Gliomas, which are a type of brain tumour derived from the non-neuronal and nutrient-supplying glial cells of the brain, are particularly devastating disease due to the importance and delicate nature of cerebral matter. Surgical removal, chemotherapy, and radiation therapy often have unwanted consequences depending on a variety of physiological and probability factors. With the human life expectancy averaging 12-15 months after clinical diagnosis (with treatment) for aggressive brain tumours, accurately detecting and characterizing these tumours non-invasively is important for treatment planning. Currently, the highest anatomical resolution imaging modality available for brain imaging is magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), but this lacks biochemical information. Positron emission tomography paired with computed tomography for anatomical reference (PET-CT) divulges quantifiable biochemical information. By selecting imaging radiopharmaceuticals for PET imaging that have relevance to tumour surface proteins or other cellular metabolic processes it is possible to not only aid in detecting or delineating gliomas, but also gain specific biochemical-property insight into these lesions.

The aim of these studies was to evaluate the two emerging radiopharmaceuticals (2S, 4R)-4-[18F]fluoroglutamine ([18F]FGln) and Al[18F]F-NOTA-Folate ([18F]FOL) and to directly compare them with routinely clinically-used radiopharmaceuticals 2-deoxy-2-[18F]fluoro-ᴅ-glucose ([18F]FDG) and ʟ-[11C]methionine ([11C]Met) for the PET imaging of gliomas in animal models. Other parameters, such as the in vivo stability, ex vivo biodistribution, in vitro binding and blocking, and the presence of relevant receptors on human tissue samples were investigated in to divulge additional information.

The results demonstrated that both [18F]FGln and [18F]FOL provided an enhanced level of contrast between tumour and adjacent non-tumour brain tissue versus that of the clinically used radiopharmaceuticals [18F]FDG and [11C]Met in animal models.