Current Medicinal Chemistry - Volume 25, Issue 26, 2018

Background: From the past decade to date, several studies related to O-(2- [18F]fluoroethyl)-L-tyrosine (18F-FET) positron emission tomography (PET) in brain tumours have been published in the literature. Objective: The aim of this narrative review is to summarize the recent developments and the current role of 18F-FET PET in brain tumours according to recent literature data. Methods: Main findings from selected recently Read More

Background: Gliomas are brain tumours arising from the glia, the supportive tissue of the central nervous system (CNS), and constitute the commonest primary malignant brain tumours. Gliomas are graded from grade I to IV according to their appearance under the microscope. One of the most significant adverse features of high-grade gliomas is hypoxia, a biological phenomenon that develops when the oxygen concen Read More

In the last years, an increasing interest in molecular imaging has been raised by the extending potential of positron emission tomography [PET]. The role of PET imaging, originally confined to the oncology setting, is continuously extending thanks to the development of novel radiopharmaceutical and to the implementation of hybrid imaging techniques, where PET scans are combined with computed tomograp Read More

The term Lewy body diseases (LBDs) refers to a subset of neurodegenerative disorders that share the accumulation of the so-called Lewy bodies (LB) including: Parkinson's disease (PD), dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB), and PD later characterized by the occurrence of dementia (PDD). Moreover, multiple system atrophy (MSA) and idiopatic Rem Sleeping behaviour disorders (RBD) complete the group of synucleinopathie Read More

The pathological accumulation of different peptides is the common base of many neurodegenerative processes, such as Alzheimer's disease (AD). AD is characterized by amyloid deposits which may cause alterations in neurotransmission, activation of inflammatory mechanisms, neuronal death and cerebral atrophy. Diagnosis in vivo is challenging as the criteria rely mainly on clinical manifestations, which become evident only in Read More

Dementia is characterized by the impairment of cognition and behavior of people over 65 years. Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the most prevalent neurodegenerative disorder in the world, as approximately 47 million people are affected by this disease and the tendency is that this number will increase to 62% by 2030. Two microscopic features assist in the characterization of the disease, the amyloid plaques and neurofibrillary Read More