolo; Amboni, Marianna

    2008-01-01

    Dual-head SPECT systems are used by many clinical departments for [ 123 I]FP-CIT SPECT imaging, while triple-head or brain-dedicated systems with better imaging performance are more commonly used by research institutions. There are limited data comparing the capability of the two types of system to measure dopamine transporter (DAT) loss in vivo. The aim of this study was to compare the ability of a dual-head and a brain-dedicated SPECT system to estimate the degree of DAT loss in different movement disorders with variable nigrostriatal impairment, with [ 123 I]FP-CIT. Four patients with essential tremor, 24 with Parkinson's disease (PD), six with spinocerebellar ataxia type 2 and six controls were studied with [ 123 I]FP-CIT. SPECT scans were performed on a dual-head (E.CAM - Siemens) and subsequently on a brain-dedicated system (Ceraspect - DSI). Striatal DAT outcome measures on the E.CAM and the Ceraspect were strongly correlated and the putamen-to-caudate ratios were almost identical. Although the measured values were lower by 52 ± 25% in caudate and by 51 ± 31% in putamen on the E.CAM (p < 0.0001), the average striatal DAT decrease in each patient group compared with controls was similar for both systems. In PD patients, similar correlations (p < 0.05) were found between motor UPDRS or Hoehn and Yahr stage and striatal DAT density. Despite underestimation of striatal DAT outcome measures, the E.CAM showed similar capability as the Ceraspect in measuring the degree of nigrostriatal dopaminergic deficit and assessing the correlation between DAT outcome measures and clinical variables of PD severity and stage. (orig.)

  7. Further human evidence for striatal dopamine release induced by administration of ∆9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC): selectivity to limbic striatum.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bossong, Matthijs G; Mehta, Mitul A; van Berckel, Bart N M; Howes, Oliver D; Kahn, René S; Stokes, Paul R A

    2015-08-01

    Elevated dopamine function is thought to play a key role in both the rewarding effects of addictive drugs and the pathophysiology of schizophrenia. Accumulating epidemiological evidence indicates that cannabis use is a risk factor for the development of schizophrenia. However, human neurochemical imaging studies that examined the impact of ∆9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the main psychoactive component in cannabis, on striatal dopamine release have provided inconsistent results. The objective of this study is to assess the effect of a THC challenge on human striatal dopamine release in a large sample of healthy participants. We combined human neurochemical imaging data from two previous studies that used [(11)C]raclopride positron emission tomography (PET) (n = 7 and n = 13, respectively) to examine the effect of THC on striatal dopamine neurotransmission in humans. PET images were re-analysed to overcome differences in PET data analysis. THC administration induced a significant reduction in [(11)C]raclopride binding in the limbic striatum (-3.65 %, from 2.39 ± 0.26 to 2.30 ± 0.23, p = 0.023). This is consistent with increased dopamine levels in this region. No significant differences between THC and placebo were found in other striatal subdivisions. In the largest data set of healthy participants so far, we provide evidence for a modest increase in human striatal dopamine transmission after administration of THC compared to other drugs of abuse. This finding suggests limited involvement of the endocannabinoid system in regulating human striatal dopamine release and thereby challenges the hypothesis that an increase in striatal dopamine levels after cannabis use is the primary biological mechanism underlying the associated higher risk of schizophrenia.

  8. An anthropomorphic multimodality (CT/MRI) head phantom prototype for end-to-end tests in ion radiotherapy

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Gallas, Raya R.; Huenemohr, Nora; Runz, Armin; Niebuhr, Nina I.; Greilich, Steffen [German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), Heidelberg (Germany). Div. of Medical Physics in Radiation Oncology; National Center for Radiation Research in Oncology, Heidelberg (Germany). Heidelberg Institute of Radiation Oncology (HIRO); Jaekel, Oliver [German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), Heidelberg (Germany). Div. of Medical Physics in Radiation Oncology; National Center for Radiation Research in Oncology, Heidelberg (Germany). Heidelberg Institute of Radiation Oncology (HIRO); Heidelberg University Hospital (Germany). Dept. of Radiation Oncology; Heidelberg Ion-Beam Therapy Center (HIT), Heidelberg (Germany)

    2015-07-01

    With the increasing complexity of external beam therapy ''end-to-end'' tests are intended to cover every step from therapy planning through to follow-up in order to fulfill the higher demands on quality assurance. As magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) has become an important part of the treatment process, established phantoms such as the Alderson head cannot fully be used for those tests and novel phantoms have to be developed. Here, we present a feasibility study of a customizable multimodality head phantom. It is initially intended for ion radiotherapy but may also be used in photon therapy. As basis for the anthropomorphic head shape we have used a set of patient computed tomography (CT) images. The phantom recipient consisting of epoxy resin was produced by using a 3D printer. It includes a nasal air cavity, a cranial bone surrogate (based on dipotassium phosphate), a brain surrogate (based on agarose gel), and a surrogate for cerebrospinal fluid (based on distilled water). Furthermore, a volume filled with normoxic dosimetric gel mimicked a tumor. The entire workflow of a proton therapy could be successfully applied to the phantom. CT measurements revealed CT numbers agreeing with reference values for all surrogates in the range from 2 HU to 978 HU (120 kV). MRI showed the desired contrasts between the different phantom materials especially in T2-weighted images (except for the bone surrogate). T2-weighted readout of the polymerization gel dosimeter allowed approximate range verification.

  9. An anthropomorphic multimodality (CT/MRI) head phantom prototype for end-to-end tests in ion radiotherapy

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Gallas, Raya R.; Huenemohr, Nora; Runz, Armin; Niebuhr, Nina I.; Greilich, Steffen; Jaekel, Oliver

    2015-01-01

    With the increasing complexity of external beam therapy ''end-to-end'' tests are intended to cover every step from therapy planning through to follow-up in order to fulfill the higher demands on quality assurance. As magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) has become an important part of the treatment process, established phantoms such as the Alderson head cannot fully be used for those tests and novel phantoms have to be developed. Here, we present a feasibility study of a customizable multimodality head phantom. It is initially intended for ion radiotherapy but may also be used in photon therapy. As basis for the anthropomorphic head shape we have used a set of patient computed tomography (CT) images. The phantom recipient consisting of epoxy resin was produced by using a 3D printer. It includes a nasal air cavity, a cranial bone surrogate (based on dipotassium phosphate), a brain surrogate (based on agarose gel), and a surrogate for cerebrospinal fluid (based on distilled water). Furthermore, a volume filled with normoxic dosimetric gel mimicked a tumor. The entire workflow of a proton therapy could be successfully applied to the phantom. CT measurements revealed CT numbers agreeing with reference values for all surrogates in the range from 2 HU to 978 HU (120 kV). MRI showed the desired contrasts between the different phantom materials especially in T2-weighted images (except for the bone surrogate). T2-weighted readout of the polymerization gel dosimeter allowed approximate range verification.

  10. An anthropomorphic multimodality (CT/MRI) head phantom prototype for end-to-end tests in ion radiotherapy.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gallas, Raya R; Hünemohr, Nora; Runz, Armin; Niebuhr, Nina I; Jäkel, Oliver; Greilich, Steffen

    2015-12-01

    With the increasing complexity of external beam therapy "end-to-end" tests are intended to cover every step from therapy planning through to follow-up in order to fulfill the higher demands on quality assurance. As magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) has become an important part of the treatment process, established phantoms such as the Alderson head cannot fully be used for those tests and novel phantoms have to be developed. Here, we present a feasibility study of a customizable multimodality head phantom. It is initially intended for ion radiotherapy but may also be used in photon therapy. As basis for the anthropomorphic head shape we have used a set of patient computed tomography (CT) images. The phantom recipient consisting of epoxy resin was produced by using a 3D printer. It includes a nasal air cavity, a cranial bone surrogate (based on dipotassium phosphate), a brain surrogate (based on agarose gel), and a surrogate for cerebrospinal fluid (based on distilled water). Furthermore, a volume filled with normoxic dosimetric gel mimicked a tumor. The entire workflow of a proton therapy could be successfully applied to the phantom. CT measurements revealed CT numbers agreeing with reference values for all surrogates in the range from 2 HU to 978 HU (120 kV). MRI showed the desired contrasts between the different phantom materials especially in T2-weighted images (except for the bone surrogate). T2-weighted readout of the polymerization gel dosimeter allowed approximate range verification. Copyright © 2015. Published by Elsevier GmbH.

  11. The Japanese adult, child and infant phantoms

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Cristy, Mark; Egbert, Stephen D.

    1987-01-01

    The mathematical phantom for adult Japanese atomic-bomb survivors is a modification of the 57-kg ORNL (Oak Ridge National Laboratory) phantom for Western 15-year-old males and adult females. For younger Japanese survivors mathematical phantoms were similarly modified from the 18 and 9 kg ORNL phantoms for Western 5- and 1-year-olds, respectively. To make the phantom correspond more closely with dimensions and organ sizes recommended for Japanese adults by Maruyama and coworkers (cf E184), changes were made in the size of the lungs, the pancreas, the thyroid, and the testes and in the length of the legs. Also, the head-and-neck region was modified to improve the dose estimates for the thyroid from external radiation, after the ideas of Nagarajan et al. The arms were separated from the trunk to represent more accurately the shielding by the phantom in external exposures. Furthermore, provisions were made to provide a phantom in a kneeling posture. The elemental composition of the tissues was changed to that given by Kerr. The resulting phantom is slightly smaller in mass (55 kg). Details of these changes are given

  12. Striatal structure and its association with N-Acetylaspartate and glutamate in autism spectrum disorder and obsessive compulsive disorder

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Naaijen, Jilly; Zwiers, Marcel P.; Forde, Natalie J.; Williams, Steven C. R.; Durston, Sarah; Brandeis, Daniel; Glennon, Jeffrey C.; Franke, Barbara; Lythgoe, David J.; Buitelaar, Jan K.

    Autism spectrum disorders (ASD) and obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) are often comorbid and are associated with changes in striatal volumes and N-Acetylaspartate (NAA) and glutamate levels. Here, we investigated the relation between dorsal striatal volume and NAA and glutamate levels. We

  13. Convergent transcriptional specializations in the brains of humans and song-learning birds

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Pfenning, Andreas R.; Hara, Erina; Whitney, Osceola

    2014-01-01

    Song-learning birds and humans share independently evolved similarities in brain pathways for vocal learning that are essential for song and speech and are not found in most other species. Comparisons of brain transcriptomes of song-learning birds and humans relative to vocal nonlearners identified...... convergent gene expression specializations in specific song and speech brain regions of avian vocal learners and humans. The strongest shared profiles relate bird motor and striatal song-learning nuclei, respectively, with human laryngeal motor cortex and parts of the striatum that control speech production...... and learning. Most of the associated genes function in motor control and brain connectivity. Thus, convergent behavior and neural connectivity for a complex trait are associated with convergent specialized expression of multiple genes....

  14. Anticipation-related brain connectivity in bipolar and unipolar depression: a graph theory approach.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Manelis, Anna; Almeida, Jorge R C; Stiffler, Richelle; Lockovich, Jeanette C; Aslam, Haris A; Phillips, Mary L

    2016-09-01

    loss anticipation was characterized by denser top-down fronto-striatal and fronto-parietal connectivity in healthy control subjects, by bottom-up striatal-frontal connectivity in MDD, and by sparse connectivity lacking fronto-striatal connections in BDD. Win anticipation was characterized by dense connectivity of medial frontal with striatal and lateral frontal cortical regions in BDD, by sparser bottom-up striatum-medial frontal cortex connectivity in MDD, and by sparse connectivity in healthy control subjects. In summary, this is the first study to demonstrate that BDD and MDD with comparable levels of current depression differed from each other and healthy control subjects in density of connections, connectivity path length, and connectivity direction as a function of win or loss anticipation. These findings suggest that different neurobiological mechanisms may underlie aberrant anticipation processes in BDD and MDD, and that distinct therapeutic strategies may be required for these individuals to improve coping strategies during expectation of positive and negative outcomes. © The Author (2016). Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Guarantors of Brain. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

  15. Phantom cosmologies and fermions

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Chimento, Luis P; Forte, Monica; Devecchi, Fernando P; Kremer, Gilberto M

    2008-01-01

    Form invariance transformations can be used for constructing phantom cosmologies starting with conventional cosmological models. In this work we reconsider the scalar field case and extend the discussion to fermionic fields, where the 'phantomization' process exhibits a new class of possible accelerated regimes. As an application we analyze the cosmological constant group for a fermionic seed fluid

  16. DARPP-32 interaction with adducin may mediate rapid environmental effects on striatal neurons.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Engmann, Olivia; Giralt, Albert; Gervasi, Nicolas; Marion-Poll, Lucile; Gasmi, Laila; Filhol, Odile; Picciotto, Marina R; Gilligan, Diana; Greengard, Paul; Nairn, Angus C; Hervé, Denis; Girault, Jean-Antoine

    2015-12-07

    Environmental enrichment has multiple effects on behaviour, including modification of responses to psychostimulant drugs mediated by striatal neurons. However, the underlying molecular and cellular mechanisms are not known. Here we show that DARPP-32, a hub signalling protein in striatal neurons, interacts with adducins, which are cytoskeletal proteins that cap actin filaments' fast-growing ends and regulate synaptic stability. DARPP-32 binds to adducin MARCKS domain and this interaction is modulated by DARPP-32 Ser97 phosphorylation. Phospho-Thr75-DARPP-32 facilitates β-adducin Ser713 phosphorylation through inhibition of a cAMP-dependent protein kinase/phosphatase-2A cascade. Caffeine or 24-h exposure to a novel enriched environment increases adducin phosphorylation in WT, but not T75A mutant mice. This cascade is implicated in the effects of brief exposure to novel enriched environment on dendritic spines in nucleus accumbens and cocaine locomotor response. Our results suggest a molecular pathway by which environmental changes may rapidly alter responsiveness of striatal neurons involved in the reward system.

  17. Prefrontal cortex and striatal activation by feedback in Parkinson's disease

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Keitz, Martijn; Koerts, Janneke; Kortekaas, Rudie; Renken, Remco; de Jong, Bauke M.; Leenders, Klaus L.

    2008-01-01

    Positive feedbacks reinforce goal-directed behavior and evoke pleasure. in Parkinson's disease (PD) the striatal dysfunction impairs motor performance, but also may lead to decreased positive feedback (reward) processing. This study investigates two types of positive feedback processing (monetary

  18. A statistically defined anthropomorphic software breast phantom

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lau, Beverly A.; Reiser, Ingrid; Nishikawa, Robert M.; Bakic, Predrag R.

    2012-01-01

    Purpose: Digital anthropomorphic breast phantoms have emerged in the past decade because of recent advances in 3D breast x-ray imaging techniques. Computer phantoms in the literature have incorporated power-law noise to represent glandular tissue and branching structures to represent linear components such as ducts. When power-law noise is added to those phantoms in one piece, the simulated fibroglandular tissue is distributed randomly throughout the breast, resulting in dense tissue placement that may not be observed in a real breast. The authors describe a method for enhancing an existing digital anthropomorphic breast phantom by adding binarized power-law noise to a limited area of the breast. Methods: Phantoms with (0.5 mm) 3 voxel size were generated using software developed by Bakic et al. Between 0% and 40% of adipose compartments in each phantom were replaced with binarized power-law noise (β = 3.0) ranging from 0.1 to 0.6 volumetric glandular fraction. The phantoms were compressed to 7.5 cm thickness, then blurred using a 3 × 3 boxcar kernel and up-sampled to (0.1 mm) 3 voxel size using trilinear interpolation. Following interpolation, the phantoms were adjusted for volumetric glandular fraction using global thresholding. Monoenergetic phantom projections were created, including quantum noise and simulated detector blur. Texture was quantified in the simulated projections using power-spectrum analysis to estimate the power-law exponent β from 25.6 × 25.6 mm 2 regions of interest. Results: Phantoms were generated with total volumetric glandular fraction ranging from 3% to 24%. Values for β (averaged per projection view) were found to be between 2.67 and 3.73. Thus, the range of textures of the simulated breasts covers the textures observed in clinical images. Conclusions: Using these new techniques, digital anthropomorphic breast phantoms can be generated with a variety of glandular fractions and patterns. β values for this new phantom are comparable

  19. Differentiating prenatal exposure to methamphetamine and alcohol versus alcohol and not methamphetamine using tensor-based brain morphometry and discriminant analysis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sowell, Elizabeth R; Leow, Alex D; Bookheimer, Susan Y; Smith, Lynne M; O'Connor, Mary J; Kan, Eric; Rosso, Carly; Houston, Suzanne; Dinov, Ivo D; Thompson, Paul M

    2010-03-17

    Here we investigate the effects of prenatal exposure to methamphetamine (MA) on local brain volume using magnetic resonance imaging. Because many who use MA during pregnancy also use alcohol, a known teratogen, we examined whether local brain volumes differed among 61 children (ages 5-15 years), 21 with prenatal MA exposure, 18 with concomitant prenatal alcohol exposure (the MAA group), 13 with heavy prenatal alcohol but not MA exposure (ALC group), and 27 unexposed controls. Volume reductions were observed in both exposure groups relative to controls in striatal and thalamic regions bilaterally and in right prefrontal and left occipitoparietal cortices. Striatal volume reductions were more severe in the MAA group than in the ALC group, and, within the MAA group, a negative correlation between full-scale intelligence quotient (FSIQ) scores and caudate volume was observed. Limbic structures, including the anterior and posterior cingulate, the inferior frontal gyrus (IFG), and ventral and lateral temporal lobes bilaterally, were increased in volume in both exposure groups. Furthermore, cingulate and right IFG volume increases were more pronounced in the MAA than ALC group. Discriminant function analyses using local volume measurements and FSIQ were used to predict group membership, yielding factor scores that correctly classified 72% of participants in jackknife analyses. These findings suggest that striatal and limbic structures, known to be sites of neurotoxicity in adult MA abusers, may be more vulnerable to prenatal MA exposure than alcohol exposure and that more severe striatal damage is associated with more severe cognitive deficit.

  20. Face-name association learning and brain structural substrates in alcoholism.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pitel, Anne-Lise; Chanraud, Sandra; Rohlfing, Torsten; Pfefferbaum, Adolf; Sullivan, Edith V

    2012-07-01

    Associative learning is required for face-name association and is impaired in alcoholism, but the cognitive processes and brain structural components underlying this deficit remain unclear. It is also unknown whether prompting alcoholics to implement a deep level of processing during face-name encoding would enhance performance. Abstinent alcoholics and controls performed a levels-of-processing face-name learning task. Participants indicated whether the face was that of an honest person (deep encoding) or that of a man (shallow encoding). Retrieval was examined using an associative (face-name) recognition task and a single-item (face or name only) recognition task. Participants also underwent 3T structural MRI. Compared with controls, alcoholics had poorer associative and single-item learning and performed at similar levels. Level of processing at encoding had little effect on recognition performance but affected reaction time (RT). Correlations with brain volumes were generally modest and based primarily on RT in alcoholics, where the deeper the processing at encoding, the more restricted the correlations with brain volumes. In alcoholics, longer control task RTs correlated modestly with smaller tissue volumes across several anterior to posterior brain regions; shallow encoding correlated with calcarine and striatal volumes; deep encoding correlated with precuneus and parietal volumes; and associative recognition RT correlated with cerebellar volumes. In controls, poorer associative recognition with deep encoding correlated significantly with smaller volumes of frontal and striatal structures. Despite prompting, alcoholics did not take advantage of encoding memoranda at a deep level to enhance face-name recognition accuracy. Nonetheless, conditions of deeper encoding resulted in faster RTs and more specific relations with regional brain volumes than did shallow encoding. The normal relation between associative recognition and corticostriatal volumes was not

  1. A custom-built PET phantom design for quantitative imaging of printed distributions

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Markiewicz, P J; Angelis, G I; Kotasidis, F; Green, M; Matthews, J C; Lionheart, W R; Reader, A J

    2011-01-01

    This note presents a practical approach to a custom-made design of PET phantoms enabling the use of digital radioactive distributions with high quantitative accuracy and spatial resolution. The phantom design allows planar sources of any radioactivity distribution to be imaged in transaxial and axial (sagittal or coronal) planes. Although the design presented here is specially adapted to the high-resolution research tomograph (HRRT), the presented methods can be adapted to almost any PET scanner. Although the presented phantom design has many advantages, a number of practical issues had to be overcome such as positioning of the printed source, calibration, uniformity and reproducibility of printing. A well counter (WC) was used in the calibration procedure to find the nonlinear relationship between digital voxel intensities and the actual measured radioactive concentrations. Repeated printing together with WC measurements and computed radiography (CR) using phosphor imaging plates (IP) were used to evaluate the reproducibility and uniformity of such printing. Results show satisfactory printing uniformity and reproducibility; however, calibration is dependent on the printing mode and the physical state of the cartridge. As a demonstration of the utility of using printed phantoms, the image resolution and quantitative accuracy of reconstructed HRRT images are assessed. There is very good quantitative agreement in the calibration procedure between HRRT, CR and WC measurements. However, the high resolution of CR and its quantitative accuracy supported by WC measurements made it possible to show the degraded resolution of HRRT brain images caused by the partial-volume effect and the limits of iterative image reconstruction. (note)

  2. Differential distribution of striatal [123I]β-CIT in Parkinson's disease and progressive supranuclear palsy, evaluated with single-photon emission tomography

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Messa, C.; Volonte, M.A.; Fazio, F.; Zito, F.; Carpinelli, A.; D'Amico, A.; Rizzo, G.; Moresco, R.M.; Paulesu, E.; Franceschi, M.; Lucignani, G.

    1998-01-01

    Functional imaging of the presynaptic dopaminergic activity using single-photon emission tomography (SPET) and iodine-123 labelled 2-β-carboxymethoxy-3-β-(4-iodophenyl)tropane ([ 123 I]β-CIT) is important for the assessment of disease severity and progression in patients with Parkinson's disease (PD). However, its capability to discriminate between different extrapyramidal disorders has not yet been assessed. The aim of this study was to evaluate the possibility of differentiating patients with PD and with progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP) by means of this method. The distribution of [ 123 I]β-CIT in the basal ganglia was assessed in six normal subjects, 13 petients with PD and five patients with PSP in whom the disease was mild. SPET images were obtained 24±2 h after i.v. injection of the tracer using a brain-dedicated system (CERASPECT). MR and SPET images were co-registered in four normal subjects and used to define a standard set of 16 circular regions of interest (ROIs) on the slice showing the highest striatal activity. The basal ganglia ROIs corresponded to (1) the head of caudate, (2) a region of transition between the head of caudate and the anterior putamen, (3) the anterior putamen and (4) the posterior putamen. A ratio of specific to non-displaceable striatal uptake was calculated normalising the activity of the basal ganglia ROIs to that of the occipital cortex (V3''). ANOVA revealed a global reduction of V3'' in all ROIs of PD and PSP patients compared with normal controls (P 123 I]β-CIT distribution in discrete striatal areas provides information on the relative caudate-putamen damage, with different values being obtained in patients clinically diagnosed as having either PD or PSP. (orig.)

  3. An improved Virtual Torso phantom

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kramer, Gary H; Crowley, Paul

    2000-01-01

    The virtual phantom that was previously designed by the Human Monitoring Laboratory had some limitations. It contained no sternum and the ribs extended all the way round the torso, whereas in reality the central part of the chest is covered with a mixture of cartilage (ribs) and bone (sternum). The ribs were located below the chest wall which added to the thickness of the chest wall. The lungs did not touch the inner surface of the chest wall along their length due to the differences in curvature between the ellipsoidal lungs and the ellipsoidal cylinder that defined the torso. As a result there was extra intervening tissue between the lungs and the chest wall. This was shown to have a noticeable effect on the simulation of low energy photons. The virtual phantom has been redesigned and comparison of measured and calculated counting efficiencies shows that it is a good representation of both of LLNL or JAERI at all photon energies measured. The redesigned virtual phantom agrees to within 11% of the torsos' counting efficiency over the energy range 17 - 240 keV. Before modification, the virtual phantom's counting efficiency was a of factor three lower at 17 keV and a factor of two lower at 20 keV; now it is within 5% at 17 keV and within 10% at 20 keV. This phantom can now be reliably used to simulate lung counting. The virtual phantom still contains no sternum and the ribs extend all the way round the torso, whereas in reality the central part of the chest is covered with cartilage (ribs) and bone (sternum). However, the above results indicate that this is not a major flaw in the design of the virtual phantom, as agreement between the Monte Carlo results and experimental data is good. (author)

  4. Striatal dopamine D2/3 receptor availability in treatment resistant depression.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Bart P de Kwaasteniet

    Full Text Available Several studies demonstrated improvement of depressive symptoms in treatment resistant depression (TRD after administering dopamine agonists which suggest abnormal dopaminergic neurotransmission in TRD. However, the role of dopaminergic signaling through measurement of striatal dopamine D(2/3 receptor (D2/3R binding has not been investigated in TRD subjects. We used [(123I]IBZM single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT to investigate striatal D2/3R binding in TRD. We included 6 severe TRD patients, 11 severe TRD patients on antipsychotics (TRD AP group and 15 matched healthy controls. Results showed no significant difference (p = 0.75 in striatal D2/3R availability was found between TRD patients and healthy controls. In the TRD AP group D2/3R availability was significantly decreased (reflecting occupancy of D2/3Rs by antipsychotics relative to TRD patients and healthy controls (p<0.001 but there were no differences in clinical symptoms between TRD AP and TRD patients. This preliminary study therefore does not provide evidence for large differences in D2/3 availability in severe TRD patients and suggests this TRD subgroup is not characterized by altered dopaminergic transmission. Atypical antipsychotics appear to have no clinical benefit in severe TRD patients who remain depressed, despite their strong occupancy of D2/3Rs.

  5. Ventral striatal activity correlates with memory confidence for old- and new-responses in a difficult recognition test.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ulrike Schwarze

    Full Text Available Activity in the ventral striatum has frequently been associated with retrieval success, i.e., it is higher for hits than correct rejections. Based on the prominent role of the ventral striatum in the reward circuit, its activity has been interpreted to reflect the higher subjective value of hits compared to correct rejections in standard recognition tests. This hypothesis was supported by a recent study showing that ventral striatal activity is higher for correct rejections than hits when the value of rejections is increased by external incentives. These findings imply that the striatal response during recognition is context-sensitive and modulated by the adaptive significance of "oldness" or "newness" to the current goals. The present study is based on the idea that not only external incentives, but also other deviations from standard recognition tests which affect the subjective value of specific response types should modulate striatal activity. Therefore, we explored ventral striatal activity in an unusually difficult recognition test that was characterized by low levels of confidence and accuracy. Based on the human uncertainty aversion, in such a recognition context, the subjective value of all high confident decisions is expected to be higher than usual, i.e., also rejecting items with high certainty is deemed rewarding. In an accompanying behavioural experiment, participants rated the pleasantness of each recognition response. As hypothesized, ventral striatal activity correlated in the current unusually difficult recognition test not only with retrieval success, but also with confidence. Moreover, participants indicated that they were more satisfied by higher confidence in addition to perceived oldness of an item. Taken together, the results are in line with the hypothesis that ventral striatal activity during recognition codes the subjective value of different response types that is modulated by the context of the recognition test.

  6. Neurodevelopmental disruption of cortico-striatal function caused by degeneration of habenula neurons.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Young-A Lee

    2011-04-01

    Full Text Available The habenula plays an important role on cognitive and affective functions by regulating monoamines transmission such as the dopamine and serotonin, such that its dysfunction is thought to underlie a number of psychiatric conditions. Given that the monoamine systems are highly vulnerable to neurodevelopmental insults, damages in the habenula during early neurodevelopment may cause devastating effects on the wide-spread brain areas targeted by monoamine innervations.Using a battery of behavioral, anatomical, and biochemical assays, we examined the impacts of neonatal damage in the habenula on neurodevelopmental sequelae of the prefrontal cortex (PFC and nucleus accumbens (NAcc and associated behavioral deficits in rodents. Neonatal lesion of the medial and lateral habenula by ibotenic acid produced an assortment of behavioral manifestations consisting of hyper-locomotion, impulsivity, and attention deficit, with hyper-locomotion and impulsivity being observed only in the juvenile period, whereas attention deficit was sustained up until adulthood. Moreover, these behavioral alterations were also improved by amphetamine. Our study further revealed that impulsivity and attention deficit were associated with disruption of PFC volume and dopamine (DA receptor expression, respectively. In contrast, hyper-locomotion was associated with decreased DA transporter expression in the NAcc. We also found that neonatal administration of nicotine into the habenula of neonatal brains produced selective lesion of the medial habenula. Behavioral deficits with neonatal nicotine administration were similar to those caused by ibotenic acid lesion of both medial and lateral habenula during the juvenile period, whereas they were different in adulthood.Because of similarity between behavioral and brain alterations caused by neonatal insults in the habenula and the symptoms and suggested neuropathology in attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD, these results

  7. Contribution of vesicular and cytosolic dopamine to the increased striatal dopamine efflux elicited by intrastriatal injection of SKF38393.

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Saigusa, T.; Aono, Y.; Sekino, R.; Uchida, T.; Takada, K.; Oi, Y.; Koshikawa, N.; Cools, A.R.

    2009-01-01

    Like dexamphetamine, SKF38393 induces an increase in striatal dopamine efflux which is insensitive for tetrodotoxin, Ca(2+) independent and prevented by a dopamine transporter inhibitor. The dexamphetamine-induced striatal dopamine efflux originates from both the reserpine-sensitive vesicular

  8. Comparison of methods for individualized astronaut organ dosimetry: Morphometry-based phantom library versus body contour autoscaling of a reference phantom

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sands, Michelle M.; Borrego, David; Maynard, Matthew R.; Bahadori, Amir A.; Bolch, Wesley E.

    2017-11-01

    One of the hazards faced by space crew members in low-Earth orbit or in deep space is exposure to ionizing radiation. It has been shown previously that while differences in organ-specific and whole-body risk estimates due to body size variations are small for highly-penetrating galactic cosmic rays, large differences in these quantities can result from exposure to shorter-range trapped proton or solar particle event radiations. For this reason, it is desirable to use morphometrically accurate computational phantoms representing each astronaut for a risk analysis, especially in the case of a solar particle event. An algorithm was developed to automatically sculpt and scale the UF adult male and adult female hybrid reference phantom to the individual outer body contour of a given astronaut. This process begins with the creation of a laser-measured polygon mesh model of the astronaut's body contour. Using the auto-scaling program and selecting several anatomical landmarks, the UF adult male or female phantom is adjusted to match the laser-measured outer body contour of the astronaut. A dosimetry comparison study was conducted to compare the organ dose accuracy of both the autoscaled phantom and that based upon a height-weight matched phantom from the UF/NCI Computational Phantom Library. Monte Carlo methods were used to simulate the environment of the August 1972 and February 1956 solar particle events. Using a series of individual-specific voxel phantoms as a local benchmark standard, autoscaled phantom organ dose estimates were shown to provide a 1% and 10% improvement in organ dose accuracy for a population of females and males, respectively, as compared to organ doses derived from height-weight matched phantoms from the UF/NCI Computational Phantom Library. In addition, this slight improvement in organ dose accuracy from the autoscaled phantoms is accompanied by reduced computer storage requirements and a more rapid method for individualized phantom generation

  9. A Comparative study for striatal-direct and -indirect pathway neurons to DA depletion-induced lesion in a PD rat model.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zheng, Xuefeng; Wu, Jiajia; Zhu, Yaofeng; Chen, Si; Chen, Zhi; Chen, Tao; Huang, Ziyun; Wei, Jiayou; Li, Yanmei; Lei, Wanlong

    2018-04-16

    Striatal-direct and -indirect Pathway Neurons showed different vulnerability in basal ganglia disorders. Therefore, present study aimed to examine and compare characteristic changes of densities, protein and mRNA levels of soma, dendrites, and spines between striatal-direct and -indirect pathway neurons after DA depletion by using immunohistochemistry, Western blotting, real-time PCR and immunoelectron microscopy techniques. Experimental results showed that: 1) 6OHDA-induced DA depletion decreased the soma density of striatal-direct pathway neurons (SP+), but no significant changes for striatal-indirect pathway neurons (ENK+). 2) DA depletion resulted in a decline of dendrite density for both striatal-direct (D1+) and -indirect (D2+) pathway neurons, and D2+ dendritic density declined more obviously. At the ultrastructure level, the densities of D1+ and D2+ dendritic spines reduced in the 6OHDA groups compared with their control groups, but the density of D2+ dendritic spines reduced more significant than that of D1. 3) Striatal DA depletion down-regulated protein and mRNA expression levels of SP and D1, on the contrary, ENK and D2 protein and mRNA levels of indirect pathway neurons were up-regulated significantly. Present results suggested that indirect pathway neurons be more sensitive to 6OHDA-induced DA depletion. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  10. Composition of MRI phantom equivalent to human tissues

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kato, Hirokazu; Kuroda, Masahiro; Yoshimura, Koichi; Yoshida, Atsushi; Hanamoto, Katsumi; Kawasaki, Shoji; Shibuya, Koichi; Kanazawa, Susumu

    2005-01-01

    We previously developed two new MRI phantoms (called the CAG phantom and the CAGN phantom), with T1 and T2 relaxation times equivalent to those of any human tissue at 1.5 T. The conductivity of the CAGN phantom is equivalent to that of most types of human tissue in the frequency range of 1 to 130 MHz. In this paper, the relaxation times of human tissues are summarized, and the composition of the corresponding phantoms are provided in table form. The ingredients of these phantoms are carrageenan as the gelling agent, GdCl 3 as a T1 modifier, agarose as a T2 modifier, NaCl (CAGN phantom only) as a conductivity modifier, NaN 3 as an antiseptic, and distilled water. The phantoms have T1 values of 202-1904 ms and T2 values of 38-423 ms when the concentrations of GdCl 3 and agarose are varied from 0-140 μmol/kg, and 0%-1.6%, respectively, and the CAGN phantom has a conductivity of 0.27-1.26 S/m when the NaCl concentration is varied from 0%-0.7%. These phantoms have sufficient strength to replicate a torso without the use of reinforcing agents, and can be cut by a knife into any shape. We anticipate the CAGN phantom to be highly useful and practical for MRI and hyperthermia-related research

  11. Suppression of serotonin hyperinnervation does not alter the dysregulatory influences of dopamine depletion on striatal neuropeptide gene expression in rodent neonates.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Basura, G J; Walker, P D

    1999-10-15

    Sixty days following neonatal dopamine depletion (>98%) with 6-hydroxydopamine, preprotachykinin and preprodynorphin mRNA levels were significantly reduced (67 and 78% of vehicle controls, respectively) in the anterior striatum as determined by in situ hybridization while preproenkephalin mRNA expression was elevated (133% of vehicle controls). Suppression of the serotonin hyperinnervation phenomenon in the dopamine-depleted rat with 5,7-dihydroxytryptamine yielded no significant alterations in reduced striatal preprotachykinin (66%) or preprodynorphin (64%) mRNA levels, while preproenkephalin mRNA expression remained significantly elevated (140%). These data suggest that striatal serotonin hyperinnervation does not contribute to the development of dysregulated striatal neuropeptide transmission in either direct or indirect striatal output pathways following neonatal dopamine depletion.

  12. CT and MR perfusion can discriminate severe cerebral hypoperfusion from perfusion absence: evaluation of different commercial software packages by using digital phantoms

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Uwano, Ikuko; Kudo, Kohsuke; Sasaki, Makoto [Iwate Medical University, Advanced Medical Research Center, Morioka (Japan); Christensen, Soren [University of Melbourne, Royal Melbourne Hospital, Departments of Neurology and Radiology, Victoria (Australia); Oestergaard, Leif [Aarhus University Hospital, Department of Neuroradiology, Center for Functionally Integrative Neuroscience, DK, Aarhus C (Denmark); Ogasawara, Kuniaki; Ogawa, Akira [Iwate Medical University, Department of Neurosurgery, Morioka (Japan)

    2012-05-15

    Computed tomography perfusion (CTP) and magnetic resonance perfusion (MRP) are expected to be usable for ancillary tests of brain death by detection of complete absence of cerebral perfusion; however, the detection limit of hypoperfusion has not been determined. Hence, we examined whether commercial software can visualize very low cerebral blood flow (CBF) and cerebral blood volume (CBV) by creating and using digital phantoms. Digital phantoms simulating 0-4% of normal CBF (60 mL/100 g/min) and CBV (4 mL/100 g/min) were analyzed by ten software packages of CT and MRI manufacturers. Region-of-interest measurements were performed to determine whether there was a significant difference between areas of 0% and areas of 1-4% of normal flow. The CTP software detected hypoperfusion down to 2-3% in CBF and 2% in CBV, while the MRP software detected that of 1-3% in CBF and 1-4% in CBV, although the lower limits varied among software packages. CTP and MRP can detect the difference between profound hypoperfusion of <5% from that of 0% in digital phantoms, suggesting their potential efficacy for assessing brain death. (orig.)

  13. Geometry-Driven-Diffusion filtering of MR Brain Images using dissimilarities and optimal relaxation parameter

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Bajla, Ivan [Austrian Research Centres Sibersdorf, Department of High Performance Image Processing and Video-Technology, A-2444 Seibersdorf (Austria); Hollander, Igor [Institute of information Processing, Austrian Academy of Sciences, Sonnenfelsgasse 19/2, 1010 Wien (Austria)

    1999-12-31

    A novel method of local adapting of the conductance using a pixel dissimilarity measure is developed. An alternative processing methodology is proposed, which is based on intensity gradient histogram calculated for region interiors and boundaries of a phantom which models real MR brain scans. It involves a specific cost function suitable for the calculation of the optimum relaxation parameter Kopt and for the selection of the optimal exponential conductance. Computer experiments for locally adaptive geometry-driven-diffusion filtering of an MR brain phantom have been performed and evaluated. (authors) 6 refs., 3 figs.2 tabs.

  14. Geometry-Driven-Diffusion filtering of MR Brain Images using dissimilarities and optimal relaxation parameter

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Bajla, Ivan; Hollander, Igor

    1998-01-01

    A novel method of local adapting of the conductance using a pixel dissimilarity measure is developed. An alternative processing methodology is proposed, which is based on intensity gradient histogram calculated for region interiors and boundaries of a phantom which models real MR brain scans. It involves a specific cost function suitable for the calculation of the optimum relaxation parameter Kopt and for the selection of the optimal exponential conductance. Computer experiments for locally adaptive geometry-driven-diffusion filtering of an MR brain phantom have been performed and evaluated. (authors)

  15. Effect of decimeter waves on brain and surrounding tissue temperature (experimental study)

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Malikova, S.N.; Malyshev, V.L.; Balakyreva, V.N.; Gorban' , L.G.

    Temperature changes in brain and surrounding tissue evoked by decimeter waves (DMW) were studied on phantoms (wood shavings wetted with physiological solution), rabbits and dogs under light nembutal anesthesia and on animal cadavers. The data obtained showed that living organisms, in contrast to phantoms, exhibited a response to heat generation of DMW; this was manifested by maintenance of the temperature at certain level or by a tendency to lower it after about a 10 min exposure to DMW. Thus it was shown that there is a functional cooling system in living organisms: increased local blood flow and a specialized cooling system for the brain. Rabbits showed considerably higher brain temperature elevation than the experimental dogs. Overall, the brain temperature upon exposure to DMW depended on the intensity and duration of DMW action as well as on the state of circulating cooling system of the animals. 4 references, 4 figures.

  16. Striatal cholinergic interneurons and D2 receptor-expressing GABAergic medium spiny neurons regulate tardive dyskinesia.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bordia, Tanuja; Zhang, Danhui; Perez, Xiomara A; Quik, Maryka

    2016-12-01

    Tardive dyskinesia (TD) is a drug-induced movement disorder that arises with antipsychotics. These drugs are the mainstay of treatment for schizophrenia and bipolar disorder, and are also prescribed for major depression, autism, attention deficit hyperactivity, obsessive compulsive and post-traumatic stress disorder. There is thus a need for therapies to reduce TD. The present studies and our previous work show that nicotine administration decreases haloperidol-induced vacuous chewing movements (VCMs) in rodent TD models, suggesting a role for the nicotinic cholinergic system. Extensive studies also show that D2 dopamine receptors are critical to TD. However, the precise involvement of striatal cholinergic interneurons and D2 medium spiny neurons (MSNs) in TD is uncertain. To elucidate their role, we used optogenetics with a focus on the striatum because of its close links to TD. Optical stimulation of striatal cholinergic interneurons using cholineacetyltransferase (ChAT)-Cre mice expressing channelrhodopsin2-eYFP decreased haloperidol-induced VCMs (~50%), with no effect in control-eYFP mice. Activation of striatal D2 MSNs using Adora2a-Cre mice expressing channelrhodopsin2-eYFP also diminished antipsychotic-induced VCMs, with no change in control-eYFP mice. In both ChAT-Cre and Adora2a-Cre mice, stimulation or mecamylamine alone similarly decreased VCMs with no further decline with combined treatment, suggesting nAChRs are involved. Striatal D2 MSN activation in haloperidol-treated Adora2a-Cre mice increased c-Fos + D2 MSNs and decreased c-Fos + non-D2 MSNs, suggesting a role for c-Fos. These studies provide the first evidence that optogenetic stimulation of striatal cholinergic interneurons and GABAergic MSNs modulates VCMs, and thus possibly TD. Moreover, they suggest nicotinic receptor drugs may reduce antipsychotic-induced TD. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  17. Immunization with DAT fragments is associated with long-term striatal impairment, hyperactivity and reduced cognitive flexibility in mice

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Adriani Walter

    2012-11-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Possible interactions between nervous and immune systems in neuro-psychiatric disorders remain elusive. Levels of brain dopamine transporter (DAT have been implicated in several impulse-control disorders, like attention deficit / hyperactivity disorder (ADHD and obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD. Here, we assessed the interplay between DAT auto-immunity and behavioural / neurochemical phenotype. Methods Male CD-1 mice were immunized with DAT peptide fragments (DAT-i, or vehicle alone (VEH, to generate elevated circulating levels of DAT auto-antibodies (aAbs. Using an operant delay-of-reward task (20 min daily sessions; timeout 25 sec, mice had a choice between either an immediate small amount of food (SS, or a larger amount of food after a delay (LL, which increased progressively across sessions (from 0 to 150 sec. Results DAT-i mice exhibited spontaneous hyperactivity (2 h-longer wake-up peak; a wake-up attempt during rest. Two sub-populations differing in behavioural flexibility were identified in the VEH control group: they showed either a clear-cut decision to select LL or clear-cut shifting towards SS, as expected. Compared to VEH controls, choice-behaviour profile of DAT-i mice was markedly disturbed, together with long-lasting alterations of the striatal monoamines. Enhanced levels of DA metabolite HVA in DAT-i mice came along with slower acquisition of basal preferences and with impaired shifting; elevation also in DOPAC levels was associated with incapacity to change a rigid selection strategy. This scarce flexibility of performance is indicative of a poor adaptation to task contingencies. Conclusions Hyperactivity and reduced cognitive flexibility are patterns of behaviour consistent with enduring functional impairment of striatal regions. It is yet unclear how anti-DAT antibodies could enter or otherwise affect these brain areas, and which alterations in DAT activity exactly occurred after immunization

  18. Long-term reproducibility of in vivo measures of specific binding of radioligands in rat brain

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Kilbourn, Michael R. E-mail: mkilbour@umich.edu

    2004-07-01

    The long-term reproducibility of measures of in vivo specific binding of radiolabeled forms of (+)-{alpha}-dihydrotetrabenazine (DTBZ) and d-threo-methylphenidate (MPH) in rat brain was examined. All studies were done using a consistent bolus plus infusion protocol and calculation of equilibrium distribution volume ratios (DVR). Over a period of eight years striatal DVR values for DTBZ binding to the vesicular monoamine transporter 2 (VMAT2) in young adult (8-10 wks old) rats showed very good reproducibility (3.62{+-}0.33, N=35). Equivalent values were obtained using either tritiated or carbon-11 labeled DTBZ, and were irrespective of sex of animals. Older animals (78 wks old) showed losses (-45%) of specific binding. Striatal binding of MPH to the dopamine transporter (DAT) showed a similar reproducibility over a five year period (DVR=2.17{+-}0.39, N=52), again irrespective of radionuclide or sex. These studies demonstrate that use of a consistent in vivo technique can provide reliable measures of specific binding of radioligands to high affinity sites in the rat brain.

  19. Phantom motor execution facilitated by machine learning and augmented reality as treatment for phantom limb pain: a single group, clinical trial in patients with chronic intractable phantom limb pain.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ortiz-Catalan, Max; Guðmundsdóttir, Rannveig A; Kristoffersen, Morten B; Zepeda-Echavarria, Alejandra; Caine-Winterberger, Kerstin; Kulbacka-Ortiz, Katarzyna; Widehammar, Cathrine; Eriksson, Karin; Stockselius, Anita; Ragnö, Christina; Pihlar, Zdenka; Burger, Helena; Hermansson, Liselotte

    2016-12-10

    Phantom limb pain is a debilitating condition for which no effective treatment has been found. We hypothesised that re-engagement of central and peripheral circuitry involved in motor execution could reduce phantom limb pain via competitive plasticity and reversal of cortical reorganisation. Patients with upper limb amputation and known chronic intractable phantom limb pain were recruited at three clinics in Sweden and one in Slovenia. Patients received 12 sessions of phantom motor execution using machine learning, augmented and virtual reality, and serious gaming. Changes in intensity, frequency, duration, quality, and intrusion of phantom limb pain were assessed by the use of the numeric rating scale, the pain rating index, the weighted pain distribution scale, and a study-specific frequency scale before each session and at follow-up interviews 1, 3, and 6 months after the last session. Changes in medication and prostheses were also monitored. Results are reported using descriptive statistics and analysed by non-parametric tests. The trial is registered at ClinicalTrials.gov, number NCT02281539. Between Sept 15, 2014, and April 10, 2015, 14 patients with intractable chronic phantom limb pain, for whom conventional treatments failed, were enrolled. After 12 sessions, patients showed statistically and clinically significant improvements in all metrics of phantom limb pain. Phantom limb pain decreased from pre-treatment to the last treatment session by 47% (SD 39; absolute mean change 1·0 [0·8]; p=0·001) for weighted pain distribution, 32% (38; absolute mean change 1·6 [1·8]; p=0·007) for the numeric rating scale, and 51% (33; absolute mean change 9·6 [8·1]; p=0·0001) for the pain rating index. The numeric rating scale score for intrusion of phantom limb pain in activities of daily living and sleep was reduced by 43% (SD 37; absolute mean change 2·4 [2·3]; p=0·004) and 61% (39; absolute mean change 2·3 [1·8]; p=0·001), respectively. Two of four

  20. Toxicology Analysis of Tissue-Mimicking Phantom Made From Gelatin

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dolbashid, A. S.; Hamzah, N.; Zaman, W. S. W. K.; Mokhtar, M. S.

    2017-06-01

    Skin phantom mimics the biological skin tissues as it have the ability to respond to changes in its environment. The development of tissue-mimicking phantom could contributes towards the reduce usage of animal in cosmetics and pharmacokinetics. In this study, the skin phantoms made from gelatin were tested with four different commonly available cosmetic products to determine the toxicity of each substance. The four substances used were; mercury-based whitening face cream, carcinogenic liquid make-up foundation, paraben-based acne cleanser, and organic lip balm. Toxicity test were performed on all of the phantoms. For toxicity testing, topographical and electrophysiological changes of the phantoms were evaluated. The ability of each respective phantom to react with mild toxic substances and its electrical resistance were analysed in to determine the toxicity of all the phantom models. Four-electrode method along with custom made electrical impedance analyser was used to differentiate electrical resistance between intoxicated phantom and non-intoxicated phantom in this study. Electrical resistance values obtained from the phantom models were significantly higher than the control group. The result obtained suggests the phantom as a promising candidate to be used as alternative for toxicology testing in the future.

  1. A Software Phantom : Application in Digital Tomosynthesis

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Lazos, D; Kolitsi, Z; Badea, C; Pallikarakis, N [Medical Physics Laboratory, School of Medicine, Univercity of Patras (Greece)

    1999-12-31

    A software phantom intended to be used in radiographic applications has been developed. The application was used for research in the field of Digital Tomosynthesis and specifically for studying tomographic noise removal methods. The application consists of a phantom design and a phantom imaging module. The radiation-matter interaction is based on the exponential relation of attenuation. Projections are formed by simulated irradiation with selectable geometrical parameters, source spectrum and detector response. Phantoms are defined either as sets containing certain geometrical objects or as groups of voxels. Comparison with real projections taken from a physical phantom with identical geometry and composition with the simulated one, showed good approximation with improved contrast due to the absence of scatter in the simulated projections. The software phantom proved to be a very useful tool for DTS investigations. Further development to include scatter is expected to expand the use of the application to more areas in radiological imaging research. (author) 4 refs., 3 figs

  2. A Software Phantom : Application in Digital Tomosynthesis

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lazos, D.; Kolitsi, Z.; Badea, C.; Pallikarakis, N.

    1998-01-01

    A software phantom intended to be used in radiographic applications has been developed. The application was used for research in the field of Digital Tomosynthesis and specifically for studying tomographic noise removal methods. The application consists of a phantom design and a phantom imaging module. The radiation-matter interaction is based on the exponential relation of attenuation. Projections are formed by simulated irradiation with selectable geometrical parameters, source spectrum and detector response. Phantoms are defined either as sets containing certain geometrical objects or as groups of voxels. Comparison with real projections taken from a physical phantom with identical geometry and composition with the simulated one, showed good approximation with improved contrast due to the absence of scatter in the simulated projections. The software phantom proved to be a very useful tool for DTS investigations. Further development to include scatter is expected to expand the use of the application to more areas in radiological imaging research. (author)

  3. Ultrasonographic Quantification of Fat Content in Fatty Liver Phantoms

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kim, Il Young; Kim, Pyo Nyun; Joo, Gyung Soo; Kim, Ho Jung; Kim, Young Beom; Lee, Byoung Ho

    1995-01-01

    Assuming that the fat content of certain tissue might be quantified by measurirrg the ultrasound echo level, we analyzed the ultrasound histograms obtained from the fatty liver phantoms that contained various amount of fat. Various amount of margarine(Mazola. Cliff wood. USA) was mixed with 2% of agarin solution state to produce fatty liver phantoms that contained 5, 10, 20, 30 and 40% of fat. We obtained ultrasound histogram from each fatty liver phantom in gel state. We used 2% agar gel as a control. The ultrasound histograms from the control phantom showed gradual increase in echo level as the depth from the surface increased. The echo level from the phantom that contained 5% of fat showed gradual increase and subsequent decrease with the peak echo level at the depth of 3cm. The echo levels from the phantoms that contained more in 5% of fat gradually decreased as the depth from the surface increased; the change becoming more pronounced as the fat content of the phantom increased. The echo levels measured at the depth of 1cm were 9.3(control), 29.6(5%phantom), 3l.3 (10% phantom), 26.3 (20% phantom), l8.8 (30% phantom), and l6dB (40% phantom). Fat content of fatty phantoms can not be quantified by measuring only echo level. Simultaneous measurement of attenuation of ultrasound, which is not easy to do and not done in this study, is prerequisite to quantify fat content

  4. Phantom Eye Syndrome: A Review of the Literature

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Agda M. Andreotti

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available The purpose of this literature review was to describe the main features of phantom eye syndrome in relation to their possible causes, symptoms, treatments, and influence of eye amputation on quality of life of anophthalmic patients. For this, a bibliographical research was performed in Pubmed database using the following terms: “eye amputation,” “eye trauma,” “phantom eye syndrome,” “phantom pain,” and “quality of life,” associated or not. Thirteen studies were selected, besides some relevant references contained in the selected manuscripts and other studies hallowed in the literature. Thus, 56 articles were included in this review. The phantom eye syndrome is defined as any sensation reported by the patient with anophthalmia, originated anophthalmic cavity. In phantom eye syndrome, at least one of these three symptoms has to be present: phantom vision, phantom pain, and phantom sensations. This syndrome has a direct influence on the quality of life of the patients, and psychological support is recommended before and after the amputation of the eyeball as well as aid in the treatment of the syndrome. Therefore, it is suggested that, for more effective treatment of phantom eye syndrome, drug therapy should be associated with psychological approach.

  5. A phantom for quality control in mammography

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Gambaccini, M.; Rimondi, O.; Marziani, M.; Toti, A.

    1989-01-01

    A phantom for evaluating image quality in mammography has been designed and will be used in the Italian national programme ''Dose and Quality in Mammography''. The characteristics of the phantom are (a) about the same X-ray transmission as a 5 cm 50% fat and 50% water breast for energies between 15 and 50 keV and (b) optimum energies for imaging of the test objects (included in the phantom) in very close agreement with the optimum energies for imaging of calcifications and tumours in a 5 cm 50% fat and 50% water breast. An experimental comparison between the prototype and some commercial phantoms was carried out. Measurements are in progress to test the phantom's ability to evaluate the performances of mammographic systems quantitatively. (author)

  6. Simultaneous 99mTC and 123I Dual-Isotope Brain Striatal Phantom Single Photon Emission Computed Tomography: Validation of 99mTC-Trodat-1 and 123I-IBZM Simultaneous Dopamine System Brain Imaging

    OpenAIRE

    Pan-Fu Kao; Shiaw-Pyng Wey; An-Shoei Yang

    2009-01-01

    [2[[2-[[[3-(4-chlorophenyl)-8-methyl-8-azabicyclo[3,2,1]-oct-2-yl]-methyl](2-mercaptoethyl)amino]ethyl]amino]ethanethiolato(3-)-N2,N2′,S2,S2]oxo-[1R-exo-exo)])-[99mTc]-technetium (99mTc-TRODAT-1) and 123I-iodobenzamide (123I-IBZM) are radiotracers for brain dopamine preand postsynaptic neuron imaging. The purpose of this study was to evaluate imaging parameters and crossed energy interference using simultaneous single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) 99mTc and 123I data acquisition...

  7. Enhanced striatal sensitivity to aversive reinforcement in adolescents versus adults.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Galván, Adriana; McGlennen, Kristine M

    2013-02-01

    Neurodevelopmental changes in mesolimbic regions are associated with adolescent risk-taking behavior. Numerous studies have shown exaggerated activation in the striatum in adolescents compared with children and adults during reward processing. However, striatal sensitivity to aversion remains elusive. Given the important role of the striatum in tracking both appetitive and aversive events, addressing this question is critical to understanding adolescent decision-making, as both positive and negative factors contribute to this behavior. In this study, human adult and adolescent participants performed a task in which they received squirts of appetitive or aversive liquid while undergoing fMRI, a novel approach in human adolescents. Compared with adults, adolescents showed greater behavioral and striatal sensitivity to both appetitive and aversive stimuli, an effect that was exaggerated in response to delivery of the aversive stimulus. Collectively, these findings contribute to understanding how neural responses to positive and negative outcomes differ between adolescents and adults and how they may influence adolescent behavior.

  8. Decreased spontaneous eye blink rates in chronic cannabis users: evidence for striatal cannabinoid-dopamine interactions.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mikael A Kowal

    Full Text Available Chronic cannabis use has been shown to block long-term depression of GABA-glutamate synapses in the striatum, which is likely to reduce the extent to which endogenous cannabinoids modulate GABA- and glutamate-related neuronal activity. The current study aimed at investigating the effect of this process on striatal dopamine levels by studying the spontaneous eye blink rate (EBR, a clinical marker of dopamine level in the striatum. 25 adult regular cannabis users and 25 non-user controls matched for age, gender, race, and IQ were compared. Results show a significant reduction in EBR in chronic users as compared to non-users, suggesting an indirect detrimental effect of chronic cannabis use on striatal dopaminergic functioning. Additionally, EBR correlated negatively with years of cannabis exposure, monthly peak cannabis consumption, and lifetime cannabis consumption, pointing to a relationship between the degree of impairment of striatal dopaminergic transmission and cannabis consumption history.

  9. Phantom cosmology without Big Rip singularity

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Astashenok, Artyom V. [Baltic Federal University of I. Kant, Department of Theoretical Physics, 236041, 14, Nevsky st., Kaliningrad (Russian Federation); Nojiri, Shin' ichi, E-mail: nojiri@phys.nagoya-u.ac.jp [Department of Physics, Nagoya University, Nagoya 464-8602 (Japan); Kobayashi-Maskawa Institute for the Origin of Particles and the Universe, Nagoya University, Nagoya 464-8602 (Japan); Odintsov, Sergei D. [Department of Physics, Nagoya University, Nagoya 464-8602 (Japan); Institucio Catalana de Recerca i Estudis Avancats - ICREA and Institut de Ciencies de l' Espai (IEEC-CSIC), Campus UAB, Facultat de Ciencies, Torre C5-Par-2a pl, E-08193 Bellaterra (Barcelona) (Spain); Tomsk State Pedagogical University, Tomsk (Russian Federation); Yurov, Artyom V. [Baltic Federal University of I. Kant, Department of Theoretical Physics, 236041, 14, Nevsky st., Kaliningrad (Russian Federation)

    2012-03-23

    We construct phantom energy models with the equation of state parameter w which is less than -1, w<-1, but finite-time future singularity does not occur. Such models can be divided into two classes: (i) energy density increases with time ('phantom energy' without 'Big Rip' singularity) and (ii) energy density tends to constant value with time ('cosmological constant' with asymptotically de Sitter evolution). The disintegration of bound structure is confirmed in Little Rip cosmology. Surprisingly, we find that such disintegration (on example of Sun-Earth system) may occur even in asymptotically de Sitter phantom universe consistent with observational data. We also demonstrate that non-singular phantom models admit wormhole solutions as well as possibility of Big Trip via wormholes.

  10. Phantom cosmology without Big Rip singularity

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Astashenok, Artyom V.; Nojiri, Shin'ichi; Odintsov, Sergei D.; Yurov, Artyom V.

    2012-01-01

    We construct phantom energy models with the equation of state parameter w which is less than -1, w<-1, but finite-time future singularity does not occur. Such models can be divided into two classes: (i) energy density increases with time (“phantom energy” without “Big Rip” singularity) and (ii) energy density tends to constant value with time (“cosmological constant” with asymptotically de Sitter evolution). The disintegration of bound structure is confirmed in Little Rip cosmology. Surprisingly, we find that such disintegration (on example of Sun-Earth system) may occur even in asymptotically de Sitter phantom universe consistent with observational data. We also demonstrate that non-singular phantom models admit wormhole solutions as well as possibility of Big Trip via wormholes.

  11. Transgenic mice expressing a Huntington s disease mutation are resistant to quinolinic acid-induced striatal excitotoxicity

    OpenAIRE

    Hansson, Oskar; Petersén, Åsa; Leist, Marcel; Nicotera, Pierluigi; Castilho, Roger F.; Brundin, Patrik

    1999-01-01

    Huntington’s disease (HD) is a hereditary neurodegenerative disorder presenting with chorea, dementia, and extensive striatal neuronal death. The mechanism through which the widely expressed mutant HD gene mediates a slowly progressing striatal neurotoxicity is unknown. Glutamate receptor-mediated excitotoxicity has been hypothesized to contribute to the pathogenesis of HD. Here we show that transgenic HD mice expressing exon 1 of a human HD gene with an expanded number of CAG repeats (line R...

  12. Development of digital phantom for DRR evaluation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ikeda, Tsuyoshi; Katsuta, Shoichi; Oyama, Masaya; Ogino, Takashi

    2009-01-01

    Generally, digitally reconstructed radiograph (DRR) is evaluated by physical phantom. The CT image is camouflaged by the performance of the radiation treatment planning system and contains a variety of error factors. The CT image (as follows the digital phantom), where an arbitrary CT value is arranged in the matrix, is necessary to evaluate the pure performance of the radiation treatment planning system. In this study, the development of a digital phantom is described, and the utility is discussed. CTport and the radiation treatment planning system are evaluated with the use of a digital phantom as follows: geometrical accuracy evaluation of DRR, consisting of the center position, size of irradiation field, distortion, extension of X-ray, and beam axis, and the image quality evaluation of DRR, which consists of the contrast resolution. As for DRR made with CTport and the treatment planning system, the part that shifted geometrically was confirmed. In the image quality evaluation, there was a remarkable difference. Because the making accuracy and the installation accuracy of the phantom do not influence the digital phantom, the geometrical accuracy of the DRR is reliable. Because the CT conditions and the phantom factor have no influence, the peculiar DRR image quality can be evaluated and used to evaluate the best image processing parameters. (author)

  13. Familial Risk for Major Depression is Associated with Lower Striatal 5-HT4 Receptor Binding

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Madsen, Karine; Torstensen, Eva; Holst, Klaus K

    2014-01-01

    was to determine whether familial risk for MDD is associated with cerebral 5-HT4 receptor binding as measured with [(11)C]SB207145 brain PET imaging. Familial risk is the most potent risk factor of MDD. METHODS: We studied 57 healthy individuals (mean age 36 yrs, range 20-86; 21 women), 26 of which had first......-degree relatives treated for MDD. RESULTS: We found that having a family history of MDD was associated with lower striatal 5-HT4 receptor binding (p = 0.038; in individuals below 40 years, p = 0.013). Further, we found evidence for a "risk-dose effect" on 5-HT4 receptor binding, since the number of first......-degree relatives with a history of MDD binding correlated negatively with 5-HT4 receptor binding in both the striatum (p = 0.001) and limbic regions (p = 0.012). CONCLUSIONS: Our data suggest that the 5-HT4 receptor is involved in the neurobiological mechanism underlying familial risk for depression...

  14. Development of the Reference Korean Female Voxel Phantom

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ham, Bo Kyoung; Cho, Kun Woo; Yeom, Yoen Soo; Jeong, Jong Hwi; Kim, Chan Hyeong; Han, Min Cheol

    2012-01-01

    The objective of this study is for development of the reference Korean female phantom, HDRK-Woman. The phantom was constructed by adjusting a Korean woman voxel phantom to the Reference Korean data. The Korean woman phantom had been developed based on the high-resolution color slice images obtained from an adult Korean female cadaver. There were a total of 39 organs including the 27 organs specified in ICRP 103 for effective dose calculation. The voxel resolution of the phantom was 1.967 X 1.967 X X 2.0619 mm 3 and the voxel array size is 261 X 109 X 825 in the x, y and z directions. Then, the voxel resolution was changed to 2.0351 X 2.0351 X 2.0747 mm 3 for adjustment of the height and total bone mass of the phantom to the Reference Korean data. Finally, the internal organs and tissue were adjusted using in-house software program developed for 3D volume adjustment of the organs and tissue. The effective dose values of HDRK phantoms were calculated for broad parallel photon beams using MCNPX Monte Carlo code and compared with those of ICRP phantoms.

  15. Development of the Reference Korean Female Voxel Phantom

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Ham, Bo Kyoung; Cho, Kun Woo [University of Science and Technology, Korea Institute of Nuclear Safety, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of); Yeom, Yoen Soo; Jeong, Jong Hwi; Kim, Chan Hyeong; Han, Min Cheol [Hanyang University, Seoul (Korea, Republic of)

    2012-03-15

    The objective of this study is for development of the reference Korean female phantom, HDRK-Woman. The phantom was constructed by adjusting a Korean woman voxel phantom to the Reference Korean data. The Korean woman phantom had been developed based on the high-resolution color slice images obtained from an adult Korean female cadaver. There were a total of 39 organs including the 27 organs specified in ICRP 103 for effective dose calculation. The voxel resolution of the phantom was 1.967 X 1.967 X X 2.0619 mm{sup 3} and the voxel array size is 261 X 109 X 825 in the x, y and z directions. Then, the voxel resolution was changed to 2.0351 X 2.0351 X 2.0747 mm{sup 3} for adjustment of the height and total bone mass of the phantom to the Reference Korean data. Finally, the internal organs and tissue were adjusted using in-house software program developed for 3D volume adjustment of the organs and tissue. The effective dose values of HDRK phantoms were calculated for broad parallel photon beams using MCNPX Monte Carlo code and compared with those of ICRP phantoms.

  16. Development of a physical 3D anthropomorphic breast phantom

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Carton, Ann-Katherine; Bakic, Predrag; Ullberg, Christer; Derand, Helen; Maidment, Andrew D. A. [Department of Radiology, University of Pennsylvania, 1 Silverstein Building, 3400 Spruce Street, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104-4206 (United States); XCounter AB, Svaerdvaegen 11, SE-182 33 Danderyd (Sweden); Department of Radiology, University of Pennsylvania, 1 Silverstein Building, 3400 Spruce Street, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104-4206 (United States)

    2011-02-15

    Purpose: Develop a technique to fabricate a 3D anthropomorphic breast phantom with known ground truth for image quality assessment of 2D and 3D breast x-ray imaging systems. Methods: The phantom design is based on an existing computer model that can generate breast voxel phantoms of varying composition, size, and shape. The physical phantom is produced in two steps. First, the portion of the voxel phantom consisting of the glandular tissue, skin, and Cooper's ligaments is separated into sections. These sections are then fabricated by high-resolution rapid prototyping using a single material with 50% glandular equivalence. The remaining adipose compartments are then filled using an epoxy-based resin (EBR) with 100% adipose equivalence. The phantom sections are stacked to form the physical anthropomorphic phantom. Results: The authors fabricated a prototype phantom corresponding to a 450 ml breast with 45% dense tissue, deformed to a 5 cm compressed thickness. Both the rapid prototype (RP) and EBR phantom materials are radiographically uniform. The coefficient of variation (CoV) of the relative attenuation between RP and EBR phantom samples was <1% and the CoV of the signal intensity within RP and EBR phantom samples was <1.5% on average. Digital mammography and reconstructed digital breast tomosynthesis images of the authors' phantom were reviewed by two radiologists; they reported that the images are similar in appearance to clinical images, noting there are still artifacts from air bubbles in the EBR. Conclusions: The authors have developed a technique to produce 3D anthropomorphic breast phantoms with known ground truth, yielding highly realistic x-ray images. Such phantoms may serve both qualitative and quantitative performance assessments for 2D and 3D breast x-ray imaging systems.

  17. Computational anthropomorphic phantoms for radiation protection dosimetry: evolution and prospects

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lee, Choonsik; Lee, Jaiki

    2006-01-01

    Computational anthropomorphic phantoms are computer models of human anatomy used in the calculation of radiation dose distribution in the human body upon exposure to a radiation source. Depending on the manner to represent human anatomy, they are categorized into two classes: stylized and tomographic phantoms. Stylized phantoms, which have mainly been developed at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), describe human anatomy by using simple mathematical equations of analytical geometry. Several improved stylized phantoms such as male and female adults, pediatric series, and enhanced organ models have been developed following the first hermaphrodite adult stylized phantom, Medical Internal Radiation Dose (MIRD)-5 phantom. Although stylized phantoms have significantly contributed to dosimetry calculation, they provide only approximations of the true anatomical features of the human body and the resulting organ dose distribution. An alternative class of computational phantom, the tomographic phantom, is based upon three-dimensional imaging techniques such as Magnetic Resonance (MR) imaging and Computed Tomography (CT). The tomographic phantoms represent the human anatomy with a large number of voxels that are assigned tissue type and organ identity. To date, a total of around 30 tomographic phantoms including male and female adults, pediatric phantoms, and even a pregnant female, have been developed and utilized for realistic radiation dosimetry calculation. They are based on MRI/CT images or sectional color photos from patients, volunteers or cadavers. Several investigators have compared tomographic phantoms with stylized phantoms, and demonstrated the superiority of tomographic phantoms in terms of realistic anatomy and dosimetry calculation. This paper summarizes the history and current status of both stylized and tomographic phantoms, including Korean computational phantoms. Advantages, limitations, and future prospects are also discussed

  18. Varenicline increases in vivo striatal dopamine D2/3 receptor binding: an ultra-high-resolution pinhole [123I]IBZM SPECT study in rats

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Crunelle, Cleo L.; Wit, Tim C. de; Bruin, Kora de; Ramakers, Ruud M.; Have, Frans van der; Beekman, Freek J.; Brink, Wim van den; Booij, Jan

    2012-01-01

    Introduction: Ex vivo storage phosphor imaging rat studies reported increased brain dopamine D 2/3 receptor (DRD 2/3 ) availability following treatment with varenicline, a nicotinergic drug. However, ex vivo studies can only be performed using cross-sectional designs. Small-animal imaging offers the opportunity to perform serial assessments. We evaluated whether high-resolution pinhole single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) imaging in rats was able to reproduce previous ex vivo findings. Methods: Rats were imaged for baseline striatal DRD 2/3 availability using ultra-high-resolution pinhole SPECT (U-SPECT-II) and [ 123 I]IBZM as a radiotracer, and randomized to varenicline (n=7; 2 mg/kg) or saline (n=7). Following 2 weeks of treatment, a second scan was acquired. Results: Significantly increased striatal DRD 2/3 availability was found following varenicline treatment compared to saline (time⁎treatment effect): posttreatment difference in binding potential between groups corrected for initial baseline differences was 2.039 (P=.022), indicating a large effect size (d=1.48). Conclusions: Ultra-high-resolution pinhole SPECT can be used to assess varenicline-induced changes in DRD 2/3 availability in small laboratory animals over time. Future small-animal studies should include imaging techniques to enable repeated within-subjects measurements and reduce the amount of animals.

  19. WE-D-303-00: Computational Phantoms

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Lewis, John [Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC (United States); Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, MA (United States)

    2015-06-15

    Modern medical physics deals with complex problems such as 4D radiation therapy and imaging quality optimization. Such problems involve a large number of radiological parameters, and anatomical and physiological breathing patterns. A major challenge is how to develop, test, evaluate and compare various new imaging and treatment techniques, which often involves testing over a large range of radiological parameters as well as varying patient anatomies and motions. It would be extremely challenging, if not impossible, both ethically and practically, to test every combination of parameters and every task on every type of patient under clinical conditions. Computer-based simulation using computational phantoms offers a practical technique with which to evaluate, optimize, and compare imaging technologies and methods. Within simulation, the computerized phantom provides a virtual model of the patient’s anatomy and physiology. Imaging data can be generated from it as if it was a live patient using accurate models of the physics of the imaging and treatment process. With sophisticated simulation algorithms, it is possible to perform virtual experiments entirely on the computer. By serving as virtual patients, computational phantoms hold great promise in solving some of the most complex problems in modern medical physics. In this proposed symposium, we will present the history and recent developments of computational phantom models, share experiences in their application to advanced imaging and radiation applications, and discuss their promises and limitations. Learning Objectives: Understand the need and requirements of computational phantoms in medical physics research Discuss the developments and applications of computational phantoms Know the promises and limitations of computational phantoms in solving complex problems.

  20. WE-D-303-00: Computational Phantoms

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lewis, John

    2015-01-01

    Modern medical physics deals with complex problems such as 4D radiation therapy and imaging quality optimization. Such problems involve a large number of radiological parameters, and anatomical and physiological breathing patterns. A major challenge is how to develop, test, evaluate and compare various new imaging and treatment techniques, which often involves testing over a large range of radiological parameters as well as varying patient anatomies and motions. It would be extremely challenging, if not impossible, both ethically and practically, to test every combination of parameters and every task on every type of patient under clinical conditions. Computer-based simulation using computational phantoms offers a practical technique with which to evaluate, optimize, and compare imaging technologies and methods. Within simulation, the computerized phantom provides a virtual model of the patient’s anatomy and physiology. Imaging data can be generated from it as if it was a live patient using accurate models of the physics of the imaging and treatment process. With sophisticated simulation algorithms, it is possible to perform virtual experiments entirely on the computer. By serving as virtual patients, computational phantoms hold great promise in solving some of the most complex problems in modern medical physics. In this proposed symposium, we will present the history and recent developments of computational phantom models, share experiences in their application to advanced imaging and radiation applications, and discuss their promises and limitations. Learning Objectives: Understand the need and requirements of computational phantoms in medical physics research Discuss the developments and applications of computational phantoms Know the promises and limitations of computational phantoms in solving complex problems

  1. Paul Wittgenstein's right arm and his phantom: the saga of a famous concert pianist and his amputation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Boller, François; Bogousslavsky, Julien

    2015-01-01

    Reports of postamputation pain and problems linked to phantom limbs have increased in recent years, particularly in relation to war-related amputations. These problems are still poorly understood and are considered rather mysterious, and they are difficult to treat. In addition, they may shed light on brain physiology and neuropsychology. Functional neuroimaging techniques now enable us to better understand their pathophysiology and to consider new rehabilitation techniques. Several artists have suffered from postamputation complications and this has influenced not only their personal life but also their artistic work. Paul Wittgenstein (1887-1961), a pianist whose right arm was amputated during the First World War, became a famous left-handed concert performer. His case provides insight into Post-World War I musical and political history. More specifically, the impact on the artistic life of this pianist illustrates various postamputation complications, such as phantom limb, stump pain, and especially moving phantom. The phantom movements of his right hand helped him develop the dexterity of his left hand. Wittgenstein played piano works that were written especially for him (the most famous being Ravel's Concerto for the Left Hand) and composed some of his own. Additionally, several famous composers had previously written for the left hand. © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  2. Functional brain imaging across development.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rubia, Katya

    2013-12-01

    The developmental cognitive neuroscience literature has grown exponentially over the last decade. This paper reviews the functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) literature on brain function development of typically late developing functions of cognitive and motivation control, timing and attention as well as of resting state neural networks. Evidence shows that between childhood and adulthood, concomitant with cognitive maturation, there is progressively increased functional activation in task-relevant lateral and medial frontal, striatal and parieto-temporal brain regions that mediate these higher level control functions. This is accompanied by progressively stronger functional inter-regional connectivity within task-relevant fronto-striatal and fronto-parieto-temporal networks. Negative age associations are observed in earlier developing posterior and limbic regions, suggesting a shift with age from the recruitment of "bottom-up" processing regions towards "top-down" fronto-cortical and fronto-subcortical connections, leading to a more mature, supervised cognition. The resting state fMRI literature further complements this evidence by showing progressively stronger deactivation with age in anti-correlated task-negative resting state networks, which is associated with better task performance. Furthermore, connectivity analyses during the resting state show that with development increasingly stronger long-range connections are being formed, for example, between fronto-parietal and fronto-cerebellar connections, in both task-positive networks and in task-negative default mode networks, together with progressively lesser short-range connections, suggesting progressive functional integration and segregation with age. Overall, evidence suggests that throughout development between childhood and adulthood, there is progressive refinement and integration of both task-positive fronto-cortical and fronto-subcortical activation and task-negative deactivation, leading to

  3. Reduced striatal dopamine D2/3 receptor availability in Body Dysmorphic Disorder.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Vulink, Nienke C; Planting, Robin S; Figee, Martijn; Booij, Jan; Denys, Damiaan

    2016-02-01

    Though the dopaminergic system is implicated in Obsessive Compulsive and Related Disorders (OCRD), the dopaminergic system has never been investigated in-vivo in Body Dysmorphic Disorder (BDD). In line with consistent findings of reduced striatal dopamine D2/3 receptor availability in Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD), we hypothesized that the dopamine D2/3 receptor availability in the striatum will be lower in patients with BDD in comparison to healthy subjects. Striatal dopamine D2/3 receptor Binding Potential (BPND) was examined in 12 drug-free BDD patients and 12 control subjects pairwise matched by age, sex, and handedness using [(123)I]iodobenzamide Single Photon Emission Computed Tomography (SPECT; bolus/constant infusion technique). Regions of interest were the caudate nucleus and the putamen. BPND was calculated as the ratio of specific striatal to binding in the occipital cortex (representing nonspecific binding). Compared to controls, dopamine D2/3 receptor BPND was significantly lower in BDD, both in the putamen (p=0.017) and caudate nucleus (p=0.022). This study provides the first evidence of a disturbed dopaminergic system in BDD patients. Although previously BDD was classified as a separate disorder (somatoform disorder), our findings give pathophysiological support for the recent reclassification of BDD to the OCRD in DSM-5. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. and ECNP. All rights reserved.

  4. Increased coherence among striatal regions in the theta range during attentive wakefulness

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    G. Lepski

    2012-08-01

    Full Text Available The striatum, the largest component of the basal ganglia, is usually subdivided into associative, motor and limbic components. However, the electrophysiological interactions between these three subsystems during behavior remain largely unknown. We hypothesized that the striatum might be particularly active during exploratory behavior, which is presumably associated with increased attention. We investigated the modulation of local field potentials (LFPs in the striatum during attentive wakefulness in freely moving rats. To this end, we implanted microelectrodes into different parts of the striatum of Wistar rats, as well as into the motor, associative and limbic cortices. We then used electromyograms to identify motor activity and analyzed the instantaneous frequency, power spectra and partial directed coherence during exploratory behavior. We observed fine modulation in the theta frequency range of striatal LFPs in 92.5 ± 2.5% of all epochs of exploratory behavior. Concomitantly, the theta power spectrum increased in all striatal channels (P 0.7 between the primary motor cortex and the rostral part of the caudatoputamen nucleus, as well as among all striatal channels (P < 0.001. Conclusively, we observed a pattern of strong theta band activation in the entire striatum during attentive wakefulness, as well as a strong coherence between the motor cortex and the entire striatum. We suggest that this activation reflects the integration of motor, cognitive and limbic systems during attentive wakefulness.

  5. [Mirror, mirror of the wall: mirror therapy in the treatment of phantom limbs and phantom limb pain].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Casale, Roberto; Furnari, Anna; Lamberti, Raul Coelho; Kouloulas, Efthimios; Hagenberg, Annegret; Mallik, Maryam

    2015-01-01

    Phantom limb and phantom limb pain control are pivotal points in the sequence of intervention to bring the amputee to functional autonomy. The alterations of perception and sensation, the pain of the residual limb and the phantom limb are therefore aspects of amputation that should be taken into account in the "prise en charge" of these patients. Within the more advanced physical therapies to control phantom and phantom limb pain there is the use of mirrors (mirror therapy). This article willfocus on its use and on the possible side effects induced by the lack of patient selection and a conflict of body schema restoration through mirror therapy with concurrent prosthetic training and trauma acceptance. Advice on the need to select patients before treatment decisions, with regard to their psychological as well as clinical profile (including time since amputation and clinical setting), and the need to be aware of the possible adverse effects matching different and somehow conflicting therapeutic approaches, are put forward. Thus a coordinated sequence of diagnostic, prognostic and therapeutic procedures carried out by an interdisciplinary rehabilitation team that works globally on all patients' problems is fundamental in the management of amputees and phantom limb pain. Further studies and the development of a multidisciplinary network to study this and other applications of mirror therapy are needed.

  6. Basal ganglia disorders associated with imbalances in the striatal striosome and matrix compartments

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jill R. Crittenden

    2011-09-01

    Full Text Available The striatum is composed principally of GABAergic, medium spiny projection neurons (MSNs that can be categorized based on their gene expression, electrophysiological profiles and input-output circuits. Major subdivisions of MSN populations include 1 those in ventromedial and dorsolateral striatal regions, 2 those giving rise to the direct and indirect pathways, and 3 those that lie in the striosome and matrix compartments. The first two classificatory schemes have enabled advances in understanding of how basal ganglia circuits contribute to disease. However, despite the large number of molecules that are differentially expressed in the striosomes or the extra-striosomal matrix, and the evidence that these compartments have different input-output connections, our understanding of how this compartmentalization contributes to striatal function is still not clear. A broad view is that the matrix contains the direct and indirect pathway MSNs that form parts of sensorimotor and associative circuits, whereas striosomes contain MSNs that receive input from parts of limbic cortex and project directly or indirectly to the dopamine-containing neurons of the substantia nigra, pars compacta. Striosomes are widely distributed within the striatum and are thought to exert global, as well as local, influences on striatal processing by exchanging information with the surrounding matrix, including through interneurons that send processes into both compartments. It has been suggested that striosomes exert and maintain limbic control over behaviors driven by surrounding sensorimotor and associative parts of the striatal matrix. Consistent with this possibility, imbalances between striosome and matrix functions have been reported in relation to neurological disorders, including Huntington’s disease, L-DOPA-induced dyskinesias, dystonia and drug addiction. Here, we consider how signaling imbalances between the striosomes and matrix might relate to symptomatology in

  7. Effect of in vitro gamma exposure on rat mesencephalic and striatal cellular types and processes length

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Coffigny, H.; Court, L.

    1994-01-01

    The isolated mesencephalic and striatal cells were irradiated in a dose-range of 0.25 to 3 Gy followed by 3 day of culture. The proportion of monopolar, bipolar, tripolar and multipolar cell population was not obviously modified by irradiation. The processes length was similar to controls, except after 3 Gy exposure, for monopolar and bipolar mesencephalic cells and the tripolar striatal cells where it was increased. In these populations, only cells with long processes seemed to survive. (author)

  8. Contrast detail phantom for SPECT

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Cabrejas, M.L. de; Arashiro, J G; Giannone, C. [Comision Nacional de Energia Atomica, Buenos Aires (Argentina); Camuyrano, M; Nohara, G [Universidad de Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires (Argentina). Facultad Ciencias Exactas

    1996-06-01

    A new low variable contrast phantom for single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) was constructed, tested and compared with other existing phantoms. It contains simulated cylindrical lesions of four different diameters (D{sub i}), embedded in a cylindrical scattering medium and a uniform section to evaluate tomographic uniformity. The concentration of tracer in the simulated lesions and the scattering medium (background) can be varied to simulate hot and cold lesions. Different applications of the phantom were tested, including determination of the minimum object contrast (OCm) necessary to detect lesions as a function of lesion size, lesion type (hot or cold) and acquisition and processing protocols by visual inspection. This parameter allows categorization of instruments comparing an `image quality index` (IQI). Preliminary comparison with the Britten contrast processing method showed that the detectable OCm was of the same order of magnitude, but the presented device seems more suitable for training and intercomparison purposes. The constructed phantom, of simple design, has proved to be useful for acquisition and processing condition evaluation, OCm estimation and external quality control. (author). 11 refs, 4 figs.

  9. Impact of cardio-synchronous brain pulsations on Monte Carlo calculated doses for synchrotron micro- and mini-beam radiation therapy.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Manchado de Sola, Francisco; Vilches, Manuel; Prezado, Yolanda; Lallena, Antonio M

    2018-05-15

    To assess the effects of brain movements induced by heartbeat on dose distributions in synchrotron micro- and mini-beam radiaton therapy and to develop a model to help guide decisions and planning for future clinical trials. The Monte Carlo code PENELOPE was used to simulate the irradiation of a human head phantom with a variety of micro- and mini-beam arrays, with beams narrower than 100 μm and above 500 μm, respectively, and with radiation fields of 1cm × 2cm and 2cm × 2cm. The dose in the phantom due to these beams was calculated by superposing the dose profiles obtained for a single beam of 1μm × 2cm. A parameter δ, accounting for the total displacement of the brain during the irradiation and due to the cardio-synchronous pulsation, was used to quantify the impact on peak-to-valley dose ratios and the full-width at half-maximum. The difference between the maximum (at the phantom entrance) and the minimum (at the phantom exit) values of the peak-to-valley dose ratio reduces when the parameter δ increases. The full-width at half-maximum remains almost constant with depth for any δ value. Sudden changes in the two quantities are observed at the interfaces between the various tissues (brain, skull and skin) present in the head phantom. The peak-to-valley dose ratio at the center of the head phantom reduces when δ increases, remaining above 70% of the static value only for mini-beams and δ smaller than ~ 200 μm. Optimal setups for brain treatments with synchrotron radiation micro- and mini-beam combs depend on the brain displacement due to cardio-synchronous pulsation. Peak-to-valley dose ratios larger than 90% of the maximum values obtained in the static case occur only for mini-beams and relatively large dose rates. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

  10. Reduced striatal dopamine DA D2 receptor function in dominant-negative GSK-3 transgenic mice.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gomez-Sintes, Raquel; Bortolozzi, Analia; Artigas, Francesc; Lucas, José J

    2014-09-01

    Glycogen synthase kinase-3 (GSK-3) is a serine/threonine kinase with constitutive activity involved in cellular architecture, gene expression, cell proliferation, fate decision and apoptosis, among others. GSK-3 expression is particularly high in brain where it may be involved in neurological and psychiatric disorders such as Alzheimer׳s disease, bipolar disorder and major depression. A link with schizophrenia is suggested by the antipsychotic drug-induced GSK-3 regulation and by the involvement of the Akt/GSK-3 pathway in dopaminergic neurotransmission. Taking advantage of the previous development of dominant negative GSK-3 transgenic mice (Tg) showing a selective reduction of GSK-3 activity in forebrain neurons but not in dopaminergic neurons, we explored the relationship between GSK-3 and dopaminergic neurotransmission in vivo. In microdialysis experiments, local quinpirole (DA D2-R agonist) in dorsal striatum reduced dopamine (DA) release significantly less in Tg mice than in wild-type (WT) mice. However, local SKF-81297 (selective DA D1-R agonist) in dorsal striatum reduced DA release equally in both control and Tg mice indicating a comparable function of DA D1-R in the direct striato-nigral pathway. Likewise, systemic quinpirole administration - acting preferentially on presynaptic DA D2- autoreceptors to modulate DA release-reduced striatal DA release similarly in both control and Tg mice. Quinpirole reduced locomotor activity and induced c-fos expression in globus pallidus (both striatal DA D2-R-mediated effects) significantly more in WT than in Tg mice. Taking together, the present results show that dominant negative GSK-3 transgenic mice show reduced DA D2-R-mediated function in striatum and further support a link between dopaminergic neurotransmission and GSK-3 activity. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. and ECNP. All rights reserved.

  11. The impact of reconstruction method on the quantification of DaTSCAN images

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Dickson, John C.; Erlandsson, Kjell; Hutton, Brian F. [UCLH NHS Foundation Trust and University College London, Institute of Nuclear Medicine, London (United Kingdom); Tossici-Bolt, Livia [Southampton University Hospitals NHS Trust, Department of Medical Physics, Southampton (United Kingdom); Sera, Terez [University of Szeged, Department of Nuclear Medicine and Euromedic Szeged, Szeged (Hungary); Varrone, Andrea [Psychiatry Section and Stockholm Brain Institute, Karolinska Institute, Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Stockholm (Sweden); Tatsch, Klaus [EANM/European Network of Excellence for Brain Imaging, Vienna (Austria)

    2010-01-15

    Reconstruction of DaTSCAN brain studies using OS-EM iterative reconstruction offers better image quality and more accurate quantification than filtered back-projection. However, reconstruction must proceed for a sufficient number of iterations to achieve stable and accurate data. This study assessed the impact of the number of iterations on the image quantification, comparing the results of the iterative reconstruction with filtered back-projection data. A striatal phantom filled with {sup 123}I using striatal to background ratios between 2:1 and 10:1 was imaged on five different gamma camera systems. Data from each system were reconstructed using OS-EM (which included depth-independent resolution recovery) with various combinations of iterations and subsets to achieve up to 200 EM-equivalent iterations and with filtered back-projection. Using volume of interest analysis, the relationships between image reconstruction strategy and quantification of striatal uptake were assessed. For phantom filling ratios of 5:1 or less, significant convergence of measured ratios occurred close to 100 EM-equivalent iterations, whereas for higher filling ratios, measured uptake ratios did not display a convergence pattern. Assessment of the count concentrations used to derive the measured uptake ratio showed that nonconvergence of low background count concentrations caused peaking in higher measured uptake ratios. Compared to filtered back-projection, OS-EM displayed larger uptake ratios because of the resolution recovery applied in the iterative algorithm. The number of EM-equivalent iterations used in OS-EM reconstruction influences the quantification of DaTSCAN studies because of incomplete convergence and possible bias in areas of low activity due to the nonnegativity constraint in OS-EM reconstruction. Nevertheless, OS-EM using 100 EM-equivalent iterations provides the best linear discriminatory measure to quantify the uptake in DaTSCAN studies. (orig.)

  12. Reduction in radiation dose with reconstruction technique in the brain perfusion CT

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kim, H. J.; Lee, H. K.; Song, H.; Ju, M. S.; Dong, K. R.; Chung, W. K.; Cho, M. S.; Cho, J. H.

    2011-12-01

    The principal objective of this study was to verify the utility of the reconstruction imaging technique in the brain perfusion computed tomography (PCT) scan by assessing reductions in the radiation dose and analyzing the generated images. The setting used for image acquisition had a detector coverage of 40 mm, a helical thickness of 0.625 mm, a helical shuttle mode scan type and a rotation time of 0.5 s as the image parameters used for the brain PCT scan. Additionally, a phantom experiment and an animal experiment were carried out. In the phantom and animal experiments, noise was measured in the scanning with the tube voltage fixed at 80 kVp (kilovolt peak) and the level of the adaptive statistical iterative reconstruction (ASIR) was changed from 0% to 100% at 10% intervals. The standard deviation of the CT coefficient was measured three times to calculate the mean value. In the phantom and animal experiments, the absorbed dose was measured 10 times under the same conditions as the ones for noise measurement before the mean value was calculated. In the animal experiment, pencil-type and CT-dedicated ionization chambers were inserted into the central portion of pig heads for measurement. In the phantom study, as the level of the ASIR changed from 0% to 100% under identical scanning conditions, the noise value and dose were proportionally reduced. In our animal experiment, the noise value was lowest when the ASIR level was 50%, unlike in the phantom study. The dose was reduced as in the phantom study.

  13. Comparison of photon organ and effective dose coefficients for PIMAL stylized phantom in bent positions in standard irradiation geometries

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Dewji, Shaheen; Hiller, Mauritius [Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Center for Radiation Protection Knowledge, Environmental Sciences Division, Oak Ridge, TN (United States); Reed, K.L. [Georgia Institute of Technology, Nuclear and Radiological Engineering Program, Atlanta, GA (United States)

    2017-08-15

    Computational phantoms with articulated arms and legs have been constructed to enable the estimation of radiation dose in different postures. Through a graphical user interface, the Phantom wIth Moving Arms and Legs (PIMAL) version 4.1.0 software can be employed to articulate the posture of a phantom and generate a corresponding input deck for the Monte Carlo N-Particle (MCNP) radiation transport code. In this work, photon fluence-to-dose coefficients were computed using PIMAL to compare organ and effective doses for a stylized phantom in the standard upright position with those for phantoms in realistic work postures. The articulated phantoms represent working positions including fully and half bent torsos with extended arms for both the male and female reference adults. Dose coefficients are compared for both the upright and bent positions across monoenergetic photon energies: 0.05, 0.1, 0.5, 1.0, and 5.0 MeV. Additionally, the organ doses are compared across the International Commission on Radiological Protection's standard external radiation exposure geometries: antero-posterior, postero-anterior, left and right lateral, and isotropic (AP, PA, LLAT, RLAT, and ISO). For the AP and PA irradiation geometries, differences in organ doses compared to the upright phantom become more profound with increasing bending angles and have doses largely overestimated for all organs except the brain in AP and bladder in PA. In LLAT and RLAT irradiation geometries, energy deposition for organs is more likely to be underestimated compared to the upright phantom, with no overall change despite increased bending angle. The ISO source geometry did not cause a significant difference in absorbed organ dose between the different phantoms, regardless of position. Organ and effective fluence-to-dose coefficients are tabulated. In the AP geometry, the effective dose at the 45 bent position is overestimated compared to the upright phantom below 1 MeV by as much as 27% and 82% in the

  14. A new head-mounted display-based augmented reality system in neurosurgical oncology: a study on phantom.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cutolo, Fabrizio; Meola, Antonio; Carbone, Marina; Sinceri, Sara; Cagnazzo, Federico; Denaro, Ennio; Esposito, Nicola; Ferrari, Mauro; Ferrari, Vincenzo

    2017-12-01

    Benefits of minimally invasive neurosurgery mandate the development of ergonomic paradigms for neuronavigation. Augmented Reality (AR) systems can overcome the shortcomings of commercial neuronavigators. The aim of this work is to apply a novel AR system, based on a head-mounted stereoscopic video see-through display, as an aid in complex neurological lesion targeting. Effectiveness was investigated on a newly designed patient-specific head mannequin featuring an anatomically realistic brain phantom with embedded synthetically created tumors and eloquent areas. A two-phase evaluation process was adopted in a simulated small tumor resection adjacent to Broca's area. Phase I involved nine subjects without neurosurgical training in performing spatial judgment tasks. In Phase II, three surgeons were involved in assessing the effectiveness of the AR-neuronavigator in performing brain tumor targeting on a patient-specific head phantom. Phase I revealed the ability of the AR scene to evoke depth perception under different visualization modalities. Phase II confirmed the potentialities of the AR-neuronavigator in aiding the determination of the optimal surgical access to the surgical target. The AR-neuronavigator is intuitive, easy-to-use, and provides three-dimensional augmented information in a perceptually-correct way. The system proved to be effective in guiding skin incision, craniotomy, and lesion targeting. The preliminary results encourage a structured study to prove clinical effectiveness. Moreover, our testing platform might be used to facilitate training in brain tumour resection procedures.

  15. Mathematical human phantoms and their application to radiation protection

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Yamaguchi, Yasuhiro

    1998-01-01

    This review described the characteristics of mathematical phantoms, their history over 30 years and their application. Mathematical phantoms are classified into two models of formula and voxel types. In the former, human body and organs are described by 2- and/or 3-D mathematical formula and can be seen as a combination of solid bodies like spheres, cubes and ovals. The phantom is composed from three tissue components (bone, lung and soft tissue) and made on data on Reference Man in ICRP Publ. 23. The latter voxel (volume pixel) phantom consists from a number of small cubes based on CT and MRI images of a certain man. For instance, the phantom CHILD, 1.54 x 1.54 x 8.00 mm 3 in size, is based on a 7-year old child, which consisting from about one million voxels. The mathematical phantom was first made in Oak Ridge National Laboratory in the middle of the nineteen-sixties, which have undergone various improvements to reach MIRD-5 phantom. Thereafter, many similitude phantoms have been made as a variation of MIRD-5, depending on age and sex (e.g., ADAM and EVA). Voxel phantom was made in the middle of nineteen-eighties and have undergone improvements which are continued even currently in Japan, U.S. etc. The mathematical phantoms are used for calculation of radiation transport program by Monte Carlo method in the field of radiation protection. Also in the field of medicine, the phantom is used for calculation of internal and external exposure doses, of correction constants of externally measuring instruments, of doses for neutron capture therapy and of A-bomb exposure doses in Hiroshima and Nagasaki for reevaluation. Recently, the development of phantom is in the current from formula phantom to voxel one due to the purpose of precision and standardization. (K.H.)

  16. The development and investigation of a prototype three-dimensional compensator for whole brain radiation therapy

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Keall, Paul; Arief, Isti; Shamas, Sofia; Weiss, Elisabeth; Castle, Steven

    2008-01-01

    Whole brain radiation therapy (WBRT) is the standard treatment for patients with brain metastases, and is often used in conjunction with stereotactic radiotherapy for patients with a limited number of brain metastases, as well as prophylactic cranial irradiation. The use of open fields (conventionally used for WBRT) leads to higher doses to the brain periphery if dose is prescribed to the brain center at the largest lateral radius. These dose variations potentially compromise treatment efficacy and translate to increased side effects. The goal of this research was to design and construct a 3D 'brain wedge' to compensate dose heterogeneities in WBRT. Radiation transport theory was invoked to calculate the desired shape of a wedge to achieve a uniform dose distribution at the sagittal plane for an ellipsoid irradiated medium. The calculations yielded a smooth 3D wedge design to account for the missing tissue at the peripheral areas of the brain. A wedge was machined based on the calculation results. Three ellipsoid phantoms, spanning the mean and ± two standard deviations from the mean cranial dimensions were constructed, representing 95% of the adult population. Film was placed at the sagittal plane for each of the three phantoms and irradiated with 6 MV photons, with the wedge in place. Sagittal plane isodose plots for the three phantoms demonstrated the feasibility of this wedge to create a homogeneous distribution with similar results observed for the three phantom sizes, indicating that a single wedge may be sufficient to cover 95% of the adult population. The sagittal dose is a reasonable estimate of the off-axis dose for whole brain radiation therapy. Comparing the dose with and without the wedge the average minimum dose was higher (90% versus 86%), the maximum dose was lower (107% versus 113%) and the dose variation was lower (one standard deviation 2.7% versus 4.6%). In summary, a simple and effective 3D wedge for whole brain radiotherapy has been developed

  17. A dynamic phantom for radionuclide renography

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Heikkinen, J.O.

    1999-01-01

    The aim of the study was to develop and test a dynamic phantom simulating radionuclide renography. The phantom consisted of five partly lead covered plastic containers simulating kidneys, heart, bladder and background (soft tissues, liver and spleen). Dynamics were performed with multiple movable steel plates between containers and a gamma camera. Control of the plates is performed manually with a stopwatch following exact time schedules. The containers were filled with activities ( 99m Tc) which produce count rates close to clinical situations. Count rates produced by the phantom were compared with ten clinical renography cases: five 99m Tc MAG3 and five 99m Tc DTPA examinations. Two phantom simulations were repeated three times with separate fillings, acquisitions and analyses. Precision errors as a coefficient of variation (CV) of repeated measurements were calculated and theoretical values were compared with the corresponding measured ones. A multicentre comparison was made between 19 nuclear medicine laboratories and three clinical cases were simulated with the phantom. Correlations between count rates produced by the phantom and clinical studies were r=0.964 for 99m Tc MAG3 (p 99m Tc DTPA (p max was 4.0±1.6%. Images and curves of the scanned phantom were close to a real patient in all 19 laboratories but calculated parameters varied: the difference between theoretical and measured values for T max was 6.8±6.2%. The difference between laboratories is most probably due to variations in acquisition protocols and analysis programs: 19 laboratories with 18 different protocols and 8 different programs. The dynamics were found to be repeatable and suitable for calibration purposes for radionuclide renography programs and protocols as well as for multicentre comparisons. (author)

  18. Striatal dopamine D2/3 receptor regulation by stress inoculation in squirrel monkeys

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Alex G. Lee

    2016-06-01

    Full Text Available Intermittent mildly stressful situations provide opportunities to learn, practice, and improve coping in a process called stress inoculation. Stress inoculation also enhances cognitive control and response inhibition of impulsive motivated behavior. Cognitive control and motivation have been linked to striatal dopamine D2 and/or D3 receptors (DRD2/3 in rodents, monkeys, and humans. Here, we study squirrel monkeys randomized early in life to stress inoculation with or without maternal companionship and a no-stress control treatment condition. Striatal DRD2/3 availability in adulthood was measured in vivo by [11C]raclopride binding using positron emission tomography (PET. DRD2/3 availability was greater in caudate and putamen compared to ventral striatum as reported in PET studies of humans and other non-human primates. DRD2/3 availability in ventral striatum was also consistently greater in stress inoculated squirrel monkeys compared to no-stress controls. Squirrel monkeys exposed to stress inoculation in the presence of their mother did not differ from squirrel monkeys exposed to stress inoculation without maternal companionship. Similar effects in different social contexts extend the generality of our findings and together suggest that stress inoculation increases striatal DRD2/3 availability as a correlate of cognitive control in squirrel monkeys.

  19. Contribution of fronto-striatal regions to emotional valence and repetition under cognitive conflict.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chun, Ji-Won; Park, Hae-Jeong; Kim, Dai Jin; Kim, Eosu; Kim, Jae-Jin

    2017-07-01

    Conflict processing mediated by fronto-striatal regions may be influenced by emotional properties of stimuli. This study aimed to examine the effects of emotion repetition on cognitive control in a conflict-provoking situation. Twenty-one healthy subjects were scanned using functional magnetic resonance imaging while performing a sequential cognitive conflict task composed of emotional stimuli. The regional effects were analyzed according to the repetition or non-repetition of cognitive congruency and emotional valence between the preceding and current trials. Post-incongruence interference in error rate and reaction time was significantly smaller than post-congruence interference, particularly under repeated positive and non-repeated positive, respectively, and post-incongruence interference, compared to post-congruence interference, increased activity in the ACC, DLPFC, and striatum. ACC and DLPFC activities were significantly correlated with error rate or reaction time in some conditions, and fronto-striatal connections were related to the conflict processing heightened by negative emotion. These findings suggest that the repetition of emotional stimuli adaptively regulates cognitive control and the fronto-striatal circuit may engage in the conflict adaptation process induced by emotion repetition. Both repetition enhancement and repetition suppression of prefrontal activity may underlie the relationship between emotion and conflict adaptation. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  20. Phantom inflation and the 'Big Trip'

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Gonzalez-Diaz, Pedro F.; Jimenez-Madrid, Jose A.

    2004-01-01

    Primordial inflation is regarded to be driven by a phantom field which is here implemented as a scalar field satisfying an equation of state p=ωρ, with ω-1. Being even aggravated by the weird properties of phantom energy, this will pose a serious problem with the exit from the inflationary phase. We argue, however, in favor of the speculation that a smooth exit from the phantom inflationary phase can still be tentatively recovered by considering a multiverse scenario where the primordial phantom universe would travel in time toward a future universe filled with usual radiation, before reaching the big rip. We call this transition the 'Big Trip' and assume it to take place with the help of some form of anthropic principle which chooses our current universe as being the final destination of the time transition

  1. Comparison of internal dosimetry factors for three classes of adult computational phantoms with emphasis on I-131 in the thyroid

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lamart, Stephanie; Simon, Steven L; Lee, Choonsik; Bouville, Andre; Eckerman, Keith F; Melo, Dunstana

    2011-01-01

    The S values for 11 major target organs for I-131 in the thyroid were compared for three classes of adult computational human phantoms: stylized, voxel and hybrid phantoms. In addition, we compared specific absorbed fractions (SAFs) with the thyroid as a source region over a broader photon energy range than the x- and gamma-rays of I-131. The S and SAF values were calculated for the International Commission on Radiological Protection (ICRP) reference voxel phantoms and the University of Florida (UF) hybrid phantoms by using the Monte Carlo transport method, while the S and SAF values for the Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) stylized phantoms were obtained from earlier publications. Phantoms in our calculations were for adults of both genders. The 11 target organs and tissues that were selected for the comparison of S values are brain, breast, stomach wall, small intestine wall, colon wall, heart wall, pancreas, salivary glands, thyroid, lungs and active marrow for I-131 and thyroid as a source region. The comparisons showed, in general, an underestimation of S values reported for the stylized phantoms compared to the values based on the ICRP voxel and UF hybrid phantoms and relatively good agreement between the S values obtained for the ICRP and UF phantoms. Substantial differences were observed for some organs between the three types of phantoms. For example, the small intestine wall of ICRP male phantom and heart wall of ICRP female phantom showed up to eightfold and fourfold greater S values, respectively, compared to the reported values for the ORNL phantoms. UF male and female phantoms also showed significant differences compared to the ORNL phantom, 4.0-fold greater for the small intestine wall and 3.3-fold greater for the heart wall. In our method, we directly calculated the S values without using the SAFs as commonly done. Hence, we sought to confirm the differences observed in our S values by comparing the SAFs among the phantoms with the thyroid as a

  2. Comparison of internal dosimetry factors for three classes of adult computational phantoms with emphasis on I-131 in the thyroid

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lamart, Stephanie; Bouville, Andre; Simon, Steven L.; Eckerman, Keith F.; Melo, Dunstana; Lee, Choonsik

    2011-11-01

    The S values for 11 major target organs for I-131 in the thyroid were compared for three classes of adult computational human phantoms: stylized, voxel and hybrid phantoms. In addition, we compared specific absorbed fractions (SAFs) with the thyroid as a source region over a broader photon energy range than the x- and gamma-rays of I-131. The S and SAF values were calculated for the International Commission on Radiological Protection (ICRP) reference voxel phantoms and the University of Florida (UF) hybrid phantoms by using the Monte Carlo transport method, while the S and SAF values for the Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) stylized phantoms were obtained from earlier publications. Phantoms in our calculations were for adults of both genders. The 11 target organs and tissues that were selected for the comparison of S values are brain, breast, stomach wall, small intestine wall, colon wall, heart wall, pancreas, salivary glands, thyroid, lungs and active marrow for I-131 and thyroid as a source region. The comparisons showed, in general, an underestimation of S values reported for the stylized phantoms compared to the values based on the ICRP voxel and UF hybrid phantoms and relatively good agreement between the S values obtained for the ICRP and UF phantoms. Substantial differences were observed for some organs between the three types of phantoms. For example, the small intestine wall of ICRP male phantom and heart wall of ICRP female phantom showed up to eightfold and fourfold greater S values, respectively, compared to the reported values for the ORNL phantoms. UF male and female phantoms also showed significant differences compared to the ORNL phantom, 4.0-fold greater for the small intestine wall and 3.3-fold greater for the heart wall. In our method, we directly calculated the S values without using the SAFs as commonly done. Hence, we sought to confirm the differences observed in our S values by comparing the SAFs among the phantoms with the thyroid as a

  3. Charged black holes in phantom cosmology

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Jamil, Mubasher; Qadir, Asghar; Rashid, Muneer Ahmad [National University of Sciences and Technology, Center for Advanced Mathematics and Physics, Rawalpindi (Pakistan)

    2008-11-15

    In the classical relativistic regime, the accretion of phantom-like dark energy onto a stationary black hole reduces the mass of the black hole. We have investigated the accretion of phantom energy onto a stationary charged black hole and have determined the condition under which this accretion is possible. This condition restricts the mass-to-charge ratio in a narrow range. This condition also challenges the validity of the cosmic-censorship conjecture since a naked singularity is eventually produced due to accretion of phantom energy onto black hole. (orig.)

  4. Phantoms for IMRT dose distribution measurement and treatment verification

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Low, Daniel A.; Gerber, Russell L.; Mutic, Sasa; Purdy, James A.

    1998-01-01

    Background: The verification of intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) patient treatment dose distributions is currently based on custom-built or modified dose measurement phantoms. The only commercially available IMRT treatment planning and delivery system (Peacock, NOMOS Corp.) is supplied with a film phantom that allows accurate spatial localization of the dose distribution using radiographic film. However, measurements using other dosimeters are necessary for the thorough verification of IMRT. Methods: We have developed a phantom to enable dose measurements using a cylindrical ionization chamber and the localization of prescription isodose curves using a matrix of thermoluminescent dosimetry (TLD) chips. The external phantom cross-section is identical to that of the commercial phantom, to allow direct comparisons of measurements. A supplementary phantom has been fabricated to verify the IMRT dose distributions for pelvis treatments. Results: To date, this phantom has been used for the verification of IMRT dose distributions for head and neck and prostate cancer treatments. Designs are also presented for a phantom insert to be used with polymerizing gels (e.g., BANG-2) to obtain volumetric dose distribution measurements. Conclusion: The phantoms have proven useful in the quantitative evaluation of IMRT treatments

  5. Dopamine D(1) receptor-mediated control of striatal acetylcholine release by endogenous dopamine.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Acquas, E; Di Chiara, G

    1999-10-27

    The role of dopamine D(1) and D(2) receptors in the control of acetylcholine release in the dorsal striatum by endogenous dopamine was investigated by monitoring with microdialysis the effect of the separate or combined administration of the dopamine D(1) receptor antagonist, SCH 39166 ¿(-)-trans-6,7,7a,8,9, 13b-exahydro-3-chloro-2-hydroxy-N-methyl-5H-benzo-[d]-nap hto-[2, 1b]-azepine hydrochloride¿ (50 microg/kg subcutaneous (s.c.)), of the dopamine D(2)/D(3) receptor agonist, quinpirole (trans-(-)-4aR, 4a,5,6,7,8,8a,9-octahydro-5-propyl-1H-pyrazolo-(3,4-g)-quinoline hydrochloride) (5 and 10 microg/kg s.c.), and of the D(3) receptor selective agonist, PD 128,907 [S(+)-(4aR,10bR)-3,4,4a, 10b-tetrahydro-4-propyl-2H,5H-[1]benzopyrano-[4,3-b]-1,4-oxazin -9-ol hydrochloride] (50 microg/kg s.c.), on in vivo dopamine and acetylcholine release. Microdialysis was performed with a Ringer containing low concentrations (0.01 microM) of the acetylcholinesterase inhibitor, neostigmine. Quinpirole (10 microg/kg s.c.) decreased striatal dopamine and acetylcholine release. Administration of PD 128,907 (50 microg/kg) decreased dopamine but failed to affect acetylcholine release. SCH 39166 (50 microg/kg s.c.) stimulated dopamine release and reduced acetylcholine release. Pretreatment with quinpirole reduced (5 microg/kg s.c.) or completely prevented (10 microg/kg s.c.) the stimulation of dopamine release elicited by SCH 39166 (50 microg/kg s.c.); on the other hand, pretreatment with quinpirole (5 and 10 microg/kg) potentiated the reduction of striatal acetylcholine release induced by SCH 39166 (50 microg/kg s.c.). Similarly, pretreatment with PD 128,907 (50 microg/kg) which prevented the increase of dopamine release induced by SCH 39166 (50 microg/kg), potentiated the reduction of striatal acetylcholine transmission elicited by SCH 39166. Thus, pretreatment with low doses of quinpirole or PD 128,907 influences in opposite manner the effect of SCH 39166 on striatal dopamine and

  6. Impulse control disorders in Parkinson's disease: decreased striatal dopamine transporter levels.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Voon, Valerie; Rizos, Alexandra; Chakravartty, Riddhika; Mulholland, Nicola; Robinson, Stephanie; Howell, Nicholas A; Harrison, Neil; Vivian, Gill; Ray Chaudhuri, K

    2014-02-01

    Impulse control disorders are commonly associated with dopaminergic therapy in Parkinson's disease (PD). PD patients with impulse control disorders demonstrate enhanced dopamine release to conditioned cues and a gambling task on [(11)C]raclopride positron emission tomography (PET) imaging and enhanced ventral striatal activity to reward on functional MRI. We compared PD patients with impulse control disorders and age-matched and gender-matched controls without impulse control disorders using [(123)I]FP-CIT (2β-carbomethoxy-3β-(4-iodophenyl)tropane) single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT), to assess striatal dopamine transporter (DAT) density. The [(123)I]FP-CIT binding data in the striatum were compared between 15 PD patients with and 15 without impulse control disorders using independent t tests. Those with impulse control disorders showed significantly lower DAT binding in the right striatum with a trend in the left (right: F(1,24)=5.93, p=0.02; left: F(1,24)=3.75, p=0.07) compared to controls. Our findings suggest that greater dopaminergic striatal activity in PD patients with impulse control disorders may be partly related to decreased uptake and clearance of dopamine from the synaptic cleft. Whether these findings are related to state or trait effects is not known. These findings dovetail with reports of lower DAT levels secondary to the effects of methamphetamine and alcohol. Although any regulation of DAT by antiparkinsonian medication appears to be modest, PD patients with impulse control disorders may be differentially sensitive to regulatory mechanisms of DAT expression by dopaminergic medications.

  7. Differences in striatal dopamine transporter density between tremor dominant and non-tremor Parkinson's disease

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kaasinen, Valtteri; Kinos, Maija; Joutsa, Juho; Seppaenen, Marko; Noponen, Tommi

    2014-01-01

    Parkinson's disease (PD) can manifest with a tremor-dominant or a non-tremor (akinetic-rigid) phenotype. Although the tremor-dominant subtype may show a better prognosis, there is limited information on the phenotypic differences regarding the level of striatal dopamine transmission. The present study investigated striatal dopamine transporter (DAT) binding characteristics in a large sample of patients with and without tremor. [ 123 I]FP-CIT SPECT scans of 231 patients with a clinical diagnosis of PD and abnormal FP-CIT binding (157 with tremor, 74 without tremor) and 230 control patients with normal FP-CIT binding (148 with tremor, 82 without tremor) were analysed using an automated region-of-interest analysis of the scans (BRASS). Specific striatal binding ratios were compared between phenotypes and groups using age, sex, and symptom duration, predominant side of symptoms, dopaminergic medications and scanner as covariates. Patients with PD had 28.1 - 65.0 % lower binding in all striatal regions compared to controls (p < 0.001). The mean FP-CIT caudate nucleus uptake and the left caudate nucleus uptake were higher in PD patients with tremor than in PD patients without tremor (mean 9.0 % higher, left 10.5 % higher; p < 0.05), whereas there were no differences between tremor and non-tremor control patients. No significant effects of tremor on DAT binding were observed in the anterior or posterior putamen. The motor phenotype is associated with the extent of caudate dopamine terminal loss in PD, as dopamine function is relatively more preserved in tremor patients. Symptom type is related to caudate dopamine function only in association with Parkinsonian dopaminergic degeneration, not in intact dopamine systems in patients with non-PD tremor. (orig.)

  8. Differences in number and distribution of striatal calbindin medium spiny neurons between a vocal-learner (Melopsittacus undulatus and a non-vocal learner bird (Colinus virginianus

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Elena eGarcia-Calero

    2013-12-01

    Full Text Available Striatal projecting neurons, known as medium spiny neurons (MSNs, segregate into two compartments called matrix and striosome in the mammalian striatum. The matrix domain is characterized by the presence of calbindin immunopositive (CB+ MSNs, not observed in the striosome subdivision. The existence of a similar CB+ MSN population has recently been described in two striatal structures in male zebra finch (a vocal learner bird: the striatal capsule and the Area X, a nucleus implicated in song learning. Female zebra finches show a similar pattern of CB+ MSNs than males in the developing striatum but loose these cells in juveniles and adult stages. In the present work we analyzed the existence and allocation of CB+MSNs in the striatal domain of the vocal learner bird budgerigar (representative of psittaciformes order and the non-vocal learner bird quail (representative of galliformes order. We studied the co-localization of CB protein with FoxP1, a transcription factor expressed in vertebrate striatal MSNs. We observed CB+ MSNs in the medial striatal domain of adult male and female budgerigars, although this cell type was missing in the potentially homologous nucleus for Area X in budgerigar. In quail, we observed CB+ cells in the striatal domain at developmental and adult stages but they did not co-localize with the MSN marker FoxP1. We also described the existence of the CB+ striatal capsule in budgerigar and quail and compared these results with the CB+ striatal capsule observed in juvenile zebra finches. Together, these results point out important differences in CB+MSN distribution between two representative species of vocal learner and non-vocal learner avian orders (respectively the budgerigar and the quail, but also between close vocal learner bird families.

  9. Experimental phantom verification studies for simulations of light interactions with skin: liquid phantoms

    CSIR Research Space (South Africa)

    Karsten, A

    2010-09-01

    Full Text Available stream_source_info Karsten_2010_P.pdf.txt stream_content_type text/plain stream_size 5080 Content-Encoding UTF-8 stream_name Karsten_2010_P.pdf.txt Content-Type text/plain; charset=UTF-8 Experimental phantom verification... studies for simulations of light interactions with skin: Solid Phantoms Aletta E Karsten, A Singh Presented by: J E Smit National Laser Center CSIR South Africa akarsten@csir.co.za Slide 2 © CSIR 2009 www.csir.co.za Where...

  10. A flocking based method for brain tractography.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Aranda, Ramon; Rivera, Mariano; Ramirez-Manzanares, Alonso

    2014-04-01

    We propose a new method to estimate axonal fiber pathways from Multiple Intra-Voxel Diffusion Orientations. Our method uses the multiple local orientation information for leading stochastic walks of particles. These stochastic particles are modeled with mass and thus they are subject to gravitational and inertial forces. As result, we obtain smooth, filtered and compact trajectory bundles. This gravitational interaction can be seen as a flocking behavior among particles that promotes better and robust axon fiber estimations because they use collective information to move. However, the stochastic walks may generate paths with low support (outliers), generally associated to incorrect brain connections. In order to eliminate the outlier pathways, we propose a filtering procedure based on principal component analysis and spectral clustering. The performance of the proposal is evaluated on Multiple Intra-Voxel Diffusion Orientations from two realistic numeric diffusion phantoms and a physical diffusion phantom. Additionally, we qualitatively demonstrate the performance on in vivo human brain data. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  11. Simulation of a Quality Control Jaszczak Phantom with SIMIND Monte Carlo and Adding the Phantom as an Accessory to the Program

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Pirayesh Islamian, J.; Bahreyni Toosi, M. T.; Momennezhad, M.; Naseri, Sh.; Ljungberg, M.

    2012-01-01

    Quality control is an important phenomenon in nuclear medicine imaging. A Jaszczak SPECT Phantom provides consistent performance information for any SPECT or PET system. This article describes the simulation of a Jaszczak phantom and creating an executable phantom file for comparing assessment of SPECT cameras using SIMIND Monte Carlo simulation program which is well-established for SPECT. The simulation was based on a Deluxe model of Jaszczak Phantom with defined geometry. Quality control tests were provided together with initial imaging example and suggested use for the assessment of parameters such as spatial resolution, limits of lesion detection, and contrast comparing with a Siemens E.Cam SPECT system. The phantom simulation was verified by matching tomographic spatial resolution, image contrast, and also uniformity compared with the experiment SPECT of the phantom from filtered backprojection reconstructed images of the spheres and rods. The calculated contrasts of the rods were 0.774, 0.627, 0.575, 0.372, 0.191, and 0.132 for an experiment with the rods diameters of 31.8, 25.4, 19.1, 15.9, 12.7, and 9.5 mm, respectively. The calculated contrasts of simulated rods were 0.661, 0.527, 0.487, 0.400, 0.23, and 0.2 for cold rods and also 0.92, 0.91, 0.88, 0.81, 0.76, and 0.56 for hot rods. Reconstructed spatial tomographic resolution of both experiment and simulated SPECTs of the phantom obtained about 9.5 mm. An executable phantom file and an input phantom file were created for the SIMIND Monte Carlo program. This phantom may be used for simulated SPECT systems and would be ideal for verification of the simulated systems with real ones by comparing the results of quality control and image evaluation. It is also envisaged that this phantom could be used with a range of radionuclide doses in simulation situations such as cold, hot, and background uptakes for the assessment of detection characteristics when a new similar clinical SPECT procedure is being simulated.

  12. Simulation of a Quality Control Jaszczak Phantom with SIMIND Monte Carlo and Adding the Phantom as an Accessory to the Program

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jalil Pirayesh Islamian

    2012-03-01

    Full Text Available Introduction Quality control is an important phenomenon in nuclear medicine imaging. A Jaszczak SPECT Phantom provides consistent performance information for any SPECT or PET system. This article describes the simulation of a Jaszczak phantom and creating an executable phantom file for comparing assessment of SPECT cameras using SIMIND Monte Carlo simulation program which is well-established for SPECT. Materials and Methods The simulation was based on a Deluxe model of Jaszczak Phantom with defined geometry. Quality control tests were provided together with initial imaging example and suggested use for the assessment of parameters such as spatial resolution, limits of lesion detection, and contrast comparing with a Siemens E.Cam SPECT system. Results The phantom simulation was verified by matching tomographic spatial resolution, image contrast, and also uniformity compared with the experiment SPECT of the phantom from filtered backprojection reconstructed images of the spheres and rods. The calculated contrasts of the rods were 0.774, 0.627, 0.575, 0.372, 0.191, and 0.132 for an experiment with the rods diameters of 31.8, 25.4, 19.1, 15.9, 12.7, and 9.5 mm, respectively. The calculated contrasts of simulated rods were 0.661, 0.527, 0.487, 0.400, 0.23, and 0.2 for cold rods and also 0.92, 0.91, 0.88, 0.81, 0.76, and 0.56 for hot rods. Reconstructed spatial tomographic resolution of both experiment and simulated SPECTs of the phantom obtained about 9.5 mm. An executable phantom file and an input phantom file were created for the SIMIND Monte Carlo program. Conclusion This phantom may be used for simulated SPECT systems and would be ideal for verification of the simulated systems with real ones by comparing the results of quality control and image evaluation. It is also envisaged that this phantom could be used with a range of radionuclide doses in simulation situations such as cold, hot, and background uptakes for the assessment of detection

  13. Striatal fast-spiking interneurons: from firing patterns to postsynaptic impact

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Andreas eKlaus

    2011-07-01

    Full Text Available In the striatal microcircuit, fast-spiking (FS interneurons have an important role in mediating inhibition onto neighboring medium spiny (MS projection neurons. In this study, we combined computational modeling with in vitro and in vivo electrophysiological measurements to investigate FS cells in terms of their discharge properties and their synaptic efficacies onto MS neurons. In vivo firing of striatal FS interneurons is characterized by a high firing variability. It is not known, however, if this variability results from the input that FS cells receive, or if it is promoted by the stuttering spike behavior of these neurons. Both our model and measurements in vitro show that FS neurons that exhibit random stuttering discharge in response to steady depolarization, do not show the typical stuttering behavior when they receive fluctuating input. Importantly, our model predicts that electrically coupled FS cells show substantial spike synchronization only when they are in the stuttering regime. Therefore, together with the lack of synchronized firing of striatal FS interneurons that has been reported in vivo, these results suggest that neighboring FS neurons are not in the stuttering regime simultaneously and that in vivo FS firing variability is more likely determined by the input fluctuations. Furthermore, the variability in FS firing is translated to variability in the postsynaptic amplitudes in MS neurons due to the strong synaptic depression of the FS-to-MS synapse. Our results support the idea that these synapses operate over a wide range from strongly depressed to almost fully recovered. The strong inhibitory effects that FS cells can impose on their postsynaptic targets, and the fact that the FS-to-MS synapse model showed substantial depression over extended periods of time might indicate the importance of cooperative effects of multiple presynaptic FS interneurons and the precise orchestration of their activity.

  14. Puzzles of dark energy in the Universe—phantom

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Dabrowski, Mariusz P

    2015-01-01

    This paper is devoted to some simple approach based on general physics tools to describe the physical properties of a hypothetical particle which can be the source of dark energy in the Universe known as phantom. Phantom is characterized by the fact that it possesses negative momentum and kinetic energy and that it gives dominant negative pressure which acts as antigravity. We consider a phantom harmonic oscillator in comparison to a standard harmonic oscillator. By using the first law of thermodynamics we explain why the energy density of the Universe grows when it is filled with phantom. We also show how the collision of phantom with a standard particle leads to extraction of energy from the former by the latter (i.e. from phantom to the standard) if their masses are different. The most striking of our conclusions is that the collision of phantom and standard particles of the same mass is impossible unless both of them are at rest and suddenly start moving with opposite velocities and kinetic energies. This effect is a classic analog of quantum mechanical particle pair creation in a strong electric field or physical vacuum. (paper)

  15. Interactions of [3H]amphetamine with rat brain synaptosomes. II. Active transport

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Zaczek, R.; Culp, S.; De Souza, E.B.

    1991-01-01

    The accumulation of 5 nM d-[ 3 H]amphetamine (d-[ 3 H]AMPH) into rat brain synaptosomes was examined using physiological buffer conditions. The accumulation of d-[ 3 H]AMPH into striatal synaptosomes was saturable, of high affinity, ouabain-sensitive and temperature-dependent, suggesting an active transport phenomenon. Eadee-Hofstee analysis of striatal d-[ 3 H]AMPH transport (AMT) saturation isotherms indicated an apparent Km of 97 nM and a Vmax of 3.0 fmol/mg tissue/min. Lesion of the striatal dopaminergic innervation led to equivalent decreases of [ 3 H] dopamine (DA) transport and AMT, indicating that AMT occurs in DA terminals. Furthermore, AMT was not evident in cerebral cortex, a brain region with a paucity of DA terminals. In competition studies, AMT was stereospecific; d-AMPH (IC50 = 60 nM) was an 8-fold more potent inhibitor of the transport than its I-isomer (IC50 = 466 nM). DA(IC50 = 257 nM), DA uptake blockers and substrates were found to be potent inhibitors of AMT: GBR12909 IC50 = 5 nM; methamphetamine IC50 = 48 nM; methylphenidate IC50 = 53 nM; and cocaine IC50 = 172 nM. In contrast, serotonin was relatively weak in inhibiting AMT (IC50 = 7.9 microM). There was a highly significant (P less than .001; slope = 1.2) linear correlation between the AMT-inhibiting potencies of AMPH analogs and their potencies in stimulating locomotor activity in rodents. AMT may be important in the low dose effects of AMPH such as increased locomotor activity in rodents and stimulant activity in man. Differences between AMT and d-[ 3 H]AMPH sequestration described earlier, as well as their possible relevance to behavioral and neurochemical sequelae of AMPH administration are also discussed

  16. Mechanisms mediating parallel action monitoring in fronto-striatal circuits.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Beste, Christian; Ness, Vanessa; Lukas, Carsten; Hoffmann, Rainer; Stüwe, Sven; Falkenstein, Michael; Saft, Carsten

    2012-08-01

    Flexible response adaptation and the control of conflicting information play a pivotal role in daily life. Yet, little is known about the neuronal mechanisms mediating parallel control of these processes. We examined these mechanisms using a multi-methodological approach that integrated data from event-related potentials (ERPs) with structural MRI data and source localisation using sLORETA. Moreover, we calculated evoked wavelet oscillations. We applied this multi-methodological approach in healthy subjects and patients in a prodromal phase of a major basal ganglia disorder (i.e., Huntington's disease), to directly focus on fronto-striatal networks. Behavioural data indicated, especially the parallel execution of conflict monitoring and flexible response adaptation was modulated across the examined cohorts. When both processes do not co-incide a high integrity of fronto-striatal loops seems to be dispensable. The neurophysiological data suggests that conflict monitoring (reflected by the N2 ERP) and working memory processes (reflected by the P3 ERP) differentially contribute to this pattern of results. Flexible response adaptation under the constraint of high conflict processing affected the N2 and P3 ERP, as well as their delta frequency band oscillations. Yet, modulatory effects were strongest for the N2 ERP and evoked wavelet oscillations in this time range. The N2 ERPs were localized in the anterior cingulate cortex (BA32, BA24). Modulations of the P3 ERP were localized in parietal areas (BA7). In addition, MRI-determined caudate head volume predicted modulations in conflict monitoring, but not working memory processes. The results show how parallel conflict monitoring and flexible adaptation of action is mediated via fronto-striatal networks. While both, response monitoring and working memory processes seem to play a role, especially response selection processes and ACC-basal ganglia networks seem to be the driving force in mediating parallel conflict

  17. ICRU activity in the field of phantoms in diagnostic radiology

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wambersie, A.

    1992-01-01

    The ICRU Report on 'Phantoms and Computational Models in Radiation Therapy, Diagnosis and Protection' is presented. Different types of phantoms may be defined. They may be broadly categorized according to their primary function: dosimetry, calibration and imaging. Within each functional category, there are 3 types or designs of phantoms: body phantoms (anthropomorphic), standard phantoms and reference phantoms (used in the definition and specification of certain radiation quantities). In radiological imaging, anthropomorphic body phantoms are used for measuring the absorbed dose distribution resulting from imaging procedures. Standard phantoms have simple reproducible geometry and are used for comparing measurements under standard conditions of exposure. Imaging phantoms are useful for evaluating a given imaging system; they contain different types of test pieces. The report contains a major section on human anatomy, from fetus to adult with the variations due to ethnic origin. Tolerance levels for the phantoms (composition, dimensions) are proposed and quality assurance programs are outlined. The report contains extensive appendices; human anatomical data and full specification of over 80 phantoms and computational models. ICRU Report 46 on 'Photon, electron, proton and neutron interaction data for body tissues' is closely related to the field of phantoms. It is a logical continuation on ICRU Report 44 (1989) on 'Tissue substitutes in radiation dosimetry and measurements' and contains the interaction data for more than 100 tissues, from fetal to adult, including some diseased tissues

  18. Anatomical and electrophysiological changes in striatal TH interneurons after loss of the nigrostriatal dopaminergic pathway.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ünal, Bengi; Shah, Fulva; Kothari, Janish; Tepper, James M

    2015-01-01

    Using transgenic mice that express enhanced green fluorescent protein (EGFP) under the control of the tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) promoter, we have previously shown that there are approximately 3,000 striatal EGFP-TH interneurons per hemisphere in mice. Here, we report that striatal TH-EGFP interneurons exhibit a small, transient but significant increase in number after unilateral destruction of the nigrostriatal dopaminergic pathway. The increase in cell number is accompanied by electrophysiological and morphological changes. The intrinsic electrophysiological properties of EGFP-TH interneurons ipsilateral to 6-OHDA lesion were similar to those originally reported in intact mice except for a significant reduction in the duration of a characteristic depolarization induced plateau potential. There was a significant change in the distribution of the four previously described electrophysiologically distinct subtypes of striatal TH interneurons. There was a concomitant increase in the frequency of both spontaneous excitatory and inhibitory post-synaptic currents, while their amplitudes did not change. Nigrostriatal lesions did not affect somatic size or dendritic length or branching, but resulted in an increase in the density of proximal dendritic spines and spine-like appendages in EGFP-TH interneurons. The changes indicate that electrophysiology properties and morphology of striatal EGFP-TH interneurons depend on endogenous levels of dopamine arising from the nigrostriatal pathway. Furthermore, these changes may serve to help compensate for the changes in activity of spiny projection neurons that occur following loss of the nigrostriatal innervation in experimental or in early idiopathic Parkinson's disease by increasing feedforward GABAergic inhibition exerted by these interneurons.

  19. [18F]fallypride characterization of striatal and extrastriatal D2/3 receptors in Parkinson's disease.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Stark, Adam J; Smith, Christopher T; Petersen, Kalen J; Trujillo, Paula; van Wouwe, Nelleke C; Donahue, Manus J; Kessler, Robert M; Deutch, Ariel Y; Zald, David H; Claassen, Daniel O

    2018-01-01

    Parkinson's disease (PD) is characterized by widespread degeneration of monoaminergic (especially dopaminergic) networks, manifesting with a number of both motor and non-motor symptoms. Regional alterations to dopamine D 2/3 receptors in PD patients are documented in striatal and some extrastriatal areas, and medications that target D 2/3 receptors can improve motor and non-motor symptoms. However, data regarding the combined pattern of D 2/3 receptor binding in both striatal and extrastriatal regions in PD are limited. We studied 35 PD patients off-medication and 31 age- and sex-matched healthy controls (HCs) using PET imaging with [ 18 F]fallypride, a high affinity D 2/3 receptor ligand, to measure striatal and extrastriatal D 2/3 nondisplaceable binding potential (BP ND ). PD patients completed PET imaging in the off medication state, and motor severity was concurrently assessed. Voxel-wise evaluation between groups revealed significant BP ND reductions in PD patients in striatal and several extrastriatal regions, including the locus coeruleus and mesotemporal cortex. A region-of-interest (ROI) based approach quantified differences in dopamine D 2/3 receptors, where reduced BP ND was noted in the globus pallidus, caudate, amygdala, hippocampus, ventral midbrain, and thalamus of PD patients relative to HC subjects. Motor severity positively correlated with D 2/3 receptor density in the putamen and globus pallidus. These findings support the hypothesis that abnormal D 2/3 expression occurs in regions related to both the motor and non-motor symptoms of PD, including areas richly invested with noradrenergic neurons.

  20. A2A-D2 receptor-receptor interaction modulates gliotransmitter release from striatal astrocyte processes.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cervetto, Chiara; Venturini, Arianna; Passalacqua, Mario; Guidolin, Diego; Genedani, Susanna; Fuxe, Kjell; Borroto-Esquela, Dasiel O; Cortelli, Pietro; Woods, Amina; Maura, Guido; Marcoli, Manuela; Agnati, Luigi F

    2017-01-01

    Evidence for striatal A2A-D2 heterodimers has led to a new perspective on molecular mechanisms involved in schizophrenia and Parkinson's disease. Despite the increasing recognition of astrocytes' participation in neuropsychiatric disease vulnerability, involvement of striatal astrocytes in A2A and D2 receptor signal transmission has never been explored. Here, we investigated the presence of D2 and A2A receptors in isolated astrocyte processes prepared from adult rat striatum by confocal imaging; the effects of receptor activation were measured on the 4-aminopyridine-evoked release of glutamate from the processes. Confocal analysis showed that A2A and D2 receptors were co-expressed on the same astrocyte processes. Evidence for A2A-D2 receptor-receptor interactions was obtained by measuring the release of the gliotransmitter glutamate: D2 receptors inhibited the glutamate release, while activation of A2A receptors, per se ineffective, abolished the effect of D2 receptor activation. The synthetic D2 peptide VLRRRRKRVN corresponding to the receptor region involved in electrostatic interaction underlying A2A-D2 heteromerization abolished the ability of the A2A receptor to antagonize the D2 receptor-mediated effect. Together, the findings are consistent with heteromerization of native striatal astrocytic A2A-D2 receptors that via allosteric receptor-receptor interactions could play a role in the control of striatal glutamatergic transmission. These new findings suggest possible new pathogenic mechanisms and/or therapeutic approaches to neuropsychiatric disorders. © 2016 International Society for Neurochemistry.

  1. Patient specific 3D printed phantom for IMRT quality assurance

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ehler, Eric D; Higgins, Patrick D; Dusenbery, Kathryn E; Barney, Brett M

    2014-01-01

    The purpose of this study was to test the feasibility of a patient specific phantom for patient specific dosimetric verification. Using the head and neck region of an anthropomorphic phantom as a substitute for an actual patient, a soft-tissue equivalent model was constructed with the use of a 3D printer. Calculated and measured dose in the anthropomorphic phantom and the 3D printed phantom was compared for a parallel-opposed head and neck field geometry to establish tissue equivalence. A nine-field IMRT plan was constructed and dose verification measurements were performed for the 3D printed phantom as well as traditional standard phantoms. The maximum difference in calculated dose was 1.8% for the parallel-opposed configuration. Passing rates of various dosimetric parameters were compared for the IMRT plan measurements; the 3D printed phantom results showed greater disagreement at superficial depths than other methods. A custom phantom was created using a 3D printer. It was determined that the use of patient specific phantoms to perform dosimetric verification and estimate the dose in the patient is feasible. In addition, end-to-end testing on a per-patient basis was possible with the 3D printed phantom. Further refinement of the phantom construction process is needed for routine use. (paper)

  2. Sexual dimorphism in striatal dopaminergic responses promotes monogamy in social songbirds.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tokarev, Kirill; Hyland Bruno, Julia; Ljubičić, Iva; Kothari, Paresh J; Helekar, Santosh A; Tchernichovski, Ofer; Voss, Henning U

    2017-08-11

    In many songbird species, males sing to attract females and repel rivals. How can gregarious, non-territorial songbirds such as zebra finches, where females have access to numerous males, sustain monogamy? We found that the dopaminergic reward circuitry of zebra finches can simultaneously promote social cohesion and breeding boundaries. Surprisingly, in unmated males but not in females, striatal dopamine neurotransmission was elevated after hearing songs. Behaviorally too, unmated males but not females persistently exchanged mild punishments in return for songs. Song reinforcement diminished when dopamine receptors were blocked. In females, we observed song reinforcement exclusively to the mate's song, although their striatal dopamine neurotransmission was only slightly elevated. These findings suggest that song-triggered dopaminergic activation serves a dual function in social songbirds: as low-threshold social reinforcement in males and as ultra-selective sexual reinforcement in females. Co-evolution of sexually dimorphic reinforcement systems can explain the coexistence of gregariousness and monogamy.

  3. Phasic dopamine release drives rapid activation of striatal D2-receptors

    Science.gov (United States)

    Marcott, Pamela F; Mamaligas, Aphroditi A; Ford, Christopher P

    2014-01-01

    Summary Striatal dopamine transmission underlies numerous goal-directed behaviors. Medium spiny neurons (MSNs) are a major target of dopamine in the striatum. However, as dopamine does not directly evoke a synaptic event in MSNs, the time course of dopamine signaling in these cells remains unclear. To examine how dopamine release activates D2-receptors on MSNs, G-protein activated inwardly rectifying potassium (GIRK2; Kir 3.2) channels were virally overexpressed in the striatum and the resulting outward currents were used as a sensor of D2-receptor activation. Electrical and optogenetic stimulation of dopamine terminals evoked robust D2-receptor inhibitory post-synaptic currents (IPSCs) in GIRK2-expressing MSNs that occurred in under a second. Evoked D2-IPSCs could be driven by repetitive stimulation and were not occluded by background dopamine tone. Together, the results indicate that D2-receptors on MSNs exhibit functional low affinity and suggest that striatal D2-receptors can encode both tonic and phasic dopamine signals. PMID:25242218

  4. Influence of Manufacturing Processes on the Performance of Phantom Lungs

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Traub, Richard J.

    2008-01-01

    Chest counting is an important tool for estimating the radiation dose to individuals who have inhaled radioactive materials. Chest counting systems are calibrated by counting the activity in the lungs of phantoms where the activity in the phantom lungs is known. In the United States a commonly used calibration phantom was developed at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory and is referred to as the Livermore Torso Phantom. An important feature of this phantom is that the phantom lungs can be interchanged so that the counting system can be challenged by different combinations of radionuclides and activity. Phantom lungs are made from lung tissue substitutes whose constituents are foaming plastics and various adjuvants selected to make the lung tissue substitute similar to normal healthy lung tissue. Some of the properties of phantom lungs cannot be readily controlled by phantom lung manufacturers. Some, such as density, are a complex function of the manufacturing process, while others, such as elemental composition of the bulk plastic are controlled by the plastics manufacturer without input, or knowledge of the phantom manufacturer. Despite the fact that some of these items cannot be controlled, they can be measured and accounted for. This report describes how manufacturing processes can influence the performance of phantom lungs. It is proposed that a metric that describes the brightness of the lung be employed by the phantom lung manufacturer to determine how well the phantom lung approximates the characteristics of a human lung. For many purposes, the linear attenuation of the lung tissue substitute is an appropriate surrogate for the brightness

  5. Mathematical phantoms for evaluation of age-specific internal dose

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Cristy, M.

    1980-01-01

    A series of mathematical phantoms representing children has been developed for use with photon transport codes. These phantoms, patterned after the Fisher-Snyder adult phantom, consist of simple mathematical expressions for the boundaries of the major organs and body sections. The location and shape of the organs are consistent with drawings depicting developmental anatomy, with the organ volumes assigned such that the masses at the various ages conform closely with the data presented in Reference Man. The explicit mathematical expressions for the various ages overcome the potential misrepresentation of organ sizes that occurred in phantoms derived from simple mathematical transformations of the adult phantom. Female breast tissue has been added to the phantoms, including the adult, now allowing assessment of doses to this organ

  6. Fully Automated Quantification of the Striatal Uptake Ratio of [99mTc]-TRODAT with SPECT Imaging: Evaluation of the Diagnostic Performance in Parkinson's Disease and the Temporal Regression of Striatal Tracer Uptake

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fang, Yu-Hua Dean; Chiu, Shao-Chieh; Lu, Chin-Song; Weng, Yi-Hsin

    2015-01-01

    Purpose. We aimed at improving the existing methods for the fully automatic quantification of striatal uptake of [99mTc]-TRODAT with SPECT imaging. Procedures. A normal [99mTc]-TRODAT template was first formed based on 28 healthy controls. Images from PD patients (n = 365) and nPD subjects (28 healthy controls and 33 essential tremor patients) were spatially normalized to the normal template. We performed an inverse transform on the predefined striatal and reference volumes of interest (VOIs) and applied the transformed VOIs to the original image data to calculate the striatal-to-reference ratio (SRR). The diagnostic performance of the SRR was determined through receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis. Results. The SRR measured with our new and automatic method demonstrated excellent diagnostic performance with 92% sensitivity, 90% specificity, 92% accuracy, and an area under the curve (AUC) of 0.94. For the evaluation of the mean SRR and the clinical duration, a quadratic function fit the data with R 2 = 0.84. Conclusions. We developed and validated a fully automatic method for the quantification of the SRR in a large study sample. This method has an excellent diagnostic performance and exhibits a strong correlation between the mean SRR and the clinical duration in PD patients. PMID:26366413

  7. Fully Automated Quantification of the Striatal Uptake Ratio of [(99m)Tc]-TRODAT with SPECT Imaging: Evaluation of the Diagnostic Performance in Parkinson's Disease and the Temporal Regression of Striatal Tracer Uptake.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fang, Yu-Hua Dean; Chiu, Shao-Chieh; Lu, Chin-Song; Yen, Tzu-Chen; Weng, Yi-Hsin

    2015-01-01

    We aimed at improving the existing methods for the fully automatic quantification of striatal uptake of [(99m)Tc]-TRODAT with SPECT imaging. A normal [(99m)Tc]-TRODAT template was first formed based on 28 healthy controls. Images from PD patients (n = 365) and nPD subjects (28 healthy controls and 33 essential tremor patients) were spatially normalized to the normal template. We performed an inverse transform on the predefined striatal and reference volumes of interest (VOIs) and applied the transformed VOIs to the original image data to calculate the striatal-to-reference ratio (SRR). The diagnostic performance of the SRR was determined through receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis. The SRR measured with our new and automatic method demonstrated excellent diagnostic performance with 92% sensitivity, 90% specificity, 92% accuracy, and an area under the curve (AUC) of 0.94. For the evaluation of the mean SRR and the clinical duration, a quadratic function fit the data with R (2) = 0.84. We developed and validated a fully automatic method for the quantification of the SRR in a large study sample. This method has an excellent diagnostic performance and exhibits a strong correlation between the mean SRR and the clinical duration in PD patients.

  8. Brain signaling and behavioral responses induced by exposure to (56)Fe-particle radiation

    Science.gov (United States)

    Denisova, N. A.; Shukitt-Hale, B.; Rabin, B. M.; Joseph, J. A.

    2002-01-01

    Previous experiments have demonstrated that exposure to 56Fe-particle irradiation (1.5 Gy, 1 GeV) produced aging-like accelerations in neuronal and behavioral deficits. Astronauts on long-term space flights will be exposed to similar heavy-particle radiations that might have similar deleterious effects on neuronal signaling and cognitive behavior. Therefore, the present study evaluated whether radiation-induced spatial learning and memory behavioral deficits are associated with region-specific brain signaling deficits by measuring signaling molecules previously found to be essential for behavior [pre-synaptic vesicle proteins, synaptobrevin and synaptophysin, and protein kinases, calcium-dependent PRKCs (also known as PKCs) and PRKA (PRKA RIIbeta)]. The results demonstrated a significant radiation-induced increase in reference memory errors. The increases in reference memory errors were significantly negatively correlated with striatal synaptobrevin and frontal cortical synaptophysin expression. Both synaptophysin and synaptobrevin are synaptic vesicle proteins that are important in cognition. Striatal PRKA, a memory signaling molecule, was also significantly negatively correlated with reference memory errors. Overall, our findings suggest that radiation-induced pre-synaptic facilitation may contribute to some previously reported radiation-induced decrease in striatal dopamine release and for the disruption of the central dopaminergic system integrity and dopamine-mediated behavior.

  9. Usefulness of a functional tracheobronchial phantom for interventional procedure

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kim, Tae Hyung; Lim, Cheong Hwan; Kim, Jeong Koo

    2003-01-01

    To evaluate usefulness of a functional tracheobronchial phantom for interventional procedure. The functional phantom was made as a actual size with human normal anatomy used silicone and a paper clay mold. A tracheobronchial-shape clay mold was placed inside a square box and liquid silicone was poured. After the silicone was formed, the clay was removed. We measured film density and tracheobronchial angle at the human, animal and phantom respectively. The film density of trachea part were 0.76 (± 0.011) in human, 0.97 (± 0.015) in animal, 0.45 (± 0.016) in phantom. The tracheobronchial bifurcation part measured 0.51 (± 0.006) in human, 0.65 (± 0.005) in animal, 0.65 (± 0.008) in phantom. The right bronchus part measured 0.14 (± 0.008) in human, 0.59 (± 0.014) in animal and 0.04 (± 0.007) in phantom. The left bronchus were 0.54 (± 0.004) in human, 0.54 (± 0.008) in animal and 0.08 (± 0.008) in phantom. At the stent part were 0.54 (± 0.004) in human, 0.59 (± 0.011) in animal and 0.04 (± 0.007) in phantom, respectively. The tracheobronchial angle of the left bronchus site were 42.6 (± 2.07).deg. in human, 43.4 (± 2.40).deg. in animal and 35 (± 2.00).deg. in phantom, respectively. The right bronchus site were 32.8 (± 2.77).deg. in human, 34.6 (± 1.94).deg. in animal and 50.2 (± 1.30).deg. in phantom, respectively. The phantom was useful for in-vitro testing of tracheobronchial interventional procedure, since it was easy to reproduce

  10. Differentiation of Parkinson's Disease and Essential Tremor on I-123 IPT(I-123-N-(3-iodopropen-2-yl)-2β-carbomethoxy-3β-(4-cholorophenyl) tropane) Brain SPECT

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Pai, Moon Sun; Choi, Tae Hyun; Ahn, Sung Min; Choi, Jai Yong; Ryu, Won Gee; Lee, Jae Hoon; Ryu, Young Hoon

    2009-01-01

    The study was to assess I-123-N-(3-iodopropen-2-yl)-2[beta]-carbomethoxy-3[beta]-(4-cholorophenyl) tropane (IPT) SPECT in differential diagnosis among early stage of Parkinson's disease(PD) and essential tremor(ET) and normal control(NL) groups quantitatively. I-123 IPT brain SPECT of 50 NL, 20 early PD, 30 advanced PD, and 20 ET were performed at 20 minutes and 2 hours. Specific/nonspecific binding of striatum was calculated by using right and left striatal specific to occipital non-specific uptake ratio (striatum-OCC/OCC). Mean value of specific/nonspecific binding ratio was significantly different between advanced PD group and NL group. However, significant overlap of striatal specific/nonspecific binding ratio was observed between PD group and ET group. Bilateral striatal specific/nonspecific binding ratios were decreased in advanced PD. Lateralized differences in the striatal uptake of I-123 IPT correlated with asymmetry in clinical findings in PD group. I-123 IPT SPECT may be a useful method for the diagnosis of PD and objective evaluation of progress of clinical stages. Care should be made in the differential diagnosis of early stage of PD and other motor disturbances mimicking PD such as ET in view of significant overlap in striatal I-123 specific/nonspecific binding ratio

  11. Beyond body experiences: phantom limbs, pain and the locus of sensation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wade, Nicholas J

    2009-02-01

    Reports of perceptual experiences are found throughout history. However, the phenomena considered worthy of note have not been those that nurture our survival (the veridical features of perception) but the oddities or departures from the common and commonplace accuracies of perception. Some oddities (like afterimages) could be experienced by everyone, whereas others were idiosyncratic. Such phenomena were often given a paranormal interpretation before they were absorbed into the normal science of the day. This sequence is examined historically in the context of beyond body experiences or phantom limbs. The experience of sensations in lost body parts provides an example of the ways in which novel phenomena can be interpreted. The first phase of description probably occurred in medieval texts and was often associated with accounts of miraculous reconnection. Ambroise Paré (1510-1590) initiated medical interest in this intriguing aspect of perception, partly because more of his patients survived the trauma of surgery. Description is followed by attempts to incorporate the phenomenon into the body of extant theory. René Descartes (1596-1650) integrated sensations in amputated limbs into his dualist theory of mind, and used the phenomenon to support the unity of the mind in comparison to the fragmented nature of bodily sensations. Others, like William Porterfield (ca. 1696-1771), did not consider the phenomenon as illusory and interpreted it in terms of other projective features of perception. Finally, the phenomenon is accepted and utilized to gain more insights into the functioning of the senses and the brain. The principal features of phantom limbs were well known before they were given that name in the 19th century. Despite the puzzles they still pose, these phantoms continue to provide perception with some potent concepts: the association with theories of pain has loosened the link with peripheral stimulation and emphasis on the phenomenal dimension has slackened

  12. Dynamic Changes in Striatal mGluR1 But Not mGluR5 during Pathological Progression of Parkinson's Disease in Human Alpha-Synuclein A53T Transgenic Rats: A Multi-PET Imaging Study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yamasaki, Tomoteru; Fujinaga, Masayuki; Kawamura, Kazunori; Furutsuka, Kenji; Nengaki, Nobuki; Shimoda, Yoko; Shiomi, Satoshi; Takei, Makoto; Hashimoto, Hiroki; Yui, Joji; Wakizaka, Hidekatsu; Hatori, Akiko; Xie, Lin; Kumata, Katsushi; Zhang, Ming-Rong

    2016-01-13

    Parkinson's disease (PD) is a prevalent degenerative disorder affecting the CNS that is primarily characterized by resting tremor and movement deficits. Group I metabotropic glutamate receptor subtypes 1 and 5 (mGluR1 and mGluR5, respectively) are important targets for investigation in several CNS disorders. In the present study, we investigated the in vivo roles of mGluR1 and mGluR5 in chronic PD pathology by performing longitudinal positron emission tomography (PET) imaging in A53T transgenic (A53T-Tg) rats expressing an abnormal human α-synuclein (ASN) gene. A53T-Tg rats showed a dramatic decline in general motor activities with age, along with abnormal ASN aggregation and striatal neuron degeneration. In longitudinal PET imaging, striatal nondisplaceable binding potential (BPND) values for [(11)C]ITDM (N-[4-[6-(isopropylamino) pyrimidin-4-yl]-1,3-thiazol-2-yl]-N-methyl-4-[(11)C]methylbenzamide), a selective PET ligand for mGluR1, temporarily increased before PD symptom onset and dramatically decreased afterward with age. However, striatal BPND values for (E)-[(11)C]ABP688 [3-(6-methylpyridin-2-ylethynyl)-cyclohex-2-enone-(E)-O-[(11)C]methyloxime], a specific PET ligand for mGluR5, remained constant during experimental terms. The dynamic changes in striatal mGluR1 BPND values also showed a high correlation in pathological decreases in general motor activities. Furthermore, declines in mGluR1 BPND values were correlated with decreases in BPND values for [(18)F]FE-PE2I [(E)-N-(3-iodoprop-2E-enyl)-2β-carbo-[(18)F]fluoroethoxy-3β-(4-methylphenyl) nortropane], a specific PET ligand for the dopamine transporter, a biomarker for dopaminergic neurons. In conclusion, our results have demonstrated for the first time that dynamic changes occur in mGluR1, but not mGluR5, that accompany pathological progression in a PD animal model. Synaptic signaling by glutamate, the principal excitatory neurotransmitter in the brain, is modulated by group I metabotropic glutamate

  13. Chronic levodopa administration followed by a washout period increased number and induced phenotypic changes in striatal dopaminergic cells in MPTP-monkeys.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Carla DiCaudo

    Full Text Available In addition to the medium spiny neurons the mammalian striatum contains a small population of GABAergic interneurons that are immunoreactive for tyrosine hydroxylase (TH, which dramatically increases after lesions to the nigrostriatal pathway and striatal delivery of neurotrophic factors. The regulatory effect of levodopa (L-Dopa on the number and phenotype of these cells is less well understood. Eleven macaques (Macaca fascicularis were included. Group I (n = 4 received 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6 tetrahydropyridine (MPTP and L-Dopa; Group II (n = 4 was treated with MPTP plus vehicle and Group III (n = 3 consist of intact animals (control group. L-Dopa and vehicle were given for 1 year and animals sacrificed 6 months later. Immunohistochemistry against TH was used to identify striatal and nigral dopaminergic cells. Double and triple labeling immunofluorescence was performed to detect the neurochemical characteristics of the striatal TH-ir cells using antibodies against: TH, anti-glutamate decarboxylase (GAD(67 anti-calretinin (CR anti-dopa decarboxylase (DDC and anti-dopamine and cyclic AMP-regulated phosphoprotein (DARPP-32. The greatest density of TH-ir striatal cells was detected in the striatum of the L-Dopa treated monkeys and particularly in its associative territory. None of the striatal TH-ir cell expressed DARPP-32 indicating they are interneurons. The percentages of TH-ir cells that expressed GAD67 and DDC was approximately 50%. Interestingly, we found that in the L-Dopa group the number of TH/CR expressing cells was significantly reduced. We conclude that chronic L-Dopa administration produced a long-lasting increase in the number of TH-ir cells, even after a washout period of 6 months. L-Dopa also modified the phenotype of these cells with a significant reduction of the TH/CR phenotype in favor of an increased number of TH/GAD cells that do not express CR. We suggest that the increased number of striatal TH-ir cells might be involved

  14. Mineralocorticoid receptor blockade prevents stress-induced modulation of multiple memory systems in the human brain.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Schwabe, Lars; Tegenthoff, Martin; Höffken, Oliver; Wolf, Oliver T

    2013-12-01

    Accumulating evidence suggests that stress may orchestrate the engagement of multiple memory systems in the brain. In particular, stress is thought to favor dorsal striatum-dependent procedural over hippocampus-dependent declarative memory. However, the neuroendocrine mechanisms underlying these modulatory effects of stress remain elusive, especially in humans. Here, we targeted the role of the mineralocorticoid receptor (MR) in the stress-induced modulation of dorsal striatal and hippocampal memory systems in the human brain using a combination of event-related functional magnetic resonance imaging and pharmacologic blockade of the MR. Eighty healthy participants received the MR antagonist spironolactone (300 mg) or a placebo and underwent a stressor or control manipulation before they performed, in the scanner, a classification task that can be supported by the hippocampus and the dorsal striatum. Stress after placebo did not affect learning performance but reduced explicit task knowledge and led to a relative increase in the use of more procedural learning strategies. At the neural level, stress promoted striatum-based learning at the expense of hippocampus-based learning. Functional connectivity analyses showed that this shift was associated with altered coupling of the amygdala with the hippocampus and dorsal striatum. Mineralocorticoid receptor blockade before stress prevented the stress-induced shift toward dorsal striatal procedural learning, same as the stress-induced alterations of amygdala connectivity with hippocampus and dorsal striatum, but resulted in significantly impaired performance. Our findings indicate that the stress-induced shift from hippocampal to dorsal striatal memory systems is mediated by the amygdala, required to preserve performance after stress, and dependent on the MR. © 2013 Society of Biological Psychiatry.

  15. Phantom Pain

    Science.gov (United States)

    ... Because this is yet another version of tangled sensory wires, the result can be pain. A number of other factors are believed to contribute to phantom pain, including damaged nerve endings, scar tissue at the site of the amputation and the physical memory of pre-amputation pain in the affected area. ...

  16. Overeating Behavior and Striatal Dopamine with 6-[18F]-Fluoro-L--Tyrosine PET

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Claire E. Wilcox

    2010-01-01

    Full Text Available Eating behavior may be affected by dopamine synthesis capacity. In this study, 6-[18F]-fluoro-L--tyrosine (FMT positron emission tomography (PET uptake in striatal subregions was correlated with BMI (kg/m2 and an estimate of the frequency of prior weight loss attempts in 15 healthy subjects. BMI was negatively correlated with FMT uptake in the dorsal caudate. Although the association between BMI and FMT uptake in the dorsal caudate was not significant upon correction for age and sex, the association fell within the range of a statistical trend. Weight loss attempts divided by years trying was also negatively correlated with FMT uptake in the dorsal putamen (=.05. These results suggest an association between low dorsal striatal presynaptic dopamine synthesis capacity and overeating behavior.

  17. Quinolinic acid induces disrupts cytoskeletal homeostasis in striatal neurons. Protective role of astrocyte-neuron interaction.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pierozan, Paula; Ferreira, Fernanda; de Lima, Bárbara Ortiz; Pessoa-Pureur, Regina

    2015-02-01

    Quinolinic acid (QUIN) is an endogenous metabolite of the kynurenine pathway involved in several neurological disorders. Among the several mechanisms involved in QUIN-mediated toxicity, disruption of the cytoskeleton has been demonstrated in striatally injected rats and in striatal slices. The present work searched for the actions of QUIN in primary striatal neurons. Neurons exposed to 10 µM QUIN presented hyperphosphorylated neurofilament (NF) subunits (NFL, NFM, and NFH). Hyperphosphorylation was abrogated in the presence of protein kinase A and protein kinase C inhibitors H89 (20 μM) and staurosporine (10 nM), respectively, as well as by specific antagonists to N-methyl-D-aspartate (50 µM DL-AP5) and metabotropic glutamate receptor 1 (100 µM MPEP). Also, intra- and extracellular Ca(2+) chelators (10 µM BAPTA-AM and 1 mM EGTA, respectively) and Ca(2+) influx through L-type voltage-dependent Ca(2+) channel (10 µM verapamil) are implicated in QUIN-mediated effects. Cells immunostained for the neuronal markers βIII-tubulin and microtubule-associated protein 2 showed altered neurite/neuron ratios and neurite outgrowth. NF hyperphosphorylation and morphological alterations were totally prevented by conditioned medium from QUIN-treated astrocytes. Cocultured astrocytes and neurons interacted with one another reciprocally, protecting them against QUIN injury. Cocultured cells preserved their cytoskeletal organization and cell morphology together with unaltered activity of the phosphorylating system associated with the cytoskeleton. This article describes cytoskeletal disruption as one of the most relevant actions of QUIN toxicity in striatal neurons in culture with soluble factors secreted by astrocytes, with neuron-astrocyte interaction playing a role in neuroprotection. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  18. Contrast enhancement in EIT imaging of the brain

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Nissinen, A; Kaipio, J P; Vauhkonen, M; Kolehmainen, V

    2016-01-01

    We consider electrical impedance tomography (EIT) imaging of the brain. The brain is surrounded by the poorly conducting skull which has low conductivity compared to the brain. The skull layer causes a partial shielding effect which leads to weak sensitivity for the imaging of the brain tissue. In this paper we propose an approach based on the Bayesian approximation error approach, to enhance the contrast in brain imaging. With this approach, both the (uninteresting) geometry and the conductivity of the skull are embedded in the approximation error statistics, which leads to a computationally efficient algorithm that is able to detect features such as internal haemorrhage with significantly increased sensitivity and specificity. We evaluate the approach with simulations and phantom data. (paper)

  19. Contrast enhancement in EIT imaging of the brain.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nissinen, A; Kaipio, J P; Vauhkonen, M; Kolehmainen, V

    2016-01-01

    We consider electrical impedance tomography (EIT) imaging of the brain. The brain is surrounded by the poorly conducting skull which has low conductivity compared to the brain. The skull layer causes a partial shielding effect which leads to weak sensitivity for the imaging of the brain tissue. In this paper we propose an approach based on the Bayesian approximation error approach, to enhance the contrast in brain imaging. With this approach, both the (uninteresting) geometry and the conductivity of the skull are embedded in the approximation error statistics, which leads to a computationally efficient algorithm that is able to detect features such as internal haemorrhage with significantly increased sensitivity and specificity. We evaluate the approach with simulations and phantom data.

  20. Comparison of different phantoms used in digital diagnostic imaging

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Bor, Dogan, E-mail: bor@eng.ankara.edu.tr [Ankara University, Faculty of Engineering, Department of Engineering Physics. Tandogan, 06100 Ankara (Turkey); Unal, Elif, E-mail: elf.unall@gmail.com [Radat Dosimetry Laboratory Services, 06830, Golbasi, Ankara (Turkey); Uslu, Anil, E-mail: m.aniluslu@gmail.com [Radat Dosimetry Laboratory Services, 06830, Golbasi, Ankara (Turkey)

    2015-09-21

    The organs of extremity, chest, skull and lumbar were physically simulated using uniform PMMA slabs with different thicknesses alone and using these slabs together with aluminum plates and air gaps (ANSI Phantoms). The variation of entrance surface air kerma and scatter fraction with X-ray beam qualities was investigated for these phantoms and the results were compared with those measured from anthropomorphic phantoms. A flat panel digital radiographic system was used for all the experiments. Considerable variations of entrance surface air kermas were found for the same organs of different designs, and highest doses were measured for the PMMA slabs. A low contrast test tool and a contrast detail test object (CDRAD) were used together with each organ simulation of PMMA slabs and ANSI phantoms in order to test the clinical image qualities. Digital images of these phantom combinations and anthropomorphic phantoms were acquired in raw and clinically processed formats. Variation of image quality with kVp and post processing was evaluated using the numerical metrics of these test tools and measured contrast values from the anthropomorphic phantoms. Our results indicated that design of some phantoms may not be efficient enough to reveal the expected performance of the post processing algorithms.

  1. Fully Automated Quantification of the Striatal Uptake Ratio of [99mTc]-TRODAT with SPECT Imaging: Evaluation of the Diagnostic Performance in Parkinson’s Disease and the Temporal Regression of Striatal Tracer Uptake

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Yu-Hua Dean Fang

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available Purpose. We aimed at improving the existing methods for the fully automatic quantification of striatal uptake of [Tc99m]-TRODAT with SPECT imaging. Procedures. A normal [Tc99m]-TRODAT template was first formed based on 28 healthy controls. Images from PD patients (n=365 and nPD subjects (28 healthy controls and 33 essential tremor patients were spatially normalized to the normal template. We performed an inverse transform on the predefined striatal and reference volumes of interest (VOIs and applied the transformed VOIs to the original image data to calculate the striatal-to-reference ratio (SRR. The diagnostic performance of the SRR was determined through receiver operating characteristic (ROC analysis. Results. The SRR measured with our new and automatic method demonstrated excellent diagnostic performance with 92% sensitivity, 90% specificity, 92% accuracy, and an area under the curve (AUC of 0.94. For the evaluation of the mean SRR and the clinical duration, a quadratic function fit the data with R2=0.84. Conclusions. We developed and validated a fully automatic method for the quantification of the SRR in a large study sample. This method has an excellent diagnostic performance and exhibits a strong correlation between the mean SRR and the clinical duration in PD patients.

  2. Striatal Dopamine Depletion Patterns and Early Non-Motor Burden in Parkinsons Disease.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Su Jin Chung

    Full Text Available The mechanism underlying non-motor symptoms in Parkinson's disease has not yet been elucidated. In this study, we hypothesized that Parkinson patients with more non-motor symptoms have a different pattern of striatal dopamine depletion, particularly in areas other than the sensorimotor striatum, compared to those with fewer non-motor symptoms.We conducted a prospective survey of the degree of non-motor symptoms (using the Korean version of the Non-Motor Symptoms Scale; K-NMSS in 151 patients with early-stage Parkinson's disease who had undergone a dopamine transporter PET scan as an initial diagnostic procedure. We classified the patients into two groups; high non-motor patients (HNM-PD; K-NMSS score ≥ 41 and low non-motor patients (LNM-PD.Patients in the HNM-PD group (n = 71 were older, had longer symptom duration, exhibited more severe motor deficits, and had been prescribed higher levodopa-equivalent doses at follow-up than those in the LNM-PD group. However, dopamine transporter binding to the striatal sub-regions and inter-sub-regional binding ratios were comparable between the two groups. A general linear model showed that the HNM-PD group had significantly more severe motor deficits than the LNM-PD group after controlling for age, gender, symptom duration, and dopamine transporter binding to the sensorimotor striatum.This study demonstrated that the pattern of striatal dopamine depletion does not contribute to early non-motor burden in Parkinson's disease. Our results suggest that LNM-PD patients may have a more benign course of motor symptom progression than HNM-PD patients.

  3. Receiver operating characteristic analysis and its potential role in evaluating the effect of head movement in PET of the brain

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Patterson, H.; Clarke, G.H.; Lombardo, P.; McKay, W.J.; Austin and Repatriation Medical Centre, Heidelberg, VIC

    1999-01-01

    Full text: We outline an example of receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis in the assessment of image quality. ROC analysis is a measure of image quality that accounts for the consequences of the decision and the role of the observer. Kim and Haynie (Nuclear Diagnostic Imaging: Practical Clinical Applications. Melbourne: Macmillan, 1987) describe ROC analysis as an 'objective approach to the evaluation of diagnostic decision making'. ROC analysis is an ideal technique for evaluating images of a Hoffman brain phantom obtained using positron emission tomography. Images have been acquired with the phantom in different positions. The position of the phantom and the time the phantom remained in each position was based on the measurements of head movement during simulated brain imaging (Patterson et al., Technologists Symposium, ANZSNM, 1998). This study was undertaken to explore the potential of ROC analysis in determining the effect of movement on the ability to detect lesions of various sizes

  4. Where attention falls: Increased risk of falls from the converging impact of cortical cholinergic and midbrain dopamine loss on striatal function

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sarter, Martin; Albin, Roger L.; Kucinski, Aaron; Lustig, Cindy

    2015-01-01

    Falls are a major source of hospitalization, long-term institutionalization, and death in older adults and patients with Parkinson’s disease (PD). Limited attentional resources are a major risk factor for falls. In this review, we specify cognitive–behavioral mechanisms that produce falls and map these mechanisms onto a model of multi-system degeneration. Results from PET studies in PD fallers and findings from a recently developed animal model support the hypothesis that falls result from interactions between loss of basal forebrain cholinergic projections to the cortex and striatal dopamine loss. Striatal dopamine loss produces inefficient, low-vigor gait, posture control, and movement. Cortical cholinergic deafferentation impairs a wide range of attentional processes, including monitoring of gait, posture and complex movements. Cholinergic cell loss reveals the full impact of striatal dopamine loss on motor performance, reflecting loss of compensatory attentional supervision of movement. Dysregulation of dorsomedial striatal circuitry is an essential, albeit not exclusive, mediator of falls in this dual-system model. Because cholinergic neuromodulatory activity influences cortical circuitry primarily via stimulation of α4β2* nicotinic acetylcholine receptors, and because agonists at these receptors are known to benefit attentional processes in animals and humans, treating PD fallers with such agonists, as an adjunct to dopaminergic treatment, is predicted to reduce falls. Falls are an informative behavioral endpoint to study attentional–motor integration by striatal circuitry. PMID:24805070

  5. Effects of postnatal anoxia on striatal dopamine metabolism and prepulse inhibition in rats

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Sandager-Nielsen, Karin; Andersen, Maibritt B; Sager, Thomas N

    2004-01-01

    (DOPAC) and homovanillic acid (HVA) concentrations. Furthermore, in the anoxic group only, striatal HVA concentrations were negatively correlated to prefrontal cortical N-acetylaspartate (NAA) levels. Similar findings of distorted prefrontal-subcortical interactions have recently been reported...

  6. Energy Efficient Resource Allocation for Phantom Cellular Networks

    KAUST Repository

    Abdelhady, Amr

    2016-04-01

    Multi-tier heterogeneous networks have become an essential constituent for next generation cellular networks. Meanwhile, energy efficiency (EE) has been considered a critical design criterion along with the traditional spectral efficiency (SE) metric. In this context, we study power and spectrum allocation for the recently proposed two-tier network architecture known as phantom cellular networks. The optimization framework includes both EE and SE. First, we consider sparsely deployed cells experiencing negligible interference and assume perfect channel state information (CSI). For this setting, we propose an algorithm that finds the SE and EE resource allocation strategies. Then, we compare the performance of both design strategies versus number of users, and phantom cells share of the total available resource units (RUs). We aim to investigate the effect of some system parameters to achieve improved SE performance at a non-significant loss in EE performance, or vice versa. It is found that increasing phantom cells share of RUs decreases the SE performance loss due to EE optimization when compared with the optimized SE performance. Second, we consider the densely deployed phantom cellular networks and model the EE optimization problem having into consideration the inevitable interference and imperfect channel estimation. To this end, we propose three resource allocation strategies aiming at optimizing the EE performance metric of this network. Furthermore, we investigate the effect of changing some of the system parameters on the performance of the proposed strategies, such as phantom cells share of RUs, number of deployed phantom cells within a macro cell coverage, number of pilots and the maximum power available for transmission by the phantom cells BSs. It is found that increasing the number of pilots deteriorates the EE performance of the whole setup, while increasing maximum power available for phantom cells transmissions reduces the EE of the whole setup in a

  7. [Psychotherapies for the Treatment of Phantom Limb Pain].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cárdenas, Katherine; Aranda, Mariana

    The phantom limb pain has been described as a condition in which patients experience a feeling of itching, spasm or pain in a limb or body part that has been previously amputated. Such pain can be induced by a conflict between the representation of the visual and proprioceptive feedback of the previously healthy limb. The phantom limb pain occurs in at least 42 to 90% of amputees. Regular drug treatment of phantom limb pain is almost never effective. A systematic review of the literature was conducted in Medline and Cochrane using the MESH terms "phantom limb pain" and "psychotherapy", published in the last 10 years, in English and Spanish, finding 49 items. After reviewing the abstracts, 25 articles were excluded for not being related to the objective of the research. Additionally cross references of included articles and literature were reviewed. To describe the psychotherapies used in the management of phantom limb pain, their effectiveness and clinical application reported in the literature. The mechanisms underlying phantom limb pain were initially explained, as were the published studies on the usefulness of some psychotherapies such as mirror visual feedback and immersive virtual reality, visual imagery, desensitization and reprocessing eye movements and hypnosis. The phantom limb pain is a complex syndrome that requires pharmacological and psychotherapeutic intervention. The psychotherapies that have been used the most as adjuvants in the treatment of phantom limb pain are mirror visual feedback, desensitization and reprocessing eye movements, imagery and hypnosis. Studies with more representative samples, specifically randomized trials are required. Copyright © 2016 Asociación Colombiana de Psiquiatría. Publicado por Elsevier España. All rights reserved.

  8. Striatal dopamine D2 receptors, metabolism, and volume in preclinical Huntington disease

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    van Oostrom, JCH; Maguire, RP; Verschuuren-Bemelmans, CC; van der Duin, LV; Pruim, J; Roos, RAC; Leenders, KL

    2005-01-01

    Among 27 preclinical carriers of the Huntington disease mutation (PMC), the authors found normal striatal values for MRI volumetry in 88% and for fluorodesoxyglucose PET metabolic index in 67%. Raclopride PET binding potential (RAC-BP) was decreased in 50% and correlated with increases in the

  9. Altered cingulo-striatal function underlies reward drive deficits in schizophrenia.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Park, Il Ho; Chun, Ji Won; Park, Hae-Jeong; Koo, Min-Seong; Park, Sunyoung; Kim, Seok-Hyeong; Kim, Jae-Jin

    2015-02-01

    Amotivation in schizophrenia is assumed to involve dysfunctional dopaminergic signaling of reward prediction or anticipation. It is unclear, however, whether the translation of neural representation of reward value to behavioral drive is affected in schizophrenia. In order to examine how abnormal neural processing of response valuation and initiation affects incentive motivation in schizophrenia, we conducted functional MRI using a deterministic reinforcement learning task with variable intervals of contingency reversals in 20 clinically stable patients with schizophrenia and 20 healthy controls. Behaviorally, the advantage of positive over negative reinforcer in reinforcement-related responsiveness was not observed in patients. Patients showed altered response valuation and initiation-related striatal activity and deficient rostro-ventral anterior cingulate cortex activation during reward approach initiation. Among these neural abnormalities, rostro-ventral anterior cingulate cortex activation was correlated with positive reinforcement-related responsiveness in controls and social anhedonia and social amotivation subdomain scores in patients. Our findings indicate that the central role of the anterior cingulate cortex is in translating action value into driving force of action, and underscore the role of the cingulo-striatal network in amotivation in schizophrenia. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  10. Unveiling the development of intracranial injury using dynamic brain EIT: an evaluation of current reconstruction algorithms.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Li, Haoting; Chen, Rongqing; Xu, Canhua; Liu, Benyuan; Tang, Mengxing; Yang, Lin; Dong, Xiuzhen; Fu, Feng

    2017-08-21

    Dynamic brain electrical impedance tomography (EIT) is a promising technique for continuously monitoring the development of cerebral injury. While there are many reconstruction algorithms available for brain EIT, there is still a lack of study to compare their performance in the context of dynamic brain monitoring. To address this problem, we develop a framework for evaluating different current algorithms with their ability to correctly identify small intracranial conductivity changes. Firstly, a simulation 3D head phantom with realistic layered structure and impedance distribution is developed. Next several reconstructing algorithms, such as back projection (BP), damped least-square (DLS), Bayesian, split Bregman (SB) and GREIT are introduced. We investigate their temporal response, noise performance, location and shape error with respect to different noise levels on the simulation phantom. The results show that the SB algorithm demonstrates superior performance in reducing image error. To further improve the location accuracy, we optimize SB by incorporating the brain structure-based conductivity distribution priors, in which differences of the conductivities between different brain tissues and the inhomogeneous conductivity distribution of the skull are considered. We compare this novel algorithm (called SB-IBCD) with SB and DLS using anatomically correct head shaped phantoms with spatial varying skull conductivity. Main results and Significance: The results showed that SB-IBCD is the most effective in unveiling small intracranial conductivity changes, where it can reduce the image error by an average of 30.0% compared to DLS.

  11. Primary motor cortex changes after amputation correlate with phantom limb pain and the ability to move the phantom limb

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Raffin, Estelle; Richard, Nathalie; Giraux, Pascal

    2016-01-01

    A substantial body of evidence documents massive reorganization of primary sensory and motor cortices following hand amputation, the extent of which is correlated with phantom limb pain. Many therapies for phantom limb pain are based upon the idea that plastic changes after amputation...... for the maladaptative plasticity model, we demonstrate for the first time that motor capacities of the phantom limb correlate with post-amputation reorganization, and that this reorganization is not limited to the face and hand representations but also includes the proximal upper-limb....

  12. Inflammation alters AMPA-stimulated calcium responses in dorsal striatal D2 but not D1 spiny projection neurons.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Winland, Carissa D; Welsh, Nora; Sepulveda-Rodriguez, Alberto; Vicini, Stefano; Maguire-Zeiss, Kathleen A

    2017-11-01

    Neuroinflammation precedes neuronal loss in striatal neurodegenerative diseases and can be exacerbated by the release of proinflammatory molecules by microglia. These molecules can affect trafficking of AMPARs. The preferential trafficking of calcium-permeable versus impermeable AMPARs can result in disruptions of [Ca 2+ ] i and alter cellular functions. In striatal neurodegenerative diseases, changes in [Ca 2+ ] i and L-type voltage-gated calcium channels (VGCCs) have been reported. Therefore, this study sought to determine whether a proinflammatory environment alters AMPA-stimulated [Ca 2+ ] i through calcium-permeable AMPARs and/or L-type VGCCs in dopamine-2- and dopamine-1-expressing striatal spiny projection neurons (D2 and D1 SPNs) in the dorsal striatum. Mice expressing the calcium indicator protein, GCaMP in D2 or D1 SPNs, were utilized for calcium imaging. Microglial activation was assessed by morphology analyses. To induce inflammation, acute mouse striatal slices were incubated with lipopolysaccharide (LPS). Here we report that LPS treatment potentiated AMPA responses only in D2 SPNs. When a nonspecific VGCC blocker was included, we observed a decrease of AMPA-stimulated calcium fluorescence in D2 but not D1 SPNs. The remaining agonist-induced [Ca 2+ ] i was mediated by calcium-permeable AMPARs because the responses were completely blocked by a selective calcium-permeable AMPAR antagonist. We used isradipine, the highly selective L-type VGCC antagonist to determine the role of L-type VGCCs in SPNs treated with LPS. Isradipine decreased AMPA-stimulated responses selectively in D2 SPNs after LPS treatment. Our findings suggest that dorsal striatal D2 SPNs are specifically targeted in proinflammatory conditions and that L-type VGCCs and calcium-permeable AMPARs are important mediators of this effect. © 2017 Federation of European Neuroscience Societies and John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  13. Genome-wide identification of Bcl11b gene targets reveals role in brain-derived neurotrophic factor signaling.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Bin Tang

    Full Text Available B-cell leukemia/lymphoma 11B (Bcl11b is a transcription factor showing predominant expression in the striatum. To date, there are no known gene targets of Bcl11b in the nervous system. Here, we define targets for Bcl11b in striatal cells by performing chromatin immunoprecipitation followed by high-throughput sequencing (ChIP-seq in combination with genome-wide expression profiling. Transcriptome-wide analysis revealed that 694 genes were significantly altered in striatal cells over-expressing Bcl11b, including genes showing striatal-enriched expression similar to Bcl11b. ChIP-seq analysis demonstrated that Bcl11b bound a mixture of coding and non-coding sequences that were within 10 kb of the transcription start site of an annotated gene. Integrating all ChIP-seq hits with the microarray expression data, 248 direct targets of Bcl11b were identified. Functional analysis on the integrated gene target list identified several zinc-finger encoding genes as Bcl11b targets, and further revealed a significant association of Bcl11b to brain-derived neurotrophic factor/neurotrophin signaling. Analysis of ChIP-seq binding regions revealed significant consensus DNA binding motifs for Bcl11b. These data implicate Bcl11b as a novel regulator of the BDNF signaling pathway, which is disrupted in many neurological disorders. Specific targeting of the Bcl11b-DNA interaction could represent a novel therapeutic approach to lowering BDNF signaling specifically in striatal cells.

  14. The UF family of reference hybrid phantoms for computational radiation dosimetry

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lee, Choonsik; Lodwick, Daniel; Hurtado, Jorge; Pafundi, Deanna; Williams, Jonathan L; Bolch, Wesley E

    2010-01-01

    Computational human phantoms are computer models used to obtain dose distributions within the human body exposed to internal or external radiation sources. In addition, they are increasingly used to develop detector efficiencies for in vivo whole-body counters. Two classes of computational human phantoms have been widely utilized for dosimetry calculation: stylized and voxel phantoms that describe human anatomy through mathematical surface equations and 3D voxel matrices, respectively. Stylized phantoms are flexible in that changes to organ position and shape are possible given avoidance of region overlap, while voxel phantoms are typically fixed to a given patient anatomy, yet can be proportionally scaled to match individuals of larger or smaller stature, but of equivalent organ anatomy. Voxel phantoms provide much better anatomical realism as compared to stylized phantoms which are intrinsically limited by mathematical surface equations. To address the drawbacks of these phantoms, hybrid phantoms based on non-uniform rational B-spline (NURBS) surfaces have been introduced wherein anthropomorphic flexibility and anatomic realism are both preserved. Researchers at the University of Florida have introduced a series of hybrid phantoms representing the ICRP Publication 89 reference newborn, 15 year, and adult male and female. In this study, six additional phantoms are added to the UF family of hybrid phantoms-those of the reference 1 year, 5 year and 10 year child. Head and torso CT images of patients whose ages were close to the targeted ages were obtained under approved protocols. Major organs and tissues were segmented from these images using an image processing software, 3D-DOCTOR(TM). NURBS and polygon mesh surfaces were then used to model individual organs and tissues after importing the segmented organ models to the 3D NURBS modeling software, Rhinoceros(TM). The phantoms were matched to four reference datasets: (1) standard anthropometric data, (2) reference

  15. Development of thyroid anthropomorphic phantoms for use in nuclear medicine

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Cerqueira, R.A.D.; Maia, A.F.

    2014-01-01

    The objective of this study was to develop thyroid anthropomorphic phantoms to be used in control tests of medical images in scintillation cameras. The main difference among the phantoms was the neck shape: in the first, called OSCT, it was geometrically shaped, while in the second, called OSAP, it was anthropomorphically shaped. In both phantoms, thyroid gland prototypes, which were made of acrylic and anthropomorphically shaped, were constructed to allow the simulation of a healthy thyroid and of thyroids with hyperthyroidism and hypothyroidism. Images of these thyroid anthropomorphic phantoms were obtained using iodine 131 with an activity of 8.695 MBq. The iodine 131 was chosen because it is widely used in studies of thyroid scintigraphy. The images obtained proved the effectiveness of the phantoms to simulate normal or abnormal thyroids function. These phantoms can be used in medical imaging quality control programs and, also in the training of professionals involved in the analysis of images in nuclear medicine centers. - Highlights: ► Two thyroid phantoms were developed (OSCT and OSAP) with different types of acrylics. ► Thyroid glands were represented anthropomorphically in the both phantoms. ► Different prototypes of thyroid were built of simulate healthy or unhealthy glands. ► Images indicate that anthropomorphic phantoms correctly simulate the thyroid gland

  16. Selective updating of working memory content modulates meso-cortico-striatal activity.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Murty, Vishnu P; Sambataro, Fabio; Radulescu, Eugenia; Altamura, Mario; Iudicello, Jennifer; Zoltick, Bradley; Weinberger, Daniel R; Goldberg, Terry E; Mattay, Venkata S

    2011-08-01

    Accumulating evidence from non-human primates and computational modeling suggests that dopaminergic signals arising from the midbrain (substantia nigra/ventral tegmental area) mediate striatal gating of the prefrontal cortex during the selective updating of working memory. Using event-related functional magnetic resonance imaging, we explored the neural mechanisms underlying the selective updating of information stored in working memory. Participants were scanned during a novel working memory task that parses the neurophysiology underlying working memory maintenance, overwriting, and selective updating. Analyses revealed a functionally coupled network consisting of a midbrain region encompassing the substantia nigra/ventral tegmental area, caudate, and dorsolateral prefrontal cortex that was selectively engaged during working memory updating compared to the overwriting and maintenance of working memory content. Further analysis revealed differential midbrain-dorsolateral prefrontal interactions during selective updating between low-performing and high-performing individuals. These findings highlight the role of this meso-cortico-striatal circuitry during the selective updating of working memory in humans, which complements previous research in behavioral neuroscience and computational modeling. Published by Elsevier Inc.

  17. Dosimetric validation for an automatic brain metastases planning software using single-isocenter dynamic conformal arcsDosimetric validation for an automatic brain metastases planning software using single-isocenter dynamic conformal arcs.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Liu, Haisong; Li, Jun; Pappas, Evangelos; Andrews, David; Evans, James; Werner-Wasik, Maria; Yu, Yan; Dicker, Adam; Shi, Wenyin

    2016-09-08

    An automatic brain-metastases planning (ABMP) software has been installed in our institution. It is dedicated for treating multiple brain metastases with radiosurgery on linear accelerators (linacs) using a single-setup isocenter with noncoplanar dynamic conformal arcs. This study is to validate the calculated absolute dose and dose distribution of ABMP. Three types of measurements were performed to validate the planning software: 1, dual micro ion chambers were used with an acrylic phantom to measure the absolute dose; 2, a 3D cylindrical phantom with dual diode array was used to evaluate 2D dose distribution and point dose for smaller targets; and 3, a 3D pseudo-in vivo patient-specific phantom filled with polymer gels was used to evaluate the accuracy of 3D dose distribution and radia-tion delivery. Micro chamber measurement of two targets (volumes of 1.2 cc and 0.9 cc, respectively) showed that the percentage differences of the absolute dose at both targets were less than 1%. Averaged GI passing rate of five different plans measured with the diode array phantom was above 98%, using criteria of 3% dose difference, 1 mm distance to agreement (DTA), and 10% low-dose threshold. 3D gel phantom measurement results demonstrated a 3D displacement of nine targets of 0.7 ± 0.4 mm (range 0.2 ~ 1.1 mm). The averaged two-dimensional (2D) GI passing rate for several region of interests (ROI) on axial slices that encompass each one of the nine targets was above 98% (5% dose difference, 2 mm DTA, and 10% low-dose threshold). Measured D95, the minimum dose that covers 95% of the target volume, of the nine targets was 0.7% less than the calculated D95. Three different types of dosimetric verification methods were used and proved the dose calculation of the new automatic brain metastases planning (ABMP) software was clinical acceptable. The 3D pseudo-in vivo patient-specific gel phantom test also served as an end-to-end test for validating not only the dose calculation, but the

  18. Medial prefrontal brain activation to anticipated reward and loss in obsessive-compulsive disorder.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kaufmann, C; Beucke, J C; Preuße, F; Endrass, T; Schlagenhauf, F; Heinz, A; Juckel, G; Kathmann, N

    2013-01-01

    Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is associated with dysfunctional brain activity in several regions which are also involved in the processing of motivational stimuli. Processing of reward and punishment appears to be of special importance to understand clinical symptoms. There is evidence for higher sensitivity to punishment in patients with OCD which raises the question how avoidance of punishment relates to activity within the brain's reward circuitry. We employed the monetary incentive delay task paradigm optimized for modeling the anticipation phase of immediate reward and punishment, in the context of a cross-sectional event-related FMRI study comparing OCD patients and healthy control participants (n = 19 in each group). While overall behavioral performance was similar in both groups, patients showed increased activation upon anticipated losses in a medial and superior frontal cortex region extending into the cingulate cortex, and decreased activation upon anticipated rewards. No evidence was found for altered activation of dorsal or ventral striatal regions. Patients also showed more delayed responses for anticipated rewards than for anticipated losses whereas the reverse was true in healthy participants. The medial prefrontal cortex has been shown to implement a domain-general process comprising negative affect, pain and cognitive control. This process uses information about punishment to control aversively motivated actions by integrating signals arriving from subcortical regions. Our results support the notion that OCD is associated with altered sensitivity to anticipated rewards and losses in a medial prefrontal region whereas there is no significant aberrant activation in ventral or dorsal striatal brain regions during processing of reinforcement anticipation.

  19. Measurement of TLD Albedo response on various calibration phantoms

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Momose, T.; Tsujimura, N.; Shinohara, K.; Ishiguro, H.; Nakamura, T.

    1996-01-01

    The International Commission on Radiation Units and Measurements (ICRU) has recommended that individual dosemeter should be calibrated on a suitable phantom and has pointed out that the calibration factor of a neutron dosemeter is strongly influenced by the the exact size and shape of the body and the phantom to which the dosemeter is attached. As the principle of an albedo type thermoluminescent personal dosemeter (albedo TLD) is essentially based on a detection of scattered and moderated neutron from a human body, the sensitivity of albedo TLD is strongly influenced by the incident neutron energy and the calibration phantom. (1) Therefore for albedo type thermoluminescent personal dosemeter (albedo TLD), the information of neutron albedo response on the calibration phantom is important for appropriate dose estimation. In order to investigate the effect of phantom type on the reading of the albedo TLD, measurement of the TLD energy response and angular response on some typical calibration phantoms was performed using dynamitron accelerator and 252 Cf neutron source. (author)

  20. Agency over Phantom Limb Enhanced by Short-Term Mirror Therapy.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Imaizumi, Shu; Asai, Tomohisa; Koyama, Shinichi

    2017-01-01

    Most amputees experience phantom limb, whereby they feel that the amputated limb is still present. In some cases, these experiences include pain that can be alleviated by "mirror therapy." Mirror therapy consists of superimposing a mirrored image of the moving intact limb onto the phantom limb. This therapy provides a closed loop between the motor command to the amputated limb and its predicted visual feedback. This loop is also involved in the sense of agency, a feeling of controlling one's own body. However, it is unclear how mirror therapy is related to the sense of agency over a phantom limb. Using mirror therapy, we investigated phantom limb pain and the senses of agency and ownership (i.e., a feeling of having one's own body) of the phantom limb. Nine upper-limb amputees, five of whom reported recent phantom limb pain, underwent a single 15-min trial of mirror therapy. Before and after the trial, the participants completed a questionnaire regarding agency, ownership, and pain related to their phantom limb. They reported that the sense of agency over the phantom limb increased following the mirror therapy trial, while the ownership slightly increased but not as much as did the agency. The reported pain did not change; that is, it was comparably mild before and after the trial. These results suggest that short-term mirror therapy can, at least transiently, selectively enhance the sense of agency over a phantom limb, but may not alleviate phantom limb pain.

  1. Technical Note: Characterization of custom 3D printed multimodality imaging phantoms

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Bieniosek, Matthew F.; Lee, Brian J.; Levin, Craig S.

    2015-01-01

    Purpose: Imaging phantoms are important tools for researchers and technicians, but they can be costly and difficult to customize. Three dimensional (3D) printing is a widely available rapid prototyping technique that enables the fabrication of objects with 3D computer generated geometries. It is ideal for quickly producing customized, low cost, multimodal, reusable imaging phantoms. This work validates the use of 3D printed phantoms by comparing CT and PET scans of a 3D printed phantom and a commercial “Micro Deluxe” phantom. This report also presents results from a customized 3D printed PET/MRI phantom, and a customized high resolution imaging phantom with sub-mm features. Methods: CT and PET scans of a 3D printed phantom and a commercial Micro Deluxe (Data Spectrum Corporation, USA) phantom with 1.2, 1.6, 2.4, 3.2, 4.0, and 4.8 mm diameter hot rods were acquired. The measured PET and CT rod sizes, activities, and attenuation coefficients were compared. A PET/MRI scan of a custom 3D printed phantom with hot and cold rods was performed, with photon attenuation and normalization measurements performed with a separate 3D printed normalization phantom. X-ray transmission scans of a customized two level high resolution 3D printed phantom with sub-mm features were also performed. Results: Results show very good agreement between commercial and 3D printed micro deluxe phantoms with less than 3% difference in CT measured rod diameter, less than 5% difference in PET measured rod diameter, and a maximum of 6.2% difference in average rod activity from a 10 min, 333 kBq/ml (9 μCi/ml) Siemens Inveon (Siemens Healthcare, Germany) PET scan. In all cases, these differences were within the measurement uncertainties of our setups. PET/MRI scans successfully identified 3D printed hot and cold rods on PET and MRI modalities. X-ray projection images of a 3D printed high resolution phantom identified features as small as 350 μm wide. Conclusions: This work shows that 3D printed

  2. Technical Note: Characterization of custom 3D printed multimodality imaging phantoms

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Bieniosek, Matthew F. [Department of Electrical Engineering, Stanford University, 350 Serra Mall, Stanford, California 94305 (United States); Lee, Brian J. [Department of Mechanical Engineering, Stanford University, 440 Escondido Mall, Stanford, California 94305 (United States); Levin, Craig S., E-mail: cslevin@stanford.edu [Departments of Radiology, Physics, Bioengineering and Electrical Engineering, Stanford University, 300 Pasteur Dr., Stanford, California 94305-5128 (United States)

    2015-10-15

    Purpose: Imaging phantoms are important tools for researchers and technicians, but they can be costly and difficult to customize. Three dimensional (3D) printing is a widely available rapid prototyping technique that enables the fabrication of objects with 3D computer generated geometries. It is ideal for quickly producing customized, low cost, multimodal, reusable imaging phantoms. This work validates the use of 3D printed phantoms by comparing CT and PET scans of a 3D printed phantom and a commercial “Micro Deluxe” phantom. This report also presents results from a customized 3D printed PET/MRI phantom, and a customized high resolution imaging phantom with sub-mm features. Methods: CT and PET scans of a 3D printed phantom and a commercial Micro Deluxe (Data Spectrum Corporation, USA) phantom with 1.2, 1.6, 2.4, 3.2, 4.0, and 4.8 mm diameter hot rods were acquired. The measured PET and CT rod sizes, activities, and attenuation coefficients were compared. A PET/MRI scan of a custom 3D printed phantom with hot and cold rods was performed, with photon attenuation and normalization measurements performed with a separate 3D printed normalization phantom. X-ray transmission scans of a customized two level high resolution 3D printed phantom with sub-mm features were also performed. Results: Results show very good agreement between commercial and 3D printed micro deluxe phantoms with less than 3% difference in CT measured rod diameter, less than 5% difference in PET measured rod diameter, and a maximum of 6.2% difference in average rod activity from a 10 min, 333 kBq/ml (9 μCi/ml) Siemens Inveon (Siemens Healthcare, Germany) PET scan. In all cases, these differences were within the measurement uncertainties of our setups. PET/MRI scans successfully identified 3D printed hot and cold rods on PET and MRI modalities. X-ray projection images of a 3D printed high resolution phantom identified features as small as 350 μm wide. Conclusions: This work shows that 3D printed

  3. Technical Note: Characterization of custom 3D printed multimodality imaging phantoms.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bieniosek, Matthew F; Lee, Brian J; Levin, Craig S

    2015-10-01

    Imaging phantoms are important tools for researchers and technicians, but they can be costly and difficult to customize. Three dimensional (3D) printing is a widely available rapid prototyping technique that enables the fabrication of objects with 3D computer generated geometries. It is ideal for quickly producing customized, low cost, multimodal, reusable imaging phantoms. This work validates the use of 3D printed phantoms by comparing CT and PET scans of a 3D printed phantom and a commercial "Micro Deluxe" phantom. This report also presents results from a customized 3D printed PET/MRI phantom, and a customized high resolution imaging phantom with sub-mm features. CT and PET scans of a 3D printed phantom and a commercial Micro Deluxe (Data Spectrum Corporation, USA) phantom with 1.2, 1.6, 2.4, 3.2, 4.0, and 4.8 mm diameter hot rods were acquired. The measured PET and CT rod sizes, activities, and attenuation coefficients were compared. A PET/MRI scan of a custom 3D printed phantom with hot and cold rods was performed, with photon attenuation and normalization measurements performed with a separate 3D printed normalization phantom. X-ray transmission scans of a customized two level high resolution 3D printed phantom with sub-mm features were also performed. Results show very good agreement between commercial and 3D printed micro deluxe phantoms with less than 3% difference in CT measured rod diameter, less than 5% difference in PET measured rod diameter, and a maximum of 6.2% difference in average rod activity from a 10 min, 333 kBq/ml (9 μCi/ml) Siemens Inveon (Siemens Healthcare, Germany) PET scan. In all cases, these differences were within the measurement uncertainties of our setups. PET/MRI scans successfully identified 3D printed hot and cold rods on PET and MRI modalities. X-ray projection images of a 3D printed high resolution phantom identified features as small as 350 μm wide. This work shows that 3D printed phantoms can be functionally equivalent to

  4. An image-guided transcranial direct current stimulation system: a pilot phantom study

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Jung, Young-Jin; Kim, Jung-Hoon; Kim, Daejeong; Im, Chang-Hwan

    2013-01-01

    In this study, an image-guided transcranial direct current stimulation (IG-tDCS) system that can deliver an increased stimulation current to a target brain area without the need to adjust the location of an active electrode was implemented. This IG-tDCS system was based on the array-type tDCS concept, which was validated through computer simulations in a previous study. Unlike a previous study, the present IG-tDCS system adopts a single reference electrode and an active electrode array consisting of 16 (4 × 4) sub-electrodes. The proposed IG-tDCS system is capable of shaping current flow inside the human head by controlling the input currents of the arrayed electrodes. Once a target brain area has been selected, the optimal injection current of each arrayed sub-electrode is evaluated automatically using a genetic algorithm in order to deliver the maximum available current to the target area. The operation of our pilot system was confirmed through a simple phantom experiment. (paper)

  5. Specific reactions of different striatal neuron types in morphology induced by quinolinic acid in rats.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Qiqi Feng

    Full Text Available Huntington's disease (HD is a neurological degenerative disease and quinolinic acid (QA has been used to establish HD model in animals through the mechanism of excitotoxicity. Yet the specific pathological changes and the underlying mechanisms are not fully elucidated. We aimed to reveal the specific morphological changes of different striatal neurons in the HD model. Sprague-Dawley (SD rats were subjected to unilaterally intrastriatal injections of QA to mimic the HD model. Behavioral tests, histochemical and immunhistochemical stainings as well as Western blots were applied in the present study. The results showed that QA-treated rats had obvious motor and cognitive impairments when compared with the control group. Immunohistochemical detection showed a great loss of NeuN+ neurons and Darpp32+ projection neurons in the transition zone in the QA group when compared with the control group. The numbers of parvalbumin (Parv+ and neuropeptide Y (NPY+ interneurons were both significantly reduced while those of calretinin (Cr+ and choline acetyltransferase (ChAT+ were not changed notably in the transition zone in the QA group when compared to the controls. Parv+, NPY+ and ChAT+ interneurons were not significantly increased in fiber density while Cr+ neurons displayed an obvious increase in fiber density in the transition zone in QA-treated rats. The varicosity densities of Parv+, Cr+ and NPY+ interneurons were all raised in the transition zone after QA treatment. In conclusion, the present study revealed that QA induced obvious behavioral changes as well as a general loss of striatal projection neurons and specific morphological changes in different striatal interneurons, which may help further explain the underlying mechanisms and the specific functions of various striatal neurons in the pathological process of HD.

  6. Equipment-independent reference values for dopamine transporter imaging with 123I-FP-CIT

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Koch, W.; Hornung, J.; Poepperl, G.; Tatsch, K.; Hamann, C.

    2007-01-01

    Aim: Reliable reference values are helpful to interpret and compare the results of dopamine transporter imaging with SPECT. Since semi-quantitative reference values cannot be easily transferred between imaging equipments, this study aimed to establish equipment independent normal values for the true striatal binding of 123 I-FP-CIT. Patients, methods: Specific striatal FP-CIT binding of 6 healthy volunteers and 26 patients with essential tremor were used to generate a reference range by applying an equipment specific resolution dependent factor to compensate for recovery effects. This factor has been determined previously by a series of standardized phantom measurements of an anthropomorphic basal ganglia phantom. Herewith, the resulting DAT binding values represent the expected true specific binding in the striatum. Results: On average, true specific striatal binding was 5.83 ± 0.96 in healthy controls, 5.25 ± 0.67 in patients with essential tremor and 5.36 ± 0.75 in the entire study cohort. Conclusion: These preliminary results may serve as a basis for the generation of a generally accepted equipment independent reference range for dopamine transporter imaging with 123 I-FP-CIT. By a simple phantom measurement that can be accomplished within one day factors related to specific imaging equipment and processing can be corrected for, resulting in specific binding values which may enable a more standardized interpretation of dopamine transporter scans. (orig.)

  7. Design of a tracked ultrasound calibration phantom made of LEGO bricks

    Science.gov (United States)

    Walsh, Ryan; Soehl, Marie; Rankin, Adam; Lasso, Andras; Fichtinger, Gabor

    2014-03-01

    PURPOSE: Spatial calibration of tracked ultrasound systems is commonly performed using precisely fabricated phantoms. Machining or 3D printing has relatively high cost and not easily available. Moreover, the possibilities for modifying the phantoms are very limited. Our goal was to find a method to construct a calibration phantom from affordable, widely available components, which can be built in short time, can be easily modified, and provides comparable accuracy to the existing solutions. METHODS: We designed an N-wire calibration phantom made of LEGO® bricks. To affirm the phantom's reproducibility and build time, ten builds were done by first-time users. The phantoms were used for a tracked ultrasound calibration by an experienced user. The success of each user's build was determined by the lowest root mean square (RMS) wire reprojection error of three calibrations. The accuracy and variance of calibrations were evaluated for the calibrations produced for various tracked ultrasound probes. The proposed model was compared to two of the currently available phantom models for both electromagnetic and optical tracking. RESULTS: The phantom was successfully built by all ten first-time users in an average time of 18.8 minutes. It cost approximately $10 CAD for the required LEGO® bricks and averaged a 0.69mm of error in the calibration reproducibility for ultrasound calibrations. It is one third the cost of similar 3D printed phantoms and takes much less time to build. The proposed phantom's image reprojections were 0.13mm more erroneous than those of the highest performing current phantom model The average standard deviation of multiple 3D image reprojections differed by 0.05mm between the phantoms CONCLUSION: It was found that the phantom could be built in less time, was one third the cost, compared to similar 3D printed models. The proposed phantom was found to be capable of producing equivalent calibrations to 3D printed phantoms.

  8. Improvement of brain perfusion SPET using iterative reconstruction with scatter and non-uniform attenuation correction

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Kauppinen, T.; Vanninen, E.; Kuikka, J.T. [Kuopio Central Hospital (Finland). Dept. of Clinical Physiology; Koskinen, M.O. [Dept. of Clinical Physiology and Nuclear Medicine, Tampere Univ. Hospital, Tampere (Finland); Alenius, S. [Signal Processing Lab., Tampere Univ. of Technology, Tampere (Finland)

    2000-09-01

    Filtered back-projection (FBP) is generally used as the reconstruction method for single-photon emission tomography although it produces noisy images with apparent streak artefacts. It is possible to improve the image quality by using an algorithm with iterative correction steps. The iterative reconstruction technique also has an additional benefit in that computation of attenuation correction can be included in the process. A commonly used iterative method, maximum-likelihood expectation maximisation (ML-EM), can be accelerated using ordered subsets (OS-EM). We have applied to the OS-EM algorithm a Bayesian one-step late correction method utilising median root prior (MRP). Methodological comparison was performed by means of measurements obtained with a brain perfusion phantom and using patient data. The aim of this work was to quantitate the accuracy of iterative reconstruction with scatter and non-uniform attenuation corrections and post-filtering in SPET brain perfusion imaging. SPET imaging was performed using a triple-head gamma camera with fan-beam collimators. Transmission and emission scans were acquired simultaneously. The brain phantom used was a high-resolution three-dimensional anthropomorphic JB003 phantom. Patient studies were performed in ten chronic pain syndrome patients. The images were reconstructed using conventional FBP and iterative OS-EM and MRP techniques including scatter and nonuniform attenuation corrections. Iterative reconstructions were individually post-filtered. The quantitative results obtained with the brain perfusion phantom were compared with the known actual contrast ratios. The calculated difference from the true values was largest with the FBP method; iteratively reconstructed images proved closer to the reality. Similar findings were obtained in the patient studies. The plain OS-EM method improved the contrast whereas in the case of the MRP technique the improvement in contrast was not so evident with post-filtering. (orig.)

  9. Improvement of brain perfusion SPET using iterative reconstruction with scatter and non-uniform attenuation correction

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kauppinen, T.; Vanninen, E.; Kuikka, J.T.; Alenius, S.

    2000-01-01

    Filtered back-projection (FBP) is generally used as the reconstruction method for single-photon emission tomography although it produces noisy images with apparent streak artefacts. It is possible to improve the image quality by using an algorithm with iterative correction steps. The iterative reconstruction technique also has an additional benefit in that computation of attenuation correction can be included in the process. A commonly used iterative method, maximum-likelihood expectation maximisation (ML-EM), can be accelerated using ordered subsets (OS-EM). We have applied to the OS-EM algorithm a Bayesian one-step late correction method utilising median root prior (MRP). Methodological comparison was performed by means of measurements obtained with a brain perfusion phantom and using patient data. The aim of this work was to quantitate the accuracy of iterative reconstruction with scatter and non-uniform attenuation corrections and post-filtering in SPET brain perfusion imaging. SPET imaging was performed using a triple-head gamma camera with fan-beam collimators. Transmission and emission scans were acquired simultaneously. The brain phantom used was a high-resolution three-dimensional anthropomorphic JB003 phantom. Patient studies were performed in ten chronic pain syndrome patients. The images were reconstructed using conventional FBP and iterative OS-EM and MRP techniques including scatter and nonuniform attenuation corrections. Iterative reconstructions were individually post-filtered. The quantitative results obtained with the brain perfusion phantom were compared with the known actual contrast ratios. The calculated difference from the true values was largest with the FBP method; iteratively reconstructed images proved closer to the reality. Similar findings were obtained in the patient studies. The plain OS-EM method improved the contrast whereas in the case of the MRP technique the improvement in contrast was not so evident with post-filtering. (orig.)

  10. Brain dopamine and serotonin transporter binding are associated with visual attention bias for food in lean men.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Koopman, K E; Roefs, A; Elbers, D C E; Fliers, E; Booij, J; Serlie, M J; la Fleur, S E

    2016-06-01

    In rodents, the striatal dopamine (DA) system and the (hypo)thalamic serotonin (5-HT) system are involved in the regulation of feeding behavior. In lean humans, little is known about the relationship between these brain neurotransmitter systems and feeding. We studied the relationship between striatal DA transporters (DAT) and diencephalic 5-HT transporters (SERT), behavioral tasks and questionnaires, and food intake. We measured striatal DAT and diencephalic SERT binding with [123I]FP-CIT SPECT in 36 lean male subjects. Visual attention bias for food (detection speed and distraction time) and degree of impulsivity were measured using response-latency-based computer tasks. Craving and emotional eating were assessed with questionnaires and ratings of hunger by means of VAS scores. Food intake was assessed through a self-reported online diet journal. Striatal DAT and diencephalic SERT binding negatively correlated with food detection speed (p = 0.008, r = -0.50 and p = 0.002, r = -0.57, respectively), but not with food distraction time, ratings of hunger, craving or impulsivity. Striatal DAT and diencephalic SERT binding did not correlate with free choice food intake, whereas food detection speed positively correlated with total caloric intake (p = 0.001, r = 0.60), protein intake (p = 0.01, r = 0.44), carbohydrate intake (p = 0.03, r = 0.39) and fat intake (p = 0.06, r = 0.35). These results indicate a role for the central 5-HT and DA system in the regulation of visual attention bias for food, which contributes to the motivation to eat, in non-obese, healthy humans. In addition, this study confirms that food detection speed, measured with the latency-based computer task, positively correlates with total food and macronutrient intake.

  11. Fronto-striatal glutamate in children with Tourette's disorder and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Naaijen, Jilly; Forde, Natalie J.; Lythgoe, David J.; Akkermans, Sophie E. A.; Openneer, Thaira J. C.; Dietrich, Andrea; Zwiers, Marcel P.; Hoekstra, Pieter J.; Buitelaar, Jan K.

    2017-01-01

    Objective: Both Tourette's disorder (TD) and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) have been related to abnormalities in glutamatergic neurochemistry in the fronto-striatal circuitry. TD and ADHD often co-occur and the neural underpinnings of this co-occurrence have been insufficiently

  12. Radiation dose verification using real tissue phantom in modern radiotherapy techniques

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Gurjar, Om Prakash; Mishra, S.P.; Bhandari, Virendra; Pathak, Pankaj; Patel, Prapti; Shrivastav, Garima

    2014-01-01

    In vitro dosimetric verification prior to patient treatment has a key role in accurate and precision radiotherapy treatment delivery. Most of commercially available dosimetric phantoms have almost homogeneous density throughout their volume, while real interior of patient body has variable and varying densities inside. In this study an attempt has been made to verify the physical dosimetry in actual human body scenario by using goat head as 'head phantom' and goat meat as 'tissue phantom'. The mean percentage variation between planned and measured doses was found to be 2.48 (standard deviation (SD): 0.74), 2.36 (SD: 0.77), 3.62 (SD: 1.05), and 3.31 (SD: 0.78) for three-dimensional conformal radiotherapy (3DCRT) (head phantom), intensity modulated radiotherapy (IMRT; head phantom), 3DCRT (tissue phantom), and IMRT (tissue phantom), respectively. Although percentage variations in case of head phantom were within tolerance limit (< ± 3%), but still it is higher than the results obtained by using commercially available phantoms. And the percentage variations in most of cases of tissue phantom were out of tolerance limit. On the basis of these preliminary results it is logical and rational to develop radiation dosimetry methods based on real human body and also to develop an artificial phantom which should truly represent the interior of human body. (author)

  13. Radiation dose verification using real tissue phantom in modern radiotherapy techniques

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Om Prakash Gurjar

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available In vitro dosimetric verification prior to patient treatment has a key role in accurate and precision radiotherapy treatment delivery. Most of commercially available dosimetric phantoms have almost homogeneous density throughout their volume, while real interior of patient body has variable and varying densities inside. In this study an attempt has been made to verify the physical dosimetry in actual human body scenario by using goat head as "head phantom" and goat meat as "tissue phantom". The mean percentage variation between planned and measured doses was found to be 2.48 (standard deviation (SD: 0.74, 2.36 (SD: 0.77, 3.62 (SD: 1.05, and 3.31 (SD: 0.78 for three-dimensional conformal radiotherapy (3DCRT (head phantom, intensity modulated radiotherapy (IMRT; head phantom, 3DCRT (tissue phantom, and IMRT (tissue phantom, respectively. Although percentage variations in case of head phantom were within tolerance limit (< ± 3%, but still it is higher than the results obtained by using commercially available phantoms. And the percentage variations in most of cases of tissue phantom were out of tolerance limit. On the basis of these preliminary results it is logical and rational to develop radiation dosimetry methods based on real human body and also to develop an artificial phantom which should truly represent the interior of human body.

  14. A Tool for Interactive Data Visualization: Application to Over 10,000 Brain Imaging and Phantom MRI Data Sets

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Sandeep R Panta

    2016-03-01

    Full Text Available In this paper we propose a web-based approach for quick visualization of big data from brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI scans using a combination of an automated image capture and processing system, nonlinear embedding, and interactive data visualization tools. We draw upon thousands of MRI scans captured via the COllaborative Imaging and Neuroinformatics Suite (COINS. We then interface the output of several analysis pipelines based on structural and functional data to a t-distributed stochastic neighbor embedding (t-SNE algorithm which reduces the number of dimensions for each scan in the input data set to two dimensions while preserving the local structure of data sets. Finally, we interactively display the output of this approach via a web-page, based on data driven documents (D3 JavaScript library. Two distinct approaches were used to visualize the data. In the first approach, we computed multiple quality control (QC values from pre-processed data, which were used as inputs to the t-SNE algorithm. This approach helps in assessing the quality of each data set relative to others. In the second case, computed variables of interest (e.g. brain volume or voxel values from segmented gray matter images were used as inputs to the t-SNE algorithm. This approach helps in identifying interesting patterns in the data sets. We demonstrate these approaches using multiple examples including 1 quality control measures calculated from phantom data over time, 2 quality control data from human functional MRI data across various studies, scanners, sites, 3 volumetric and density measures from human structural MRI data across various studies, scanners and sites. Results from (1 and (2 show the potential of our approach to combine t-SNE data reduction with interactive color coding of variables of interest to quickly identify visually unique clusters of data (i.e. data sets with poor QC, clustering of data by site quickly. Results from (3 demonstrate

  15. Where attention falls: Increased risk of falls from the converging impact of cortical cholinergic and midbrain dopamine loss on striatal function.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sarter, Martin; Albin, Roger L; Kucinski, Aaron; Lustig, Cindy

    2014-07-01

    Falls are a major source of hospitalization, long-term institutionalization, and death in older adults and patients with Parkinson's disease (PD). Limited attentional resources are a major risk factor for falls. In this review, we specify cognitive-behavioral mechanisms that produce falls and map these mechanisms onto a model of multi-system degeneration. Results from PET studies in PD fallers and findings from a recently developed animal model support the hypothesis that falls result from interactions between loss of basal forebrain cholinergic projections to the cortex and striatal dopamine loss. Striatal dopamine loss produces inefficient, low-vigor gait, posture control, and movement. Cortical cholinergic deafferentation impairs a wide range of attentional processes, including monitoring of gait, posture and complex movements. Cholinergic cell loss reveals the full impact of striatal dopamine loss on motor performance, reflecting loss of compensatory attentional supervision of movement. Dysregulation of dorsomedial striatal circuitry is an essential, albeit not exclusive, mediator of falls in this dual-system model. Because cholinergic neuromodulatory activity influences cortical circuitry primarily via stimulation of α4β2* nicotinic acetylcholine receptors, and because agonists at these receptors are known to benefit attentional processes in animals and humans, treating PD fallers with such agonists, as an adjunct to dopaminergic treatment, is predicted to reduce falls. Falls are an informative behavioral endpoint to study attentional-motor integration by striatal circuitry. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  16. Brain imaging and cognitive dysfunctions in Huntington's disease

    Science.gov (United States)

    Montoya, Alonso; Price, Bruce H.; Menear, Matthew; Lepage, Martin

    2006-01-01

    Recent decades have seen tremendous growth in our understanding of the cognitive dysfunctions observed in Huntington's disease (HD). Advances in neuroimaging have contributed greatly to this growth. We reviewed the role that structural and functional neuroimaging techniques have played in elucidating the cerebral bases of the cognitive deficits associated with HD. We conducted a computer-based search using PubMed and PsycINFO databases to retrieve studies of patients with HD published between 1965 and December 2004 that reported measures on cognitive tasks and used neuroimaging techniques. Structural neuroimaging has provided important evidence of morphological brain changes in HD. Striatal and cortical atrophy are the most common findings, and they correlate with cognitive deficits in attention, working memory and executive functions. Functional studies have also demonstrated correlations between striatal dysfunction and cognitive performance. Striatal hypoperfusion and decreased glucose utilization correlate with executive dysfunction. Hypometabolism also occurs throughout the cerebral cortex and correlates with performance on recognition memory, language and perceptual tests. Measures of presynaptic and postsynaptic dopamine biochemistry have also correlated with measurements of episodic memory, speed of processing and executive functioning. Aided by the results of numerous neuroimaging studies, it is becoming increasingly clear that cognitive deficits in HD involve abnormal connectivity between the basal ganglia and cortical areas. In the future, neuroimaging techniques may shed the most light on the pathophysiology of HD by defining neurodegenerative disease phenotypes as a valuable tool for knowing when patients become “symptomatic,” having been in a gene-positive presymptomatic state, and as a biomarker in following the disease, thereby providing a prospect for improved patient care. PMID:16496032

  17. NURBS-based 3-d anthropomorphic computational phantoms for radiation dosimetry applications

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lee, Choonsik; Lodwick, Daniel; Lee, Choonik; Bolch, Wesley E.

    2007-01-01

    Computational anthropomorphic phantoms are computer models used in the evaluation of absorbed dose distributions within the human body. Currently, two classes of the computational phantoms have been developed and widely utilised for dosimetry calculation: (1) stylized (equation-based) and (2) voxel (image-based) phantoms describing human anatomy through the use of mathematical surface equations and 3-D voxel matrices, respectively. However, stylized phantoms have limitations in defining realistic organ contours and positioning as compared to voxel phantoms, which are themselves based on medical images of human subjects. In turn, voxel phantoms that have been developed through medical image segmentation have limitations in describing organs that are presented in low contrast within either magnetic resonance or computed tomography image. The present paper reviews the advantages and disadvantages of these existing classes of computational phantoms and introduces a hybrid approach to a computational phantom construction based on non-uniform rational B-Spline (NURBS) surface animation technology that takes advantage of the most desirable features of the former two phantom types. (authors)

  18. Regional heating patterns of RF hyperthermia applicators in phantoms

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kantor, G.; Ruggera, P.S.; Samulski, T.V.

    1984-01-01

    An elliptical phantom (20 cm by 30 cm cross-section and 40 cm long) with a 1 cm fat layer filled with muscle material was used to compare the induced heating patterns of the NCDRH helical coil, a Henry Medical Magnetrode coil, both with a diameter of 35.6 cm, and the BSD Annular Phased Array System (APAS). Temperature profiles were taken in the midplane cross-sectional slice along the major and minor axes of the phantom. These profiles were measured with a Vitek thermistor probe and the associated specific absorption rates (SAR) were determined from this data. SAR curves for each applicator were obtained along the major and minor axes of the phantom. The depths of heating of the Magnetrode applicator are considerably smaller than those for the helical applicator. Heating patterns for the APAS can be highly variable and asymmetric depending on the frequency of operation and the location of the phantom within the APAS aperture. While the APAS requires a water bolus for good coupling, the NCDRH and Magnetrode coils need only to be air coupled for good phantom coupling. Both the helical applicator and APAS can provide significant heating in the central region of the phantom. However, the heating of the helical coil does not critically depend on the phantom loading

  19. Abnormal striatal dopaminergic neurotransmission during rest and task production in spasmodic dysphonia.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Simonyan, Kristina; Berman, Brian D; Herscovitch, Peter; Hallett, Mark

    2013-09-11

    Spasmodic dysphonia is a primary focal dystonia characterized by involuntary spasms in the laryngeal muscles during speech production. The pathophysiology of spasmodic dysphonia is thought to involve structural and functional abnormalities in the basal ganglia-thalamo-cortical circuitry; however, neurochemical correlates underpinning these abnormalities as well as their relations to spasmodic dysphonia symptoms remain unknown. We used positron emission tomography with the radioligand [(11)C]raclopride (RAC) to study striatal dopaminergic neurotransmission at the resting state and during production of symptomatic sentences and asymptomatic finger tapping in spasmodic dysphonia patients. We found that patients, compared to healthy controls, had bilaterally decreased RAC binding potential (BP) to striatal dopamine D2/D3 receptors on average by 29.2%, which was associated with decreased RAC displacement (RAC ΔBP) in the left striatum during symptomatic speaking (group average difference 10.2%), but increased RAC ΔBP in the bilateral striatum during asymptomatic tapping (group average difference 10.1%). Patients with more severe voice symptoms and subclinically longer reaction time to initiate the tapping sequence had greater RAC ΔBP measures, while longer duration of spasmodic dysphonia was associated with a decrease in task-induced RAC ΔBP. Decreased dopaminergic transmission during symptomatic speech production may represent a disorder-specific pathophysiological trait involved in symptom generation, whereas increased dopaminergic function during unaffected task performance may be explained by a compensatory adaptation of the nigrostriatal dopaminergic system possibly due to decreased striatal D2/D3 receptor availability. These changes can be linked to the clinical and subclinical features of spasmodic dysphonia and may represent the neurochemical basis of basal ganglia alterations in this disorder.

  20. Simulation of computed tomography dose based on voxel phantom

    Science.gov (United States)

    Liu, Chunyu; Lv, Xiangbo; Li, Zhaojun

    2017-01-01

    Computed Tomography (CT) is one of the preferred and the most valuable imaging tool used in diagnostic radiology, which provides a high-quality cross-sectional image of the body. It still causes higher doses of radiation to patients comparing to the other radiological procedures. The Monte-Carlo method is appropriate for estimation of the radiation dose during the CT examinations. The simulation of the Computed Tomography Dose Index (CTDI) phantom was developed in this paper. Under a similar conditions used in physical measurements, dose profiles were calculated and compared against the measured values that were reported. The results demonstrate a good agreement between the calculated and the measured doses. From different CT exam simulations using the voxel phantom, the highest absorbed dose was recorded for the lung, the brain, the bone surface. A comparison between the different scan type shows that the effective dose for a chest scan is the highest one, whereas the effective dose values during abdomen and pelvis scan are very close, respectively. The lowest effective dose resulted from the head scan. Although, the dose in CT is related to various parameters, such as the tube current, exposure time, beam energy, slice thickness and patient size, this study demonstrates that the MC simulation is a useful tool to accurately estimate the dose delivered to any specific organs for patients undergoing the CT exams and can be also a valuable technique for the design and the optimization of the CT x-ray source.

  1. Chronic exposure to dopamine agonists affects the integrity of striatal D2 receptors in Parkinson's patients

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Marios Politis

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available We aimed to investigate the integrity and clinical relevance of striatal dopamine receptor type-2 (D2R availability in Parkinson's disease (PD patients. We studied 68 PD patients, spanning from early to advanced disease stages, and 12 healthy controls. All participants received one [11C]raclopride PET scan in an OFF medication condition for quantification of striatal D2R availability in vivo. Parametric images of [11C]raclopride non-displaceable binding potential were generated from the dynamic [11C]raclopride scans using implementation of the simplified reference tissue model with cerebellum as the reference tissue. PET data were interrogated for correlations with clinical data related to disease burden and dopaminergic treatment. PD patients showed a mean 16.7% decrease in caudate D2R and a mean 3.5% increase in putaminal D2R availability compared to healthy controls. Lower caudate [11C]raclopride BPND correlated with longer PD duration. PD patients on dopamine agonist treatment had 9.2% reduced D2R availability in the caudate and 12.8% in the putamen compared to PD patients who never received treatment with dopamine agonists. Higher amounts of lifetime dopamine agonist therapy correlated with reduced D2Rs availability in both caudate and putamen. No associations between striatal D2R availability and levodopa treatment and dyskinesias were found. In advancing PD the caudate and putamen D2R availability are differentially affected. Chronic exposure to treatment with dopamine agonists, but no levodopa, suppresses striatal D2R availability, which may have relevance to output signaling to frontal lobes and the occurrence of executive deficits, but not dyskinesias.

  2. Running wheel exercise before a binge regimen of methamphetamine does not protect against striatal dopaminergic damage.

    Science.gov (United States)

    O'dell, Steven J; Marshall, John F

    2014-09-01

    Repeated administration of methamphetamine (mAMPH) to rodents in a single-day "binge" dosing regimen produces long-lasting damage to forebrain dopaminergic nerve terminals as measured by decreases in tissue dopamine (DA) content and levels of the plasmalemmal DA transporter (DAT). However, the midbrain cell bodies from which the DA terminals arise survive, and previous reports show that striatal DA markers return to control levels by 12 months post-mAMPH, suggesting long-term repair or regrowth of damaged DA terminals. We previously showed that when rats engaged in voluntary aerobic exercise for 3 weeks before and 3 weeks after a binge regimen of mAMPH, exercise significantly ameliorated mAMPH-induced decreases in striatal DAT. However, these data left unresolved the question of whether exercise protected against the initial neurotoxicity from the mAMPH binge or accelerated the repair of the damaged DA terminals. The present experiments were designed to test whether exercise protects against the mAMPH-induced injury. Adult male Sprague-Dawley rats were allowed to run in wheels for 3 weeks before an acute binge regimen of mAMPH or saline, then placed into nonwheel cages for an additional week before autoradiographic determination of striatal DAT binding. The autoradiographic findings showed that prior exercise provided no protection against mAMPH-induced damage to striatal DA terminals. These results, together with analyses from our previous experiments, suggest that voluntary exercise may accelerate the repair of mAMPH-damaged DA terminals and that voluntary exercise may be useful as therapeutic adjunct in the treatment mAMPH addicts. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  3. Modification of the striatal dopaminergic neuron system by carbon monoxide exposure in free-moving rats, as determined by in vivo brain microdialysis

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Hara, Shuichi; Kurosaki, Kunihiko; Kuriiwa, Fumi; Endo, Takahiko [Department of Forensic Medicine, Tokyo Medical University, 6-1-1 Shinjuku, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo 160-8402 (Japan); Mukai, Toshiji [Department of Legal Medicine, St. Marianna University School of Medicine, 2-16-1 Sugao, Miyamae-ku, Kawasaki, Kanagawa 216-0015 (Japan)

    2002-10-01

    Acute carbon monoxide (CO) intoxication in humans results in motor deficits, which resemble those in Parkinson's disease, suggesting possible disturbance of the central dopaminergic (DAergic) neuronal system by CO exposure. In the present study, therefore, we explored the effects of CO exposure on the DAergic neuronal system in the striatum of freely moving rats by means of in vivo brain microdialysis. Exposure of rats to CO (up to 0.3%) for 40 min caused an increase in extracellular dopamine (DA) levels and a decrease in extracellular levels of its major metabolites, 3,4-dihydroxyphenylacetic acid (DOPAC) and homovanillic acid (HVA), in the striatum depending on the CO concentration. Reoxygenation following termination of the CO exposure resulted in a decline of DA to the control level and an overshoot in the recovery of DOPAC and HVA to levels higher than the control. A monoamine oxidase type A (MAO-A) inhibitor, clorgyline, significantly potentiated the CO-induced increase in DA and completely abolished the subsequent overshoot in the recovery of DOPAC and HVA. Tetrodotoxin, a Na{sup +} channel blocker, completely abolished both the CO-induced increase in DA and the overshoot of DOPAC and HVA. A DA uptake inhibitor, nomifensine, strongly potentiated the CO-induced increase in DA without affecting the subsequent overshoot of DOPAC and HVA. Clorgyline further potentiated the effect of nomifensine on the CO-induced increase in DA, although a slight overshoot of DOPAC and HVA appeared. These findings suggest that (1) CO exposure may stimulate Na{sup +}-dependent DA release in addition to suppressing DA metabolism, resulting in a marked increase in extracellular DA in rat striatum, and (2) CO withdrawal and subsequent reoxygenation may enhance the oxidative metabolism, preferentially mediated by MAO-A, of the increased extracellular DA. In the light of the neurotoxicity of DA per se and reactive substances, such as quinones and activated oxygen species

  4. Aggression-related brain function assessed with the Point Subtraction Aggression Paradigm in fMRI

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Skibsted, Anine P; Cunha-Bang, Sofi da; Carré, Justin M

    2017-01-01

    The Point Subtraction Aggression Paradigm (PSAP) measures aggressive behavior in response to provocations. The aim of the study was to implement the PSAP in a functional neuroimaging environment (fMRI) and evaluate aggression-related brain reactivity including response to provocations and associa......The Point Subtraction Aggression Paradigm (PSAP) measures aggressive behavior in response to provocations. The aim of the study was to implement the PSAP in a functional neuroimaging environment (fMRI) and evaluate aggression-related brain reactivity including response to provocations...... and associations with aggression within the paradigm. Twenty healthy participants completed two 12-min PSAP sessions within the scanner. We evaluated brain responses to aggressive behavior (removing points from an opponent), provocations (point subtractions by the opponent), and winning points. Our results showed...... with the involvement of these brain regions in emotional and impulsive behavior. Striatal reactivity may suggest an involvement of reward during winning and stealing points....

  5. Phantom dark ghost in Einstein-Cartan gravity

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Chang, Yu-Chiao [National Taiwan University, Department of Physics, Taipei (China); National Taiwan University, LeCosPA, Taipei (China); Bouhmadi-Lopez, Mariam [University of the Basque Country UPV/EHU, Department of Theoretical Physics, P.O. Box 644, Bilbao (Spain); Basque Foundation for Science, IKERBASQUE, Bilbao (Spain); Chen, Pisin [National Taiwan University, Department of Physics, Taipei (China); National Taiwan University, LeCosPA, Taipei (China); National Taiwan University, Graduate Institute of Astrophysics, Taipei (China); SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, Stanford University, Kavli Institute for Particle Astrophysics and Cosmology, Stanford, CA (United States)

    2017-05-15

    A class of dynamical dark energy models is constructed through an extended version of fermion fields corresponding to phantom dark ghost spinors, which are spin 1/2 with mass dimension 1. We find that if these spinors interact with torsion fields in a homogeneous and isotropic universe, then it does not imply any future dark energy singularity or any abrupt event, though the fermion has a negative kinetic energy. In fact, the equation of state of this dark energy model will asymptotically approach the value w = -1 from above without crossing the phantom divide and inducing therefore a de Sitter state. Consequently, we expect the model to be stable because no real phantom fields will be created. At late time, the torsion fields will vanish as the corresponding phantom dark ghost spinors dilute. As would be expected, intuitively, this result is unaffected by the presence of cold dark matter although the proof is not as straightforward as in general relativity. (orig.)

  6. Maternal obesity caused by overnutrition exposure leads to reversal learning deficits and striatal disturbance in rats.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ting Wu

    Full Text Available Maternal obesity caused by overnutrition during pregnancy increases susceptibility to metabolic risks in adulthood, such as obesity, insulin resistance, and type 2 diabetes; however, whether and how it affects the cognitive system associated with the brain remains elusive. Here, we report that pregnant obesity induced by exposure to excessive high fatty or highly palatable food specifically impaired reversal learning, a kind of adaptive behavior, while leaving serum metabolic metrics intact in the offspring of rats, suggesting a much earlier functional and structural defects possibly occurred in the central nervous system than in the metabolic system in the offspring born in unfavorable intrauterine nutritional environment. Mechanically, we found that above mentioned cognitive inflexibility might be associated with significant striatal disturbance including impaired dopamine homeostasis and disrupted leptin signaling in the adult offspring. These collective data add a novel perspective of understanding the adverse postnatal sequelae in central nervous system induced by developmental programming and the related molecular mechanism through which priming of risk for developmental disorders may occur during early life.

  7. Development of a web-based graphical user interface to design brain fiber models for tractography validation

    OpenAIRE

    González Vela, Guillem

    2017-01-01

    Diffusion Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) is an advanced MRI technique which can provide brain white matter tissue microscopic information. From this information, the connectivity map of axons in the brain can be obtained using tractography algorithms. However, this cartography of the brain wiring is known to suffer from several biases. Phantomas is an open source library created with the aim of evaluating tractography. It allows the creation of in silico brain phantoms and simulates i...

  8. Evaluation of a video-based head motion tracking system for dedicated brain PET

    Science.gov (United States)

    Anishchenko, S.; Beylin, D.; Stepanov, P.; Stepanov, A.; Weinberg, I. N.; Schaeffer, S.; Zavarzin, V.; Shaposhnikov, D.; Smith, M. F.

    2015-03-01

    Unintentional head motion during Positron Emission Tomography (PET) data acquisition can degrade PET image quality and lead to artifacts. Poor patient compliance, head tremor, and coughing are examples of movement sources. Head motion due to patient non-compliance can be an issue with the rise of amyloid brain PET in dementia patients. To preserve PET image resolution and quantitative accuracy, head motion can be tracked and corrected in the image reconstruction algorithm. While fiducial markers can be used, a contactless approach is preferable. A video-based head motion tracking system for a dedicated portable brain PET scanner was developed. Four wide-angle cameras organized in two stereo pairs are used for capturing video of the patient's head during the PET data acquisition. Facial points are automatically tracked and used to determine the six degree of freedom head pose as a function of time. The presented work evaluated the newly designed tracking system using a head phantom and a moving American College of Radiology (ACR) phantom. The mean video-tracking error was 0.99±0.90 mm relative to the magnetic tracking device used as ground truth. Qualitative evaluation with the ACR phantom shows the advantage of the motion tracking application. The developed system is able to perform tracking with accuracy close to millimeter and can help to preserve resolution of brain PET images in presence of movements.

  9. Loss of Balance between Striatal Feedforward Inhibition and Corticostriatal Excitation Leads to Tremor.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Oran, Yael; Bar-Gad, Izhar

    2018-02-14

    Fast-spiking interneurons (FSIs) exert powerful inhibitory control over the striatum and are hypothesized to balance the massive excitatory cortical and thalamic input to this structure. We recorded neuronal activity in the dorsolateral striatum and globus pallidus (GP) concurrently with the detailed movement kinematics of freely behaving female rats before and after selective inhibition of FSI activity using IEM-1460 microinjections. The inhibition led to the appearance of episodic rest tremor in the body part that depended on the somatotopic location of the injection within the striatum. The tremor was accompanied by coherent oscillations in the local field potential (LFP). Individual neuron activity patterns became oscillatory and coherent in the tremor frequency. Striatal neurons, but not GP neurons, displayed additional temporal, nonoscillatory correlations. The subsequent reduction in the corticostriatal input following muscimol injection to the corresponding somatotopic location in the primary motor cortex led to disruption of the tremor and a reduction of the LFP oscillations and individual neuron's phase-locked activity. The breakdown of the normal balance of excitation and inhibition in the striatum has been shown previously to be related to different motor abnormalities. Our results further indicate that the balance between excitatory corticostriatal input and feedforward FSI inhibition is sufficient to break down the striatal decorrelation process and generate oscillations resulting in rest tremor typical of multiple basal ganglia disorders. SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT Fast-spiking interneurons (FSIs) play a key role in normal striatal processing by exerting powerful inhibitory control over the network. FSI malfunctions have been associated with abnormal processing of information within the striatum that leads to multiple movement disorders. Here, we study the changes in neuronal activity and movement kinematics following selective inhibition of these

  10. Effects of incentives, age, and behavior on brain activation during inhibitory control: A longitudinal fMRI study

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    David J. Paulsen

    2015-02-01

    Full Text Available We investigated changes in brain function supporting inhibitory control under age-controlled incentivized conditions, separating age- and performance-related activation in an accelerated longitudinal design including 10- to 22-year-olds. Better inhibitory control correlated with striatal activation during neutral trials, while Age X Behavior interactions in the striatum indicated that in the absence of extrinsic incentives, younger subjects with greater reward circuitry activation successfully engage in greater inhibitory control. Age was negatively correlated with ventral amygdala activation during Loss trials, suggesting that amygdala function more strongly mediates bottom-up processing earlier in development when controlling the negative aspects of incentives to support inhibitory control. Together, these results indicate that with development, reward-modulated cognitive control may be supported by incentive processing transitions in the amygdala, and from facilitative to obstructive striatal function during inhibitory control.

  11. Experimental and computational development of a natural breast phantom for dosimetry studies

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Nogueira, Luciana B.; Campos, Tarcisio P.R.

    2013-01-01

    This paper describes the experimental and computational development of a natural breast phantom, anthropomorphic and anthropometric for studies in dosimetry of brachytherapy and teletherapy of breast. The natural breast phantom developed corresponding to fibroadipose breasts of women aged 30 to 50 years, presenting radiographically medium density. The experimental breast phantom was constituted of three tissue-equivalents (TE's): glandular TE, adipose TE and skin TE. These TE's were developed according to chemical composition of human breast and present radiological response to exposure. Completed the construction of experimental breast phantom this was mounted on a thorax phantom previously developed by the research group NRI/UFMG. Then the computational breast phantom was constructed by performing a computed tomography (CT) by axial slices of the chest phantom. Through the images generated by CT a computational model of voxels of the thorax phantom was developed by SISCODES computational program, being the computational breast phantom represented by the same TE's of the experimental breast phantom. The images generated by CT allowed evaluating the radiological equivalence of the tissues. The breast phantom is being used in studies of experimental dosimetry both in brachytherapy as in teletherapy of breast. Dosimetry studies by MCNP-5 code using the computational model of the phantom breast are in progress. (author)

  12. Possible Brain Mechanisms of Creativity.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Heilman, Kenneth M

    2016-06-01

    Creativity is the new discovery, understanding, development and expression of orderly and meaningful relationships. Creativity has three major stages: preparation, the development (nature and nurture) of critical knowledge and skills; innovation, the development of a creative solution; and creative production. Successful preparation requires a basic level of general intelligence and domain specific knowledge and skills and highly creative people may have anatomic alterations of specific neocortical regions. Innovation requires disengagement and divergent thinking primarily mediated by frontal networks. Creative people are often risk-takers and novelty seekers, behaviors that activate their ventral striatal reward system. Innovation also requires associative and convergent thinking, activities that are dependent on the integration of highly distributed networks. People are often most creative when they are in mental states associated with reduced levels of brain norepinephrine, which may enhance the communication between distributed networks. We, however, need to learn more about the brain mechanisms of creativity. Published by Oxford University Press 2016. This work is written by (a) US Government employee(s) and is in the public domain in the US.

  13. Neural correlates of stress- and food cue-induced food craving in obesity: association with insulin levels.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jastreboff, Ania M; Sinha, Rajita; Lacadie, Cheryl; Small, Dana M; Sherwin, Robert S; Potenza, Marc N

    2013-02-01

    Obesity is associated with alterations in corticolimbic-striatal brain regions involved in food motivation and reward. Stress and the presence of food cues may each motivate eating and engage corticolimibic-striatal neurocircuitry. It is unknown how these factors interact to influence brain responses and whether these interactions are influenced by obesity, insulin levels, and insulin sensitivity. We hypothesized that obese individuals would show greater responses in corticolimbic-striatal neurocircuitry after exposure to stress and food cues and that brain activations would correlate with subjective food craving, insulin levels, and HOMA-IR. Fasting insulin levels were assessed in obese and lean subjects who were exposed to individualized stress and favorite-food cues during functional MRI. Obese, but not lean, individuals exhibited increased activation in striatal, insular, and hypothalamic regions during exposure to favorite-food and stress cues. In obese but not lean individuals, food craving, insulin, and HOMA-IR levels correlated positively with neural activity in corticolimbic-striatal brain regions during favorite-food and stress cues. The relationship between insulin resistance and food craving in obese individuals was mediated by activity in motivation-reward regions including the striatum, insula, and thalamus. These findings demonstrate that obese, but not lean, individuals exhibit increased corticolimbic-striatal activation in response to favorite-food and stress cues and that these brain responses mediate the relationship between HOMA-IR and food craving. Improving insulin sensitivity and in turn reducing corticolimbic-striatal reactivity to food cues and stress may diminish food craving and affect eating behavior in obesity.

  14. Neural Correlates of Stress- and Food Cue–Induced Food Craving in Obesity

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jastreboff, Ania M.; Sinha, Rajita; Lacadie, Cheryl; Small, Dana M.; Sherwin, Robert S.; Potenza, Marc N.

    2013-01-01

    OBJECTIVE Obesity is associated with alterations in corticolimbic-striatal brain regions involved in food motivation and reward. Stress and the presence of food cues may each motivate eating and engage corticolimibic-striatal neurocircuitry. It is unknown how these factors interact to influence brain responses and whether these interactions are influenced by obesity, insulin levels, and insulin sensitivity. We hypothesized that obese individuals would show greater responses in corticolimbic-striatal neurocircuitry after exposure to stress and food cues and that brain activations would correlate with subjective food craving, insulin levels, and HOMA-IR. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS Fasting insulin levels were assessed in obese and lean subjects who were exposed to individualized stress and favorite-food cues during functional MRI. RESULTS Obese, but not lean, individuals exhibited increased activation in striatal, insular, and hypothalamic regions during exposure to favorite-food and stress cues. In obese but not lean individuals, food craving, insulin, and HOMA-IR levels correlated positively with neural activity in corticolimbic-striatal brain regions during favorite-food and stress cues. The relationship between insulin resistance and food craving in obese individuals was mediated by activity in motivation-reward regions including the striatum, insula, and thalamus. CONCLUSIONS These findings demonstrate that obese, but not lean, individuals exhibit increased corticolimbic-striatal activation in response to favorite-food and stress cues and that these brain responses mediate the relationship between HOMA-IR and food craving. Improving insulin sensitivity and in turn reducing corticolimbic-striatal reactivity to food cues and stress may diminish food craving and affect eating behavior in obesity. PMID:23069840

  15. Evaluation of DQA for tomography using 3D volumetric phantom

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Lee, Sang Uk [Dept. of Radiation Oncology, Catholic University of Incheon St. Mary' s Hospital, Incheon (Korea, Republic of); Kim, Jeong Koo [Dept. of Radiological Science, Hanseo University, Seosan (Korea, Republic of)

    2016-12-15

    The study investigates the necessity of 3 dimensional dose distribution evaluation instead of point dose and 2 dimensional dose distribution evaluation. Treatment plans were generated on the RANDO phantom to measure the precise dose distribution of the treatment site 0.5, 1, 1.5, 2, 2.5, 3 cm with the prescribed dose; 1,200 cGy, 5 fractions. Gamma analysis (3%/3 mm, 2%/2 mm) of dose distribution was evaluated with gafchromic EBT2 film and ArcCHECK phantom. The average error of absolute dose was measured at 0.76±0.59% and 1.37±0.76% in cheese phantom and ArcCHECK phantom respectively. The average passing ratio for 3%/3 mm were 97.72±0.02% and 99.26±0.01% in gafchromic EBT2 film and ArcCHECK phantom respectively. The average passing ratio for 2%/2 mm were 94.21±0.02% and 93.02±0.01% in gafchromic EBT2 film and ArcCHECK phantom respectively. There was a more accurate dose distribution of 3D volume phantom than cheese phantom in patients DQA using tomotherapy. Therefor it should be evaluated simultaneously 3 dimensional dose evaluation on target and peripheral area in rotational radiotherapy such as tomotherapy.

  16. Dopaminergic modulation of striatal acetylcholine release in rats depleted of dopamine as neonates.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Johnson, B J; Bruno, J P

    1995-02-01

    A repeated sessions, in vivo microdialysis design was used to determine the D1- and D2-like receptor modulation of striatal ACh efflux in intact adult rats and those depleted of DA on postnatal Day 3. Systemic administration of the D1-like agonist SKF 38393 (1.0 or 10.0 mg/kg, or the D2-like antagonist clebopride (1.0 or 10.0 mg/kg) increased ACh efflux in both controls and DA-depleted animals. Systemic administration of the D1-like antagonist SCH 23390 (0.05 or 0.2 mg/kg) or D2-like agonist quinpirole (0.5 or 1.0 mg/kg) decreased ACh efflux in both groups of animals. DA-depleted animals exhibited a larger response than did controls to the lower doses of these drugs. Intrastriatal administration of clebopride (10 microM) increased ACh efflux in DA-depleted animals. Finally, basal and clebopride-stimulated ACh efflux were unaffected by the repeated microdialysis sessions. These data demonstrate that the reciprocal modulation of striatal ACh efflux, seen in controls and in rats depleted of DA as adults, is also present in adults depleted of DA as neonates. Because the roles of D1- and D2-receptors in the expression of motor behavior differ between rats depleted of DA as adults vs as neonates, these data suggest that alterations in the dopaminergic modulation of striatal ACh release do not underlie the sparing from motoric deficits seen in animals depleted of DA as neonates.

  17. Striatal activation and frontostriatal connectivity during non-drug reward anticipation in alcohol dependence.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Becker, Alena; Kirsch, Martina; Gerchen, Martin Fungisai; Kiefer, Falk; Kirsch, Peter

    2017-05-01

    According to prevailing neurobiological theories of addiction, altered function in neural reward circuitry is a central mechanism of alcohol dependence. Growing evidence postulates that the ventral striatum (VS), as well as areas of the prefrontal cortex, contribute to the increased incentive salience of alcohol-associated cues, diminished motivation to pursue non-drug rewards and weakened strength of inhibitory cognitive control, which are central to addiction. The present study aims to investigate the neural response and functional connectivity underlying monetary, non-drug reward processing in alcohol dependence. We utilized a reward paradigm to investigate the anticipation of monetary reward in 32 alcohol-dependent inpatients and 35 healthy controls. Functional magnetic resonance imaging was used to measure task-related brain activation and connectivity. Alcohol-dependent patients showed increased activation of the VS during anticipation of monetary gain compared with healthy controls. Generalized psychophysiological interaction analyses revealed decreased functional connectivity between the VS and the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex in alcohol dependent patients relative to controls. Increased activation of the VS and reduced frontostriatal connectivity were associated with increased craving. These findings provide evidence that alcohol dependence is rather associated with disrupted integration of striatal and prefrontal processes than with a global reward anticipation deficit. © 2016 Society for the Study of Addiction.

  18. Common resting brain dynamics indicate a possible mechanism underlying zolpidem response in severe brain injury

    Science.gov (United States)

    Williams, Shawniqua T; Conte, Mary M; Goldfine, Andrew M; Noirhomme, Quentin; Gosseries, Olivia; Thonnard, Marie; Beattie, Bradley; Hersh, Jennifer; Katz, Douglas I; Victor, Jonathan D; Laureys, Steven; Schiff, Nicholas D

    2013-01-01

    Zolpidem produces paradoxical recovery of speech, cognitive and motor functions in select subjects with severe brain injury but underlying mechanisms remain unknown. In three diverse patients with known zolpidem responses we identify a distinctive pattern of EEG dynamics that suggests a mechanistic model. In the absence of zolpidem, all subjects show a strong low frequency oscillatory peak ∼6–10 Hz in the EEG power spectrum most prominent over frontocentral regions and with high coherence (∼0.7–0.8) within and between hemispheres. Zolpidem administration sharply reduces EEG power and coherence at these low frequencies. The ∼6–10 Hz activity is proposed to arise from intrinsic membrane properties of pyramidal neurons that are passively entrained across the cortex by locally-generated spontaneous activity. Activation by zolpidem is proposed to arise from a combination of initial direct drug effects on cortical, striatal, and thalamic populations and further activation of underactive brain regions induced by restoration of cognitively-mediated behaviors. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.7554/eLife.01157.001 PMID:24252875

  19. The Phantom Menace

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Vium, Christian

    2013-01-01

    as a phantom menace, which asserts itself through a form of omnipresent fear, nurtured by an inherent opaqueness. As this fundamental fear progressively permeates the nomadic landscape, it engenders a recasting of mobile strategies among the nomadic pastoralist groups who inhabit the interstitial desert spaces....

  20. Influence of neonatal and adult hyperthyroidism on behavior and biosynthetic capacity for norepinephrine, dopamine and 5-hydroxytryptamine in rat brain.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rastogi, R B; Singhal, R L

    1976-09-01

    In neonatal rats, administration of l-triiodothyronine (10 mug/100 g/day) for 30 days presented signs of hyperthyroidism which included accelerated development of a variety of physical and behavioral characteristics accompanying maturation. The spontaneous motor activity was increased by 69%. Exposure of developing rats to thyroid hormone significantly increased the endogenous concentration of striatal tyrosine and the activity of tyrosine hydroxylase as well as the levels of dopamine in several brain regions. The concentration of striatal homovanillic acid and 3,4-dihydroxyphenylacetic acid, the chief metabolites of dopamine, was also increased and the magnitude of change was greater than the rise in dopamine. Despite increases in the activity of tyrosine hydroxylase and the availability of the substrate tyrosine, the steady-state levels of norepinephrine remained unaltered in various regions of brain except in cerebellum. Futhermore, neonatal hyperthyroidism significantly increased the levels of midbrain tryptophan and tryptophan hydroxylase activity but produced no change in 5-hydroxytryptamine levels of several discrete brain regions, except hypothalamus and cerebellum where its concentration was slightly decreased. However, the 5-hydroxyindoleacetic acid levels were enhanced in hypothalamus, ponsmedulla, midbrain, striatum and hippocampus. The elevated levels of 5-hydroxyindoleacetic acid did not seem to be due to increased intraneuronal deamination of 5-hydroxytryptamine since monoamine oxidase activity was not affected in cerebral cortex and midbrain of hyperthyroid rats. The data demonstrate that hyperthyroidism significantly increased the synthesis as well as the utilization of catecholamines and 5-hydroxytryptamine in maturing brain. Since the mature brain is known to respond differently to thyroid hormone action than does the developing brain, the effect of L-triiodothyronine treatment on various putative neurohumors also was examined in adult rats