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Objective: Integrated positron emission tomography/magnetic resonance imaging (PET/MRI) scanners provide combined MR-based anatomic and metabolic image information. The aim of this study was to evaluate qualitative and quantitative diagnostic performance of PET/MR with (18)fluoro-2-deoxyglucose ((18)F-FDG) using a diagnostic MR sequence in patients with abdominal and pelvic tumors, compared to positron emission tomography/computed tomography (PET/CT). Materials and Methods: Forty five patients underwent a single-injection ((18)F-FDG), dual-imaging protocol including whole-body PET/CT and subsequent regional PET/MR hybrid imaging. A regional PET/MR scan followed the PET/CT. Images from both modalities were analyzed using a 3-point scale for PET/CT and PET/MR image quality, image alignment, and lesion visibility on PET images. PET-CT/PET-MR functional and anatomical correlation was analyzed. Results: A total of 66 lesions were studied, from which 63 were identified using PET/CT and 59 were identified using PET/MR. The (18)F-FDG PET images had good diagnostic quality (P<0.001); alignment was found to be excellent in PET/MR data as well as PET/CT data (P=0.102), and there was no difference in lesion visibility (P=0.18). The average rating score regarding anatomical correlation for PET-positive lesions was 2.75 for combined MR sequence images and 2.04 for CT, with a significant difference (P=0.317), Standard uptake value (SUV) for focal lesions had excellent correlation (SUVmax/mean: R=0.948/0.948); furthermore, the SUVmean of background organs combined, bone marrow and the muscle tissue showed good correlation (R=0.329/0.398/0.298). No correlations were found in the liver and spleen. Conclusions: PET/MR with diagnostic MR sequence was able to detect abdominal and pelvic lesions and had good image quality compared to PET/CT. SUVmax and SUVmean values in focal lesions, and the SUVmean of background organs generally correlated well in abdominal and pelvic oncology patients examined using PET/CT and PET/MRI. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective Hepatic stellate cell (HSC) activation, which is accompanied by increased expression of integrin αvβ3, is an important factor in liver fibrogenesis. Molecular imaging targeting the integrin αvβ3 could provide a non-invasive method for evaluating the expression and the function of the integrin αvβ3 on the activated HSCs (aHSCs) in the injured liver, and then provide important prognostic information. 99m Tc-3PRGD2 is such a radiotracer specific for integrin αvβ3. In this study, we aimed to compare the differences in liver uptake and retention of the 99m Tc-3PRGD2 between normal liver and injured liver to evaluate the feasibility of 99m Tc-3PRGD2 scintigraphy for this purpose. Methods We used planar scintigraphy to assess changes in integrin αvβ3 binding of intravenously-administered 99m Tc-3PRGD2 in the livers of rats with thioacetamide (TAA)-induced liver fibrosis compared with the controls. We co-injected cold c(RGDyK) with 99m Tc-3PRGD2 to assess the specific binding of the radiotracer. We performed Sirius red staining to assess liver fibrosis, immunofluorescent colocalization to identify the location of integrin αvβ3 expressed in the fibrotic liver, and we measured protein and messenger RNA expression of integrin αvβ3 and alpha smooth muscle actin (α-SMA) in the control and fibrotic livers. Results The fibrotic livers showed enhanced 99m Tc-3PRGD2 uptake and retention. The radiotracer was demonstrated to bind specifically with the integrin αvβ3 mainly expressed on the aHSCs. The liver-to-heart ratio at 30 min post-injection was higher in the fibrotic livers than in the control livers (TAA, 1.98 ± 0.08 vs. control, 1.50 ± 0.12, p < 0.01). The liver t 1/2 was longer than in the controls (TAA, 27.07 ± 10.69 min vs. control, 12.67 ± 4.10 min, p < 0.01). The difference of heart t 1/2 between the two groups was not statistically significant (TAA, 3.13 ± 0.63 min vs. control, 3.41 ± 0.77 min, p = 0.94). Conclusions 99m Tc-3PRGD2 molecular imaging can provide a non-invasive method for assessing activation of HSCs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]