PET quantification of the norepinephrine transporter in human brain with (S,S)-18F-FMeNER-D2.

Norepinephrine transporter (NET) in the brain plays important roles in human cognition and the pathophysiology of psychiatric disorders. Two radioligands, (S,S)-(11)C-MRB and (S,S)-(18)F-FMeNER-D2, have been used for imaging NETs in the thalamus and midbrain (including locus coeruleus) using positron emission topography (PET) in humans. However, NET density in the equally important cerebral cortex has not been well quantified because of unfavorable kinetics with (S,S)-(11)C-MRB and defluorination with (S,S)-(18)F-FMeNER-D2, which can complicate NET quantification in the cerebral cortex adjacent to the skull containing defluorinated (18)F radioactivity. In this study, we have established analysis methods of quantification of NET density in the brain including cerebral cortex using (S,S)-(18)F-FMeNER-D2 PET