Enabling advance imaging of synaptic function in living males and females over the course of the life-span with Positron Emission Tomography (PET)

Synapses are the connections between the nerve cells in the brain and they are essential for all our thoughts and actions. Synapses are damaged in most brain diseases and until recently there were no tools for monitoring them in the living brain. Researchers discovered a synthetic small molecule that can be used to monitor synapses in humans and animals. When injected, the molecule binds to the synaptic protein SV2A, which can then be detected using a brain imaging approach used in the clinic called Positron Emission Tomography (or PET). This project aims to develop this SV2A PET tool so that it can be used to better understand how the brain works during health and disease, to better diagnose patients and to discover new medicines to treat brain diseases.