Over 350 Total Lots Up For Auction at Two Locations - NY 03/21, FL 03/22

Polarized nuclear imaging may be the next big imaging modality

by Lauren Dubinsky, Senior Reporter | October 14, 2016
Molecular Imaging MRI
Photo A is an image of a sealed
glass cell obtained by PNI
Photo B is an photo of a glass cell
Take note of a new technique called polarized nuclear imaging (PNI), because it may just be the next big imaging modality. Researchers at the University of Virginia have developed the technique and are now in the process of refining it.

"We view this as a platform technology that might provide physiological information about a variety of different organ systems, much like MR and nuclear medicine now," Wilson Miller, one of the researchers and a physicist at the university, told HCB News.

Instead of imaging protons in water, which is what MR does, PNI images a radioactive isotope of xenon that has been polarized using laser techniques. It obtains the spatial information from MR and collects image information by detecting gamma rays generated by xenon.
stats
DOTmed text ad

New Fully Configured 80-slice CT in 2 weeks with Software Upgrades for Life

For those who need to move fast and expand clinical capabilities -- and would love new equipment -- the uCT 550 Advance offers a new fully configured 80-slice CT in up to 2 weeks with routine maintenance and parts and Software Upgrades for Life™ included.

stats
Since it's possible to detect a gamma ray from even one atom, PNI offers much better image sensitivity and greatly reduces the amount of material required to perform the MR techniques, according to the researchers.

A paper discussing the new imaging modality has recently been published in the journal, Nature, along with the first-ever published image using the technique. The researchers stated that the quality of that image is much greater than the first image ever produced using MR.

Once the technique is refined, it could provide a relatively inexpensive way to visualize the gas space of the lungs. Patients would inhale a gas that contains the isotopes and PNI would be used to generate the image.

The technique could also be used to image targeted areas of the body by injecting the isotopes into the bloodstream. It only requires a small amount of tracer material, so the radioactivity would be of little to no danger to the patient.

"In the longer term, we hope that it will enable enhanced imaging of organ systems beyond the lungs, although challenges associated with agent delivery must be overcome to realize that hope," said Miller.

The researchers noted that "considerable work" still needs to be done to illustrate the usefulness of the technique in living subjects. In order to develop it for practical use, the size of the detector or the amount of tracer material needs to be increased.

They are currently searching for other radioactive isotopes that would maintain their polarization once inside a living subject.

"It is certainly possible that diagnostic procedures enabled by our new imaging technique may someday become the standard of care, but that day is years in the future," said Wilson. "For now, we are focused on basic research and development to harness the full power of our technique for medical applications."

Back to HCB News

You Must Be Logged In To Post A Comment