Radiopharmaceutical Delivery for Theranostics: Pharmacokinetics and Pharmacodynamics.

Theranostics is a new and evolving combination diagnostic and/or therapeutic approach that is demonstrating efficacy for treatment of a growing number of cancers. In this approach, a diagnostic radiopharmaceutical is used in concert with positron-emission tomography (PET) or single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) imaging to identify whether a cancer-specific membrane protein is strongly expressed on a patient's tumors. If the molecular target is detected with sufficient specificity and uptake, a therapeutic radiopharmaceutical, nearly identical to the diagnostic radiopharmaceutical except labeled with a longer-lived alpha or beta-emitting radionuclide, is administered at a therapeutic dose level to treat the cancer.

Emotional blunting following left basal ganglia stroke: the role of depression and fronto-limbic functional alterations.

Disorders of the basal ganglia (BG) alter perception and experience of emotions. Left hemisphere BG (LBG) stroke is also associated with depression. The interplay between depression and alterations in emotional processing following LBG stroke was examined.

Effects of chronic marijuana use on brain activity during monetary decision-making.

Marijuana (MJ) acutely acts on cannabinoid receptors that are found in numerous brain regions, including those involved in reward processing and decision-making. However, it remains unclear how long-term, chronic MJ use alters reward-based decision-making. In the present study, using [(15)O]water PET imaging, we measured brain activity in chronic MJ users, who underwent monitored abstinence from MJ for approximately 24 h before imaging, and control participants, while they took part in the Iowa Gambling Task (IGT), a monetary decision making task that strongly relies on the ventromedial prefrontal cortex (vmPFC).

Effects of smoking marijuana on focal attention and brain blood flow.

Using an attention task to control cognitive state, we previously found that smoking marijuana changes regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF). The present study measured rCBF during tasks requiring attention to left and right ears in different conditions. Twelve occasional marijuana users (mean age 23.

Marijuana alters the human cerebellar clock.

The effects of marijuana on brain perfusion and internal timing were assessed using [15O] water PET in occasional and chronic users. Twelve volunteers who smoked marijuana recreationally about once weekly, and 12 volunteers who smoked daily for a number of years performed a self-paced counting task during PET imaging, before and after smoking marijuana and placebo cigarettes. Smoking marijuana increased rCBF in the ventral forebrain and cerebellar cortex in both groups, but resulted in significantly less frontal lobe activation in chronic users.

Effects of smoking marijuana on brain perfusion and cognition.

The effects of smoking marijuana on regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF) and cognitive performance were assessed in 12 recreational users in a double-blinded, placebo-controlled study. PET with [(15)Oxygen]-labeled water ([(15)O]H(2)O) was used to measure rCBF before and after smoking of marijuana and placebo cigarettes, as subjects repeatedly performed an auditory attention task. Smoking marijuana resulted in intoxication, as assessed by a behavioral rating scale, but did not significantly alter mean behavioral performance on the attention task.