Victoria Emerson

• BSc (Hons) Pharmacology
• The use of [18F]4-MPPF as a novel PET ligand for the study of 5HT receptors: Ex vivo preclinical studies

Affective disorders, such as depression and anxiety, involve dysfunction of the serotonin (5-HT) systems including perhaps dysregulation of 5-HT release.  Research tools currently available do not allow 5-HT release to be studied in humans.  However, using positron emission tomography (PET) to quantify displacement of 5-HT receptor ligands by endogenous 5-HT might be one way of addressing this.  The present study is a preliminary preclinical ex-vivo investigation of the displacement of a 5-HT_1A receptor antagonist [¹⁸F]4-MPPF by endogenous 5-HT.  The study should lead to the development of novel displaceable 5-HT receptor PET ligands that can be used clinically.

Funding Source: Newcastle University