What can be seen by 18F-FDG PET in atherosclerosis imaging? The effect of foam cell formation on 18F-FDG uptake to macrophages in vitro.

UNLABELLED: (18)F-FDG PET is a promising tool for detecting vulnerable plaques, depending on the extent of macrophage infiltration; however, it is still not clear which stage of the lesion can be detected by (18)F-FDG PET.

METHODS: In this study, we investigated the effect of foam cell formation on (18)F-FDG uptake using cultured mouse peritoneal macrophages.

RESULTS: (18)F-FDG accumulation was increased by foam cell formation, but the uptake was decreased to the control level after complete differentiation to foam cells. Changes in hexokinase activity tended to accompany changes in (18)F-FDG uptake. In contrast, changes in glucose-6-phosphatase activity and glucose transporter 1 expression did not parallel (18)F-FDG uptake.

CONCLUSION: Our results suggest that (18)F-FDG PET detects the early stage of foam cell formation in atherosclerosis.