Simultaneous imaging of bio-metal and molecular radiotracers in the body is now possible using a gamma-ray emission came
Trace metals in living organisms play a variety of important roles in many processes, including gene expression and the development of diseases such as cancer. It is possible to image the behavior of these 'bio-metals' by following radioactive tracers injected into the body. However, analyzing the corresponding expression of metal-associated molecules in the body using technologies like positron emission tomography (PET) has so far been impossible due to differences in the kinds of radiotracers used by these techniques. Shuichi Enomoto, Shinji Motomura and colleagues at the RIKEN Center for Life Science Technologies have now developed a way to simultaneously image a wide range of bio-metal and PET scan radiotracers in the body through the use of a semiconductor Compton camera called GREI-II.