PET Detector for Cardiac Imaging of Small Animals

用于小动物心脏成像的 PET 探测器

• 批准号: 7051079
• 负责人: KANAI SHAH
• 金额: $ 12.4万
• 依托单位: RADIATION MONITORING DEVICES, INC.
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 财政年份: 2006
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2006-04-01 至 2007-03-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/7051079
• 关键词: Rodentias; bioimaging /biomedical imaging; biomedical equipment development; cadmium; computed axial tomography; computer simulation; gamma radiation; heart imaging /visualization /scanning; image enhancement; magnetic resonance imaging; positron emission tomography; radiation detector; tellurium

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Positron emission tomography (PET) of small animals is emerging as a very powerful tool for advancing our understanding of human diseases such as heart disease and cancer. Due to the small (sub-millimeter) feature sizes, dedicated, high resolution PET systems are required to obtain sufficiently detailed images of organs of interest. In particular, sub-millimeter spatial resolution is required for detailed, functional heart imaging of mice. Currently, the detectors for most PET systems are based on arrays of dense scintillators (i.e. indirect detectors). Simulations have shown that the pitch of the scintillator arrays is the dominant factor limiting spatial resolution. However, fabricating and accurately decoding scintillators with element size much smaller than 1-mm is very challenging. In addition, as the scintillator element size decreases, the light collection decreases and consequently the energy and timing resolution of the system decreases. Therefore there is a need for an alternative approach for developing an improved detector for small animal PET imaging. The main objective of the Phase I research is to demonstrate the feasibility of producing very high- resolution PET detectors for small animal imaging using a direct detection approach with room temperature CdTe and CZT detectors. The overall detector design that we plan to use in the proposed effort is expected to satisfy all major requirements for small animal imaging including very high spatial resolution, reasonably high sensitivity, and good timing and DOI resolution. Excellent energy resolution can also be expected from the proposed design. The proposed effort is expected to have a lasting value both in terms of its research potential as well as its commercial scope. The most direct application addressed here is that of small animal PET imaging which is showing enormous promise for increasing our understanding of human disease models. Other selected human high-resolution PET applications for breast, brain and pediatric imaging are also emerging where this technology would be applicable. The proposed technology can also play a role in combined PET/CT and PET/MRI imaging instruments under development.

描述（由申请人提供）：小动物的正电子发射断层扫描（PET）正在成为一种非常强大的工具，可促进我们对心脏病和癌症等人类疾病的了解。由于特征尺寸较小（亚毫米），需要专用的高分辨率 PET 系统才能获得感兴趣器官的足够详细的图像。特别是，对小鼠进行详细的功能性心脏成像需要亚毫米空间分辨率。目前，大多数 PET 系统的探测器都基于密集闪烁体阵列（即间接探测器）。模拟表明闪烁体阵列的节距是限制空间分辨率的主要因素。然而，制造和准确解码元件尺寸远小于 1 毫米的闪烁体非常具有挑战性。此外，随着闪烁体元件尺寸的减小，光收集减少，从而系统的能量和定时分辨率降低。因此，需要一种替代方法来开发用于小动物 PET 成像的改进探测器。第一阶段研究的主要目标是证明使用室温 CdTe 和 CZT 探测器的直接探测方法生产用于小动物成像的高分辨率 PET 探测器的可行性。我们计划在拟议工作中使用的整体探测器设计预计将满足小动物成像的所有主要要求，包括非常高的空间分辨率、相当高的灵敏度以及良好的定时和 DOI 分辨率。所提出的设计也有望实现出色的能量分辨率。预计拟议的工作在研究潜力和商业范围方面都将具有持久的价值。这里讨论的最直接的应用是小动物 PET 成像，它在增进我们对人类疾病模型的理解方面显示出巨大的前景。其他选定的用于乳腺、大脑和儿科成像的人体高分辨率 PET 应用也正在出现，这些应用都适用该技术。该技术还可在正在开发的 PET/CT 和 PET/MRI 组合成像仪器中发挥作用。