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Aquaporin Positron Emission Tomography Differentiates Between Grade III and IV Human Astrocytoma
Yuji Suzuki1, Yukihiro Nakamura1, Kenichi Yamada1
1Center for Integrated Human Brain Sci-ence, Brain Research Institute, University of Niigata, Niigata, Japan.
Background:
Aquaporin (AQP) water channels play a significant role in mesenchymal microvascular proliferation and infiltrative growth. AQPs are highly expressed in malignant astrocytomas, and a positive correlation is observed between their expression levels and histological tumor grade.
Objective:
To examine the utility of aquaporin positron emission tomography (PET) for differentiating between astrocytoma grade III and grade IV using the AQP radioligand [11C]TGN-020.
Methods:
Fifteen astrocytoma patients, grade III (n = 7) and grade IV (n = 8), and 10 healthy volunteers underwent [11C]TGN-020 aquaporin PET imaging. Surgical tissues of astrocytoma patients were examined for histopathological grading using the WHO classification standard and expression of AQP1 and AQP4 immunohistochemically.
Results:
Mean standardized uptake values of astrocytoma grade III and IV (0.51 ± 0.11 vs 1.50 ± 0.44, respectively) were higher than normal white matter (0.17 ± 0.02, P < .001) for both tumor grades. Importantly, mean standardized uptake values of astrocytoma grade IV were significantly higher than grade III (P < .01).
Conclusion:
Our study demonstrated that [11C]TGN-020 aquaporin PET imaging differentiated between astrocytoma grades III and IV. We suggest its clinical application as a noninvasive diagnostic tool would lead to advancements in the management of these malignant brain tumors.
