3D whole body preclinical micro-CT database of subcutaneous tumors in mice with annotations from 3 annotators.

A pivotal animal model for development of anticancer molecules is mice with subcutaneous tumors, grown by injection of xenografted tumor cells, where micro-Computed Tomography (µCT) of the mice is used to analyze the efficacy of the anticancer molecule. Manual delineation of the tumor region is necessary for the analysis, which is time-consuming and inconsistent, highlighting the need for automatic segmentation (AS) tools. This study introduces a preclinical µCT database, comprising 452 whole-body scans from 223 individual mice with subcutaneous tumors, spanning ten diverse µCT datasets conducted between 2014 and 2020 on a preclinical PET/CT scanner, making it the hitherto largest dataset of its kind.

Early Detection of Cardiotoxicity Using [Cu]Cu-NODAGA-E[(cRGDyK)]2 PET Imaging in a Rat Model of Doxorubicin-Induced Heart Failure.

Doxorubicin (DOX) is a common and highly effective chemotherapeutic. However, its use is limited by cardiotoxic effects and the lack of methods to detect these at early time points. In the present study, we evaluated if [Cu]Cu-NODAGA-E[(cRGDyK)]2 positron emission tomography-computed tomography ([Cu]Cu-RGD PET/CT) could detect cardiotoxicity in a rat model of DOX-induced heart failure.

Increased Subclinical Coronary Artery Pathology in Type 2 Diabetes With Albuminuria.

Diabetes affects the kidneys, and the presence of albuminuria reflects widespread vascular damage and is a risk factor for cardiovascular disease (CVD). Still, the pathophysiological association between albuminuria and CVD remains incompletely understood. Recent advances in noninvasive imaging enable functional assessment of coronary artery pathology and present an opportunity to explore the association between albuminuria and CVD.

Ceramides are decreased after liraglutide treatment in people with type 2 diabetes: a post hoc analysis of two randomized clinical trials.

Background: Specific ceramides have been identified as risk markers for cardiovascular disease (CVD) years before onset of disease. Treatment with the glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonist (GLP-1RA) liraglutide has been shown to induce beneficial changes in the lipid profile and reduce the risk of CVD. Reducing lipotoxic lipids with an antidiabetic drug therapy could be a path towards precision medicine approaches for the treatment of complications to diabetes.

[Ga]Ga-NODAGA-E[(cRGDyK)] angiogenesis PET following myocardial infarction in an experimental rat model predicts cardiac functional parameters and development of heart failure.

Background: Angiogenesis has increasingly been a target for imaging and treatment over the last decade. The integrin αβ is highly expressed in cells during angiogenesis and are therefore a promising target for imaging. In this study, we aimed to investigate the PET tracer [Ga]Ga-RGD as a marker of angiogenesis following MI and its ability to predict cardiac functional parameters.

Liraglutide Lowers Palmitoleate Levels in Type 2 Diabetes. A Analysis of the LIRAFLAME Randomized Placebo-Controlled Trial.

Background: Liraglutide is a glucose-lowering medication used to treat type 2 diabetes and obesity. It is a GLP-1 receptor agonist with downstream metabolic changes beyond the incretin system, such as reducing the risk of cardiovascular complications. The understanding of these changes is critical for improving treatment outcomes.

[Ga]Ga-NODAGA-E[(cRGDyK)] and [Cu]Cu-DOTATATE PET Predict Improvement in Ischemic Cardiomyopathy.

An increasing number of patients are living with chronic ischemic cardiomyopathy (ICM) and/or heart failure. Treatment options and prognostic tools are lacking for many of these patients. Our aim was to investigate the prognostic value of imaging angiogenesis and macrophage activation via positron emission tomography (PET) in terms of functional improvement after cell therapy.

In vivo molecular imaging of cardiac angiogenesis in persons with and without type 2 diabetes: A cross-sectional Ga-RGD-PET study.

Aims: To assess cardiac angiogenesis in type 2 diabetes by positron emission tomography (PET) tracer [ Ga]Ga-NODAGA-E[(cRGDyK)] ( Ga-RGD) imaging.

Methods: Cross-sectional study including 20 persons with type 2 diabetes and 10 non-diabetic controls (CONs). Primary prespecified outcome was difference in cardiac angiogenesis (cardiac Ga-RGD mean target-to-background ratio [TBR ]) between type 2 diabetes and CONs.

[Cu]Cu-DOTATATE PET metrics in the investigation of atherosclerotic inflammation in humans.

Purpose: The aim of this study was to assess and compare the arterial uptake of the inflammatory macrophage targeting PET tracer [Cu]Cu-DOTATATE in patients with no or known cardiovascular disease (CVD) to investigate potential differences in uptake.

Methods: Seventy-nine patients who had undergone [Cu]Cu-DOTATATE PET/CT imaging for neuroendocrine neoplasm disease were retrospectively allocated to three groups: controls with no known CVD risk factors (n = 22), patients with CVD risk factors (n = 24), or patients with known ischemic CVD (n = 33). Both maximum, mean of max and most-diseased segment (mds) standardized uptake value (SUV) and target-to-background ratio (TBR) uptake metrics were measured and reported for the carotid arteries and the aorta.

Feasibility of positron range correction in 82-Rubidium cardiac PET/CT.

Background: Myocardial perfusion imaging (MPI) using positron emission tomography (PET) tracers is an essential tool in investigating diseases and treatment responses in cardiology. Rubidium (Rb)-PET imaging is advantageous for MPI due to its short half-life, but cannot be used for small animal research due to the long positron range. We aimed to correct for this, enabling MPI with Rb-PET in rats.

Semaglutide reduces vascular inflammation investigated by PET in a rabbit model of advanced atherosclerosis.

Background And Aims: The objective of this study was to investigate the effects of semaglutide, a long acting glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonist, on atherosclerotic inflammation and calcification using a multimodality positron emission tomography and computed tomography (PET/CT) approach.

Methods: Atherosclerotic New Zealand White rabbits were randomized to an intervention- (n = 12) or placebo group (n = 11) receiving either semaglutide or saline-placebo. PET/CT imaging was done before and after 16-weeks of intervention.

In vivo detection of urokinase-type plasminogen activator receptor (uPAR) expression in arterial atherogenesis using [Cu]Cu-DOTA-AE105 positron emission tomography (PET).

Background And Aims: Urokinase-type plasminogen activator receptor (uPAR) is associated with extracellular matrix (ECM) degradation and cancer aggressiveness. Its role in arterial atherogenesis as a molecular imaging target is not well-established. The aim of this study was to non-invasively visualize uPAR expression in atherosclerosis by a novel uPAR-targeting positron emission tomography (PET) tracer [Cu]Cu-DOTA-AE105.

The Association Between Cardiovascular Autonomic Function and Changes in Kidney and Myocardial Function in Type 2 Diabetes and Healthy Controls.

Background: The mechanisms linking cardiovascular autonomic neuropathy, diabetic kidney disease and cardiovascular mortality in type 2 diabetes are widely unknown. We investigated the relationship between baseline cardiovascular autonomic function and changes in kidney and myocardial function over six years in patients with type 2 diabetes and healthy controls.

Methods: analysis of a cohort study in 24 patients with type 2 diabetes and 18 healthy controls.

Effect of 26 Weeks of Liraglutide Treatment on Coronary Artery Inflammation in Type 2 Diabetes Quantified by [Cu]Cu-DOTATATE PET/CT: Results from the LIRAFLAME Trial.

Background: Quantification of coronary artery inflammation and atherosclerosis remains a challenge in high-risk individuals. In this study we sought to investigate if the glucagon like peptide-1 receptor agonist liraglutide has a direct anti-inflammatory effect in the coronary arteries using positron emission tomography (PET) with a radioactive tracer targeting activated macrophages in the vessel-wall.

Methods: Thirty randomly selected participants with type 2 diabetes from the placebo-controlled trial LIRAFLAME were enrolled in this sub-study.

The Initial Cardiac Tissue Response to Cryopreserved Allogeneic Adipose Tissue-Derived Mesenchymal Stromal Cells in Rats with Chronic Ischemic Cardiomyopathy.

Mesenchymal stromal cells have proven capable of improving cardiac pump function in patients with chronic heart failure, yet little is known about their mode of action. The aim of the study was to investigate the short-term effect of cryopreserved allogeneic rat adipose tissue-derived stromal cells (ASC) on cardiac composition, cellular subpopulations, and gene transcription in a rat model of chronic ischemic cardiomyopathy (ICM). Myocardial infarction (MI) was induced by permanent ligation of the left anterior descending coronary artery.

Amiodarone attenuates cardiac Rubidium-82 in consecutive PET/CT scans in a rodent model.

Background: Risk stratification and diagnosis using Rubidium-82 (Rb) positron emission tomography (PET) is a routine clinical approach in coronary artery disease (CAD). Various drugs are used to treat CAD; however, whether any of them change the uptake of Rb in the heart has not been investigated. The aim of this study is to determine whether drugs used in treatment of CAD affect the uptake of Rb in the heart in healthy rats.

Effect of liraglutide on expression of inflammatory genes in type 2 diabetes.

Anti-inflammatory effects of glucagon-like peptide 1 receptor agonist (GLP-1 RA) treatment in T2D may contribute to the cardiovascular benefits observed with GLP-1 RAs in outcome studies. We investigated if the GLP-1 RA liraglutide exerts anti-inflammatory effects through modulation of inflammatory gene expression in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs). From 54 participants of a double-blinded trial where individuals with type 2 diabetes (T2D) were randomized to liraglutide (1.

Ceramides and phospholipids are downregulated with liraglutide treatment: results from the LiraFlame randomized controlled trial.

Introduction: Treatment with glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists (GLP-1 RAs) can reduce risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD) in persons living with type 2 diabetes, however the mechanisms explaining this cardiovascular benefit are still debated. We investigated changes in the plasma lipidome following treatment with the GLP-1 RA liraglutide.

Research Design And Methods: In a double-blind placebo-controlled trial, we randomized 102 persons with type 2 diabetes to liraglutide or placebo for 26 weeks.

Effect of Liraglutide on Vascular Inflammation Evaluated by [Cu]DOTATATE.

Quantification of vascular inflammation before and after treatment with glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists (GLP-1 RAs) may help reveal mechanistic pathways underlying the cardiovascular benefits of these drugs. We assessed change in vascular inflammation in the carotid arteries over 26 weeks by copper-64-labeled [1,4,7,10-tetraazacyclododecane-N,N',N″,N‴-tetraacetic acid]-D-Phe1, Tyr3-octreotate ([Cu]DOTATATE) PET in 30 participants included in a substudy of a double-blind trial where persons with type 2 diabetes (T2D) were randomized to liraglutide ( = 15) or placebo ( = 15) for 26 weeks. Mean age (SD) was 66.

Liraglutide reduces cardiac adipose tissue in type 2 diabetes: A secondary analysis of the LIRAFLAME randomized placebo-controlled trial.

Aim: To test the hypothesis that treatment with liraglutide can reduce cardiac adipose tissue.

Materials And Methods: LIRAFLAME is a randomized placebo-controlled, double-blind, parallel clinical study. Participants with type 2 diabetes were randomized to treatment with liraglutide 1.

Effect of Liraglutide on Arterial Inflammation Assessed as [F]FDG Uptake in Patients With Type 2 Diabetes: A Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Trial.

Background: The mechanism behind the cardiovascular protection observed with human GLP-1 RA (glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists) in type 2 diabetes is unknown. We hypothesized that treatment with the GLP-1 RA liraglutide had a positive effect on vascular inflammation.

Methods: LIRAFLAME (Effect of liraglutide on vascular inflammation in type-2 diabetes: A randomized, placebocontrolled, double-blind, parallel clinical PET/CT trial) was a double-blind, randomized controlled trial performed at a single university hospital clinic in Denmark.