Dr. Frederick Bonte, Professor of Radiology

Dr. Peter Antich, Professor of Radiology

Dr. Padmakar Kulkarni, Professor of Radiology and Chief of Radiochemistry.

The blood/brain barrier is an anatomically constructed barrier, which protects the brain against foreign and noxious substances, but selectively admits various compounds necessary for brain metabolism. In order to label the characteristic lesions of Alzheimer's disease, it is necessary to move a radiotracer across the barrier. A strategy which has not yet been tried is the creation of polymer particles of average size 100nM which may act as carriers for tracers across the barrier, following which the particles will be themselves metabolized. This project is ongoing and also involves collaboration with Drs. Kulkarni, Antich, Michael Bennett, and others. Initially, particle distribution will be measured in wild-type mice, but eventually the experimental subjects will be transgenic mice bearing one or more of the known genes that cause Alzheimer's.

Dr. Frederick Bonte, Professor of Radiology: (1) Differential Diagnosis of Dementias using SPECT with special mathematical treatment; (2) Development of a nuclear scan diagnostic agent for the diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease, currently carried out in mice transgenic for Alzheimer’s; basis of the study is experimental chelation of metal ions known to be present in amyloid plaques which are characteristic of Alzheimer’s in the human and mouse brain. Nanoparticles may be used as vehicles to convey the quinoline tracer across the blood-brain barrier. (3) Metal ions are also present in a number of human tumors; we are attempting to develop a nuclear imaging tracer which will enable us to detect tumors in their primary and metastatic sites. This study is carried out in experimental animals, and with human tissue obtained at surgery.

Dr. Peter Antich, Professor of Radiology: (1) Development of a micro-PET imaging system for small animals, with special reference to the central nervous system; (2) Development of a micro-SPECT imaging system for small animals, again with special reference to the central nervous system. Both of the projects are actually underway, and represent one of the more cutting edges of imaging development. Dr. Antich's laboratory has also begun a program in optical brain imaging.

Dr. Padmakar Kulkarni, Professor of Radiology, and Chief of Radiochemistry. Dr. Kulkarni is also working on the problem of nanoparticles as vehicles to cross the blood/brain barrier to carry diagnostic and therapeutic agents in animals, and, eventually, in human subjects with various brain diseases, including the dementias.