Advantages in functional imaging of the brain

Abstract

As neuronal pathologies cause only minor morphological alterations, molecular imaging techniques are a prerequisite for the study of diseases of the brain. The development of molecular probes that specifically bind biochemical markers and the advances of instrumentation have revolutionized the possibilities to gain insight into the human brain organization and beyond this-visualize structure-function and brain-behavior relationships. The review describes the development and current applications of functional brain imaging techniques with a focus on applications in psychiatry. A historical overview of the development of functional imaging is followed by the portrayal of the principles and applications of positron emission tomography (PET) and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), two key molecular imaging techniques that have revolutionized the ability to image molecular processes in the brain. We conclude that the juxtaposition of PET and fMRI in hybrid PET/MRI scanners enhances the significance of both modalities for research in neurology and psychiatry and might pave the way for a new area of personalized medicine.

Keywords: functional magnetic imaging; molecular imaging; neurological diseases; positron emission tomography; radiotracers.

Figure 1

Basic aspects of PET and fMRI. Left: chemical structures of common PET tracers used in neurological imaging and illustration of the induction of relaxation by hemoglobin, Middle: General characteristics of PET versus fMRI, Right: Typical PET and fMRI images (both single subjects).