RT Journal Article SR Electronic T1 The PET Radioligand 18F-FIMX Images and Quantifies Metabotropic Glutamate Receptor 1 in Proportion to the Regional Density of Its Gene Transcript in Human Brain JF Journal of Nuclear Medicine JO J Nucl Med FD Society of Nuclear Medicine SP 242 OP 247 DO 10.2967/jnumed.115.162461 VO 57 IS 2 A1 Paolo Zanotti-Fregonara A1 Rong Xu A1 Sami S. Zoghbi A1 Jeih-San Liow A1 Masahiro Fujita A1 Mattia Veronese A1 Robert L. Gladding A1 Denise Rallis-Frutos A1 Jinsoo Hong A1 Victor W. Pike A1 Robert B. Innis YR 2016 UL http://jnm.snmjournals.org/content/57/2/242.abstract AB A recent study from our laboratory found that 18F-FIMX is an excellent PET radioligand for quantifying metabotropic glutamate receptor 1 (mGluR1) in monkey brain. This study evaluated the ability of 18F-FIMX to quantify mGluR1 in humans. A second goal was to use the relative density of mGluR1 gene transcripts in brain regions to estimate specific uptake and nondisplaceable uptake (VND) in each brain region. Methods: After injection of 189 ± 3 MBq of 18F-FIMX, 12 healthy volunteers underwent a dynamic PET scan over 120 min. For 6 volunteers, images were acquired until 210 min. A metabolite-corrected arterial input function was measured from the radial artery. Four other subjects underwent whole-body scanning to estimate radiation exposure. Results: 18F-FIMX uptake into the human brain was high (SUV = 4–6 in the cerebellum), peaked at about 10 min, and washed out rapidly. An unconstrained 2-tissue-compartment model fitted the data well, and distribution volume (VT) (mL⋅cm−3) values ranged from 1.5 in the caudate to 11 in the cerebellum. A 120-min scan provided stable VT values in all regions except the cerebellum, for which an acquisition time of at least 170 min was necessary. VT values in brain regions correlated well with mGluR1 transcript density, and the correlation suggested that VND of 18F-FIMX was quite low (0.5 mL⋅cm−3). This measure of VND in humans was similar to that from a receptor blocking study in monkeys, after correcting for differences in plasma protein binding. Similar to other 18F-labeled ligands, the effective dose was about 23 μSv/MBq. Conclusion: 18F-FIMX can quantify mGluR1 in the human brain with a 120- to 170-min scan. Correlation of brain uptake with the relative density of mGluR1 transcript allows specific receptor binding of a radioligand to be quantified without injecting pharmacologic doses of a blocking agent.