TSPO PET with [18F]GE-180 sensitively detects focal neuroinflammation in patients with relapsing–remitting multiple sclerosis

Abstract

Expression of the translocator protein (TSPO) is upregulated in activated macrophages/microglia and is considered to be a marker of neuroinflammation. We investigated the novel TSPO ligand [¹⁸F]GE-180 in patients with relapsing–remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS) to determine the feasibility of [¹⁸F]GE-180 PET imaging in RRMS patients and to assess its ability to detect active inflammatory lesions in comparison with the current gold standard, contrast-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).