Saturday, Jun 28: 9:00 AM - 10:15 AM
1443
Symposium
Brisbane Convention & Exhibition Centre
Room: M4 (Mezzanine Level)
Neurochemical processes shape cognitive functioning and brain connectivity. The timeliness and importance of this topic lie in the growing advancements in imaging technologies and analyses that allow researchers to explore these processes in vivo with multi-modal human imaging. Combining PET with innovative cognitive testing, clinical assessments and MRI offers new and unparalleled insights into the interplay between brain structure, function, and neurochemistry. This is particularly relevant as the field moves toward more integrative models of brain function that consider not only connectivity but also the underlying molecular and metabolic processes. Furthermore, as the global burden of neurological and psychiatric disorders increases, understanding neurochemical processes and targets across the lifespan holds significant implications for early diagnosis, intervention, and treatment development.
Members of the audience will develop an understanding of how a combination of PET and MRI methodologies can be leveraged to investigate diverse neurochemical correlates, such as neurotransmitter systems, glucose metabolism, and markers of pathology, and their relevance to clinical assessments and cognitive functioning.
Members of the audience will gain exposure to a wide range of modern methods for PET-MRI integration, including techniques like machine learning, pharmacological manipulations, and structure-function integration.
Members of the audience will develop a broader appreciation of the clinical and translational potential of PET in clinical and cognitive neuroscience, highlighting its capacity to address fundamental research questions while paving the way for innovative therapeutic approaches. Through this, attendees will leave with a comprehensive view of PET research as a dynamic and impactful field.
PET is an underrepresented topic at OHBM, making this symposium particularly valuable for cognitive neuroscientists, neuroimagers, and clinicians interested in expanding their understanding of neurochemical processes underlying brain function. The target audience includes researchers at all career stages who are interested in multi-modal research and those seeking to integrate combined PET and MRI methodologies into their own studies or apply these findings to clinical and translational contexts.
Presentations
In this talk, I will present findings from two studies using multi-modal imaging to investigate age-related changes in brain activation during working memory tasks. The first study acquired simultaneous PET with [18F]fluoro-deoxyglucose and fMRI in young and older adults. We show that while task-induced BOLD and glucose metabolism generally converged, activation increases in older adults lacked corresponding increases in metabolic activity, suggesting they are not directly reflective of synaptic activity. A follow -up study that combined fMRI with PET dopamine receptor imaging suggests reduced dopamine receptor density as a mechanism underlying age-related differences in the BOLD response outside a canonical working memory network. Together, they highlight the power of PET to aid the interpretation of task-fMRI responses
Presenter
Anna Rieckmann, University of the Bundeswehr Munich
Department of Psychology
Munich, Bavaria
Germany
Persistence of encoding-related neural patterns into periods of rest supports subsequent episodic memory. We tested a role of dopamine in enhancing hippocampal pattern reinstatement and memory in aging using simultaneous functional MRI/[11C]raclopride positron emission tomography (PET) at baseline and following oral methylphenidate (n = 46, mean age = 69).
Pharmacologically increasing dopamine improved memory and increased reward-related hippocampal pattern reinstatement in older adults. Further, spontaneous reinstatement was correlated with both baseline D2/3 receptor binding and memory, which provides insight into the mechanisms by which dopamine augmentation may improve memory in aging.
Presenter
Claire Ciampa, Brandeis University Waltham, MA
United States
During this talk, I will present results from from the DyNAMiC study, with a specific emphasis on the functional dynamics and the neurotransmitter dopamine. I’ll present compelling evidence that delineates distinct phases of age-related reductions in D1-like dopamine receptors (D1DR) across the adult lifespan. Subsequently, I'll discuss the consequences of declining D1DR levels on brain functional dynamics across various scales, including regional and network scales, and outline their impacts on cognitive decline. Together, these studies will provide insights into the molecular and functional mechanisms of cognitive decline in aging.
Presenter
Alireza Salami, Aging Research Center, Karolinska Institute
Umeå Center for Functional Brain Imaging, Umeå University
Stockholm
Sweden
In our lab we use striatal, thalamic and cortical dopamine D1 and D2/3 receptor density (i.e., via C11-RAC and C11-NNC) PET imaging under stimulant (i.e., methylphenidate) challenge (as an indirect measure of dopamine release) and combine these measures with task and resting-state fMRI, behavior, personality, and peripheral measures (i..e, eye-tracking, respiration) on various conditions including sleep deprivation and addiction. Other PET ligands we use include F18-Fludeoxyglucose (FDG) for energy metabolism and F18-Florbetaben) for amyloid burden. In my presentation I will show how local (i.e., striatal and thalamic) and cortical PET measures, particularly under stimulant challenge, can teach us how brain dopamine system and glucose metabolism synergistically relate to individual’s central and autonomic nervous system behavior and performance.
Presenter
Sukru Baris Demiral, National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism Bethesda, MD
United States