Affiliations: Service de Pharmacologie, Nancy Université, Physiopathologie, Pharmacologie et Ingénierie Articulaires, Vandoeuvre-lès-Nancy, France | Service de Médecine Nucléaire, Hôpitaux de Brabois, Centre Hospitalo-Universitaire de Nancy-Brabois, Vandoeuvre-lès-Nancy, France
Note: [] Address for correspondence: Prof. Pierre Gillet, MD, PhD, UMR 7561 CNRS, Nancy Université, Physiopathologie, Pharmacologie et Ingénierie Articulaires, Faculté de Médecine, BP 184, Avenue de la Forêt de Haye, F54505 Vandoeuvre-lès-Nancy, France. Tel.: +33 383 683 950; Fax: +33 383 683 959; E-mail: pierre.gillet@medecine.uhp-nancy.fr.
Abstract: Aim: Assessing the activity of synovitis, which is characterized by an increase in cell metabolism, is important for the prediction of future articular destruction in clinical and preclinical studies. To evaluate the correlation between 18F-FDG accumulation and arthritis pathology during its establishment, we used microPET to evaluted 18F-FDG accumulation in vivo during rat Mycobacterium wall-induced knee arthritis. Methods: 18F-FDG PET images of arthritic rats were acquired on days 1, 2, 3 and 7 after arthritis induction. The subjects (n=2/time) were subsequently subjected to macro-autoradiography, and 18F-FDG accumulation was compared with histological findings. Results: 18F-FDG PET images depicted swollen joints, and 18F-FDG accumulation increased with the progression of arthritis. Histologically, increased 18F-FDG accumulation correlated with the pannus rather than the infiltration of inflammatory cells around the joints. Conclusion: 18F-FDG accumulation in arthritis reflects proliferating pannus and inflammatory activity enhanced by inflammatory cytokines. 18F-FDG microPET should be effective for quantifying the inflammatory activity of arthritis and/or its therapeutic response.
Keywords: Inflammation, synovitis, microPET, rat monoarthritis
