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Updated: Dec 20, 2025

Functional Imaging of Brown Fat in Mice with 18F-FDG micro-PET/CT
Published on: November 23, 2012
FDG Uptake in Brown Adipose Tissue Activated by a β3-Adrenergic Receptor Agonist Prescribed for Overactive Bladder
Chio Okuyama1, Ryutaro Kikuchi2, Takashi Ikeuchi3
1From the Division of PET Imaging, Shiga Medical Center Research Institute.
Abstract:
Brown adipose tissue (BAT), which produces energy and is known to play a role as a hibernating gland, is sometimes visualized on F-FDG PET in children or in slender young adults in a cold environment. Because BAT is activated by catecholamines, FDG uptake in BAT is also observed in patients with pheochromocytoma or paraganglioma. We present the case of an elderly woman with remarkable FDG uptake in BAT. Activation of BAT by a β3-adrenergic receptor agonist (mirabegron) prescribed for overactive bladder was suspected as the cause of the marked visualization of BAT in this patient.
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