Novel imaging biomarker for detection of regional cardiovascular inflammation using Positron Emission Tomography (PET)
Dr Adriana Tavares and her team at the University of Edinburgh are developing a new scanning tool to spot inflammation within arteries and heart muscle. This could improve the way doctors diagnose and treat people with heart disease. Inflammation is important in the development and progression of various heart and circulatory diseases. Spotting inflammation relies on tests which measure and detect proteins and enzymes in the blood. However this technique doesn’t tell doctors where exactly the inflammation is happening. In this project, Dr Tavares is developing a new scanning tool based on a highly specialised scanning technique called positron emission tomography, or PET, that enables researchers to study different processes inside the body. Dr Tavares has developed a new ‘radiotracer’, something which, once injected into the blood, travels to areas of inflammation and emits a signal that can be detected outside the patients’ body using a sensitive camera. Dr Tavares will track this signal over time, in both healthy hearts and after a heart attack, to confirm if this signal is a sign of inflammation in the heart and vessels. This new scanning tool will help doctors better diagnose and treat people with heart disease, and find out if they are responding to treatment.
Project details
| Grant amount | £108,886 |
|---|---|
| Grant type | Project Grants |
| Application type | Project Grant |
| Start Date | 01 June 2016 |
| Duration | 1 year |
| Reference | PG/16/12/32022 |
| Status | Complete |
