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- van der Doef, Thalia F., et al.
(författare)
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Assessing brain immune activation in psychiatric disorders : clinical and preclinical PET imaging studies of the 18-kDa translocator protein
- 2015
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Ingår i: CLINICAL AND TRANSLATIONAL IMAGING. - : Springer Nature. - 2281-5872 .- 2281-7565. ; 3:6, s. 449-460
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Forskningsöversikt (refereegranskat)abstract
- Accumulating evidence from different lines of research suggests an involvement of the immune system in the pathophysiology of several psychiatric disorders. During recent years, a series of positron emission tomography (PET) studies have been published using radioligands for the translocator protein (TSPO) to study microglia activation in schizophrenia, bipolar I disorder, major depression, autism spectrum disorder, and drug abuse. The results have been somewhat conflicting, which could be due to differences both in patient sample characteristics and in PET methods. In particular, further work is needed to address both methodological and biological sources of variability in TSPO levels, a process in which the use of animal models and small animal PET systems can be a valuable tool. Given this development, PET studies of immune activation have the potential to further increase our understanding of disease mechanisms in psychiatric disorders, which is a requisite in the search for new treatment approaches. Furthermore, molecular imaging could become an important clinical tool for identifying specific subgroups of patients or disease stages that would benefit from treatment targeting the immune system.
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2. |
- van der Doef, Thalia F, et al.
(författare)
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In vivo (R)-[(11)C]PK11195 PET imaging of 18kDa translocator protein in recent onset psychosis.
- 2016
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Ingår i: NPJ schizophrenia. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 2334-265X. ; 2
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Evidence is accumulating that immune dysfunction is involved in the pathophysiology of schizophrenia. It has been hypothesized that microglia activation is present in patients with schizophrenia. Various in vivo and post-mortem studies have investigated this hypothesis, but as yet with inconclusive results. Microglia activation is associated with elevations in 18 kDa translocator protein (TSPO) levels, which can be measured with the positron emission tomography (PET) tracer (R)-[(11)C]PK11195. The purpose of the present study was to investigate microglia activation in psychosis in vivo at an early stage of the disease. (R)-[(11)C]PK11195 binding potential (BPND) was measured in 19 patients with recent onset psychosis and 17 age and gender-matched healthy controls. Total gray matter, as well as five gray matter regions of interest (frontal cortex, temporal cortex, parietal cortex, striatum, and thalamus) were defined a priori. PET data were analysed using a reference tissue approach and a supervised cluster analysis algorithm to identify the reference region. No significant difference in (R)-[(11)C]PK11195 BPND between patients and controls was found in total gray matter, nor one of the regions of interest. These findings suggest that microglia activation is not present in recent onset psychosis or that it is a subtle phenomenon that could not be detected using the design of the present study.
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