Nanopet ct scanner

Interrogation of spinal curvature was achieved via CT scanning. Whole body micro CT images of mice was acquired. 8 groups of animals were be included in this study with 5 animals per group between male and female controls and knockout mice. Collected CT images were reconstructed and analysed using PMOD software. Mice were carefully positioned head first prone in the scanner bed for collection of coronal and sagittal plane radiographs using a nanoPET/CT scanner (Mediso, Hungary) and the following settings: side or top view, X-ray energy of 50 kVp, exposure time of 300 ms and maximum field of view. Coronal and sagittal plane radiographs were used for animal positioning for high-resolution microCT imaging, which was acquired using the following parameters: semi-circular full trajectory, 720 projections, maximum zoom, tube voltage of 50 kVp, exposure time of 300 ms, binning of 1:4. Nucline software (Mediso, Hungary) was used to reconstruct microCT images using the following parameters: voxel size medium, slice thickness medium and cosine filter with 100% cut-off (combined voxel resolution: isotropic 251 μm). The Nucline software was also used to assess gross anatomical measurements and to measure the magnitude of the largest scoliotic and thoraco-lumbar kyphotic curves, according to the Cobb method⁴³ .

Small animal positron emission tomography (PET) was performed using the nanoPET/CT scanner (Mediso Medical Imaging Systems, Budapest, Hungary). Each animal received an intravenous injection of 10 MBq [⁶⁴Cu]Cu-DOTA-TATE (pharmaceutically equivalent to 0.25 nmol) delivered in 0.2 mL of 0.154 mol/L NaCl(aq) through a tail vein catheter. Recording, binning, framing, and image reconstruction were performed as reported previously 34 (link). Dynamic imaging was performed for 60 min, static imaging between 40‒60 min after radiotracer injection. With each PET scan, a corresponding CT image was recorded and used for anatomical referencing and attenuation correction. Images were post-processed and analyzed using ROVER (ABX, Radeberg, Germany) and displayed as maximum intensity projections (MIPs) at indicated time points and scaling. Standardized uptake values (SUV) were determined and reported as SUVmean (VOI-averaged) and SUVmax (VOI-maximum). Details on quantitative PET image analysis are provided in Supplemental Information 1.4.

Clinical images were acquired 89 min after intravenous injection of 356 MBq of ¹⁸F-labelled fluorodeoxyglucose (¹⁸F-FDG). Mice were fasted overnight prior to intravenous administration of 5 MBq of ¹⁸F-FDG (IBA Molecular, Guildford, UK). Data were acquired between 60 and 90 min in list-mode format on a NanoPET/CT scanner (Mediso, Hungary). A CT image was acquired for anatomic registration. PET images were reconstructed using a two-dimensional ordered-subset expectation maximisation method using five iterations and six subsets. Images were normalised and corrected for decay, dead-time and random events producing an image with 283 mm isotropic voxels. The image was visualised using Vivoquant 1.23 software (InviCRO, Massachusetts, USA).

PET/CT scans were performed using a preclinical NanoPET/CT scanner (Mediso, Hungary) on MDA-MB-231 tumor-bearing ~ 8-week-ld female nude mice. Mice (19–23 g) were anesthetized prior to the imaging with a mixture of (100 μL, subcutaneous injection) ketamine and xylazine. One hour after the intravenous injection of radiolabeled BN peptide (100 μL peptide, 100–150 μCi, total peptide dose ~ 100 ng) via the tail vein into the anesthetized mouse, each mouse was placed in the camera in prone position and static image was acquired for 30 min. The acquired raw data in these imaging studies were reconstructed to visible image form using Interveiw Fusion software (Mediso, Hungary).
After completion of imaging, mice were sacrificed by cervical dislocation and in vivo quantitative tissue biodistribution were performed (as described above) in order to confirm and compare the findings of the imaging with quantitative tissue biodistribution.

Explanted degenerated aortic valve bioprostheses were obtained with written consent from patients undergoing repeat surgical aortic valve replacement for bioprosthetic valve failure. Valves were weighed, photographed, and their macroscopic features documented. Ex vivo micro–PET-CT was performed with a nano–PET-CT scanner (Mediso, Budapest, Hungary) and x-ray microtomograph (Bruker, Kontich, Belgium) before undergoing histological evaluation (Online Appendix).

PET imaging was performed with a dedicated small animal NanoPET/CT scanner (Mediso Ltd., Hungary). Mice were anaesthetised by inhalation of 2–4% isoflurane/O₂ during the whole scanning period (1-h duration per time point). A 5-min CT scan was acquired prior to each PET scan and used for attenuation and scatter correction purposes. Reconstruction was performed using a 3-dimensional reconstruction algorithm (Tera-Tomo; Mediso Ltd.) with four iterations and six subsets, resulting in an isotropic 0.4-mm voxel dimension.