Comparison of sparse domain approaches for 4D SPECT dynamic image reconstruction.

PURPOSE: Dynamic imaging (DI) provides additional diagnostic information in emission tomography in comparison to conventional static imaging at the cost of being computationally more challenging. Dynamic single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) reconstruction is particularly difficult because of the limitations in the sampling geometry present in most existing scanners. We have developed an algorithm Spline Initialized Factor Analysis of Dynamic Structures (SIFADS) that is a matrix factorization method for reconstructing the dynamics of tracers in tissues and blood directly from the projections in dynamic cardiac SPECT, without first resorting to any 3D reconstruction. METHODS: SIFADS is different from "pure" factor analysis in dynamic structures (FADS) in that it employs a dedicated spline-based pre-initialization. In this paper, we analyze the convergence properties of SIFADS and FADS using multiple metrics. The performances of the two approaches are evaluated for numerically simulated data and for real dynamic SPECT data from canine and human subjects. RESULTS: For SIFADS, metrics analyzed for reconstruction algorithm convergence show better features of the metric curves vs iterations. In addition, SIAFDS provides better tissue segmentations than that from pure FADS. Measured computational times are also typically better for SIFADS implementations than those with pure FADS. CONCLUSION: The analysis supports the utility of the pre-initialization of a factorization algorithm for better dynamic SPECT image reconstruction.

Longitudinal Evaluation of Sympathetic Nervous System and Perfusion in Normal and Spontaneously Hypertensive Rat Hearts with Dynamic Single-Photon Emission Computed Tomography.

The objective of this work was to evaluate the sympathetic nervous system and structure remodeling during the progression of heart failure in a rodent model using dynamic cardiac single-photon emission computed tomography (SPECT). The spontaneously hypertensive rat (SHR) model was used to study changes in the nervous system innervation and perfusion in the left ventricular (LV) myocardium with the progression of left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH) to heart failure. Longitudinal dynamic SPECT studies were performed with seven SHR and seven Wistar-Kyoto (WKY) rats over 1.5 years using a dual-head SPECT scanner with pinhole collimators. Time-activity curves (TACs) of the 123I-MIBG and 201Tl distribution in the LV blood pool and myocardium were extracted from dynamic SPECT data and fitted to compartment models to determine the influx rate, washout rate, and distribution volume (DV) of 123I-MIBG and 201Tl in the LV myocardium. The standardized uptake values (SUVs) of 123I-MIBG and 201Tl in the LV myocardium were also calculated from the static reconstructed images. The influx and washout rates of 123I-MIBG did not show a significant difference between SHRs and WKY rats. The DVs of 123I-MIBG were greater in the SHRs than in the WKY rats (p = .0028). Specifically, the DV of 123I-MIBG became greater in the SHRs by 6 months of age (p = .0017) and was still significant at the age of 22 months. The SUV of 123I-MIBG in SHRs exhibited abnormal values compared to WKY rats from the age of 18 months. There was no difference in the influx rate and the washout rate of 201Tl between the SHRs and WKY rats. The SHRs exhibited greater DV of 201Tl than WKY rats after the age of 18 months (p = .034). The SUV of 201Tl in SHRs did not show any significant difference from WKY at all ages. The higher DV of 123I-MIBG in the LV myocardium reveals abnormal nervous system activity of the SHRs at an age of 6 months, whereas a greater DV of 201Tl in the LV myocardium can only be detected at an age of 18 months. The results show that the abnormal nervous system activity appears earlier than perfusion. Furthermore, the comparison between the DV and the SUV indicates that dynamic SPECT with 123I-MIBG and 201Tl with the kinetic parameter DV is capable of detecting abnormalities of the LV at an early age.

Clustering-initiated factor analysis application for tissue classification in dynamic brain positron emission tomography.

The goal is to quantify the fraction of tissues that exhibit specific tracer binding in dynamic brain positron emission tomography (PET). It is achieved using a new method of dynamic image processing: clustering-initiated factor analysis (CIFA). Standard processing of such data relies on region of interest analysis and approximate models of the tracer kinetics and of tissue properties, which can degrade accuracy and reproducibility of the analysis. Clustering-initiated factor analysis allows accurate determination of the time-activity curves and spatial distributions for tissues that exhibit significant radiotracer concentration at any stage of the emission scan, including the arterial input function. We used this approach in the analysis of PET images obtained using (11)C-Pittsburgh Compound B in which specific binding reflects the presence of ß-amyloid. The fraction of the specific binding tissues determined using our approach correlated with that computed using the Logan graphical analysis. We believe that CIFA can be an accurate and convenient tool for measuring specific binding tissue concentration and for analyzing tracer kinetics from dynamic images for a variety of PET tracers. As an illustration, we show that four-factor CIFA allows extraction of two blood curves and the corresponding distributions of arterial and venous blood from PET images even with a coarse temporal resolution.

Reconstruction of 4-D dynamic SPECT images from inconsistent projections using a Spline initialized FADS algorithm (SIFADS).

In this paper, we propose and validate an algorithm of extracting voxel-by-voxel time activity curves directly from inconsistent projections applied in dynamic cardiac SPECT. The algorithm was derived based on factor analysis of dynamic structures (FADS) approach and imposes prior information by applying several regularization functions with adaptively changing relative weighting. The anatomical information of the imaged subject was used to apply the proposed regularization functions adaptively in the spatial domain. The algorithm performance is validated by reconstructing dynamic datasets simulated using the NCAT phantom with a range of different input tissue time-activity curves. The results are compared to the spline-based and FADS methods. The validated algorithm is then applied to reconstruct pre-clinical cardiac SPECT data from canine and murine subjects. Images, generated from both simulated and experimentally acquired data confirm the ability of the new algorithm to solve the inverse problem of dynamic SPECT with slow gantry rotation.

Chemical stability of (99m)Tc-DTPA under aerobic and microbially mediated Fe(III)-reducing conditions in porous media.

(99m)Tc-DTPA has been used as a conservative tracer to quantify water transport through porous media. However, more information on the reactivity of this (99m)Tc compound under varying geochemical conditions is desirable to better understand its potential uses. We measured the speciation of Tc following amendment of (99m)Tc-DTPA to batch systems spanning a range of controlled biogeochemical conditions. Our results suggest that (99m)Tc-DTPA is stable under the reducing conditions tested. However, freshly precipitated Al-ferrihydrite may displace Tc(IV) from DTPA in the absence of Fe(III)-reducing conditions.

Fast direct estimation of the blood input function and myocardial time activity curve from dynamic SPECT projections via reduction in spatial and temporal dimensions.

PURPOSE: Reconstruction of parametric images from dynamic single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) data acquired with slow rotating cameras is a challenge because the estimation of the time-activity curves (TACs) may involve fitting data to an inconsistent underdetermined system of equations. This work presents a novel algorithm for the estimation of the blood input function and myocardial TAC with high accuracy and high efficiency directly from these projections. METHODS: In the proposed dynamic reconstruction method, the information from the segmentation of functional regions from the static reconstructed image was used as a prior to construct a sparse matrix, through which the spatial distribution of the radioactive tracer was represented. Then the temporal distribution of the radioactive tracer was modeled by nonuniform B-spline basis functions which were determined according to a new selection rule. With reduction in both the spatial and temporal dimensions of the reconstructed image, the blood input function and myocardial TAC were estimated using the 4D maximum likelihood expectation maximization algorithm. The method was validated using data from both digital phantom simulations and an experimental rat study. RESULTS: Compared with the conventional dynamic SPECT reconstruction method without the reduction in spatial dimensions, the proposed method provides more accurate TACs with less computation time in both phantom simulation studies and a rat experimental study. CONCLUSIONS: The proposed method is promising in both providing more accurate time-activity curves and reducing the computation time, which makes it practical for small animal studies using clinical systems with slow rotating cameras.

Monitoring Tc dynamics in a bioreduced sediment: an investigation with gamma camera imaging of (99m)Tc-pertechnetate and (99m)Tc-DTPA.

We demonstrate the utility of nuclear medical imaging technologies and a readily available radiotracer, [(99m)Tc]TcO(4)(-), for the noninvasive monitoring of Fe(II) production in acetate-stimulated sediments from Old Rifle, CO, USA. Microcosms consisting of sediment in artificial groundwater media amended with acetate were probed by repeated injection of radiotracer over three weeks. Gamma camera imaging was used to noninvasively quantify the rate and extent of [(99m)Tc]TcO(4)(-) partitioning from solution to sediment. Aqueous Fe(II) and sediment-associated Fe(II) were also measured and correlated with the observed tracer behavior. For each injection of tracer, curves of (99m)Tc concentration in solution vs time were fitted to an analytic function that accounts for both the observed rate of sedimentation as well as the rate of (99m)Tc association with the sediment. The rate and extent of (99m)Tc association with the biostimulated sediment correlated well with the production of Fe(II), and a mechanism of [(99m)Tc]TcO(4)(-) reduction via reaction with surface-bound Fe(II) to form an immobile Tc(IV) species was inferred. After three weeks of bioreduction, a subset of microcosms was aerated in order to reoxidize the Fe(II) to Fe(III), which also destroyed the affinity of the [(99m)Tc]TcO(4)(-) for the sediments. However, within 3 days postoxidation, the rate of Tc(VII) reduction was faster than immediately before oxidation implying a rapid return to more extensive bioreduction. Furthermore, aeration soon after a tracer injection showed that sediment-bound Tc(IV) is rapidly resolubilized to Tc(VII). In contrast to the [(99m)Tc]TcO(4)(-), a second commercially available tracer, (99m)Tc-DTPA (diethylenetriaminepentaacetic acid), had minimal association with sediment in both controls and biostimulated sediments. These experiments show the promise of [(99m)Tc]TcO(4)(-) and (99m)Tc-DTPA as noninvasive imaging probes for a redox-sensitive radiotracer and a conservative flow tracer, respectively.

Imaging and modeling of flow in porous media using clinical nuclear emission tomography systems and computational fluid dynamics.

This paper presents experimental and modeling aspects of applying nuclear emission tomography to study fluid flow in laboratory packed porous media columns of the type frequently used in geophysics, geochemistry and hydrology research. Positron emission tomography (PET) and single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) are used as non-invasive tools to obtain dynamic 3D images of radioactive tracer concentrations. Dynamic sequences obtained using 18F-FDG PET are used to trace flow through a 5 cm diameter × 20 cm tall sand packed column with and without an impermeable obstacle. In addition, a custom-made rotating column setup placed in a clinical two-headed SPECT camera is used to image 99mTc-DTPA tracer propagation in a through-flowing column (10 cm diameter × 30 cm tall) packed with recovered aquifer sediments. A computational fluid dynamics software package FLUENT is used to model the observed flow dynamics. Tracer distributions obtained in the simulations in the smaller column uniformly packed with sand and in the column with an obstacle are remarkably similar to the reconstructed images in the PET experiments. SPECT results demonstrate strongly non-uniform flow patterns for the larger column slurry-packed with sub-surface sediment and slow upward flow. In the numerical simulation of the SPECT study, two symmetric channels with increased permeability are prescribed along the column walls, which result in the emergence of two well-defined preferential flow paths. Methods and results of this work provide new opportunities in hydrologic and biogeochemical research. The primary target application for developed technologies is non-destructive, non-perturbing, quantitative imaging of flow dynamics within laboratory scale porous media systems.

Longitudinal Evaluation of Fatty Acid Metabolism in Normal and Spontaneously Hypertensive Rat Hearts with Dynamic MicroSPECT Imaging.

The goal of this project is to develop radionuclide molecular imaging technologies using a clinical pinhole SPECT/CT scanner to quantify changes in cardiac metabolism using the spontaneously hypertensive rat (SHR) as a model of hypertensive-related pathophysiology. This paper quantitatively compares fatty acid metabolism in hearts of SHR and Wistar-Kyoto normal rats as a function of age and thereby tracks physiological changes associated with the onset and progression of heart failure in the SHR model. The fatty acid analog, (123)I-labeled BMIPP, was used in longitudinal metabolic pinhole SPECT imaging studies performed every seven months for 21 months. The uniqueness of this project is the development of techniques for estimating the blood input function from projection data acquired by a slowly rotating camera that is imaging fast circulation and the quantification of the kinetics of (123)I-BMIPP by fitting compartmental models to the blood and tissue time-activity curves.