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Review
. 2022 Apr;122(2):263-272.
doi: 10.1007/s13760-021-01797-w. Epub 2021 Oct 28.

Disclosing tau tangles using PET imaging: a pharmacological review of the radiotracers available in 2021

Éléonore Van Wambeke  1 , Thomas Gérard  2   3 , Renaud Lhommel  2   3 , Bernard Hanseeuw  2   4   5
Affiliations
Review

Disclosing tau tangles using PET imaging: a pharmacological review of the radiotracers available in 2021

Éléonore Van Wambeke et al. Acta Neurol Belg. 2022 Apr.

Abstract

Neurological symptoms depend on the topography of the lesions in the nervous system, hence the importance of brain imaging for neurologists. Neurological treatment, however, depends on the biological nature of the lesions. The development of radiotracers specific for the proteinopathies observed in neurodegenerative disorders is, therefore, crucially important for better understanding the relationships between the pathology and the clinical symptoms, as well as the efficacy of therapeutical interventions. The tau protein is involved in several neurodegenerative disorders, that can be distinguished both biologically and clinically as the type of tau isoforms and filaments observed in brain aggregates, and the brain regions affected differ between tauopathies. Over the past few years, several tracers have been developed for imaging tauopathies with positron emission tomography. The present review aims to compare the binding properties of these tracers, with a specific focus on how these properties might be relevant for neurologists using these biomarkers to characterize the pathology of patients presenting with clinical symptoms suspect of a neurodegenerative disorder.

Keywords: Neurofibrillary tangles; PET imaging; Radiotracers; Tau PET.

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