Livia Tossici-Bolt

Bio: Livia Tossici-Bolt is an academic researcher from University Hospital Southampton NHS Foundation Trust. The author has contributed to research in topics: Spect imaging & Dopamine transporter. The author has an hindex of 20, co-authored 33 publications receiving 1185 citations. Previous affiliations of Livia Tossici-Bolt include University of Southampton.

Quantification of [123I]FP-CIT SPECT brain images: an accurate technique for measurement of the specific binding ratio.

Abstract: Purpose A technique is described for accurate quantification of the specific binding ratio (SBR) in [123I]FP-CIT SPECT brain images.

European multicentre database of healthy controls for [123I]FP-CIT SPECT (ENC-DAT): age-related effects, gender differences and evaluation of different methods of analysis

Abstract: Dopamine transporter (DAT) imaging with [123I]FP-CIT (DaTSCAN) is an established diagnostic tool in parkinsonism and dementia Although qualitative assessment criteria are available, DAT quantification is important for research and for completion of a diagnostic evaluation One critical aspect of quantification is the availability of normative data, considering possible age and gender effects on DAT availability The aim of the European Normal Control Database of DaTSCAN (ENC-DAT) study was to generate a large database of [123I]FP-CIT SPECT scans in healthy controls SPECT data from 139 healthy controls (74 men, 65 women; age range 20 – 83 years, mean 53 years) acquired in 13 different centres were included Images were reconstructed using the ordered-subset expectation-maximization algorithm without correction (NOACSC), with attenuation correction (AC), and with both attenuation and scatter correction using the triple-energy window method (ACSC) Region-of-interest analysis was performed using the BRASS software (caudate and putamen), and the Southampton method (striatum) The outcome measure was the specific binding ratio (SBR) A significant effect of age on SBR was found for all data Gender had a significant effect on SBR in the caudate and putamen for the NOACSC and AC data, and only in the left caudate for the ACSC data (BRASS method) Significant effects of age and gender on striatal SBR were observed for all data analysed with the Southampton method Overall, there was a significant age-related decline in SBR of between 4 % and 67 % per decade This study provides a large database of [123I]FP-CIT SPECT scans in healthy controls across a wide age range and with balanced gender representation Higher DAT availability was found in women than in men An average age-related decline in DAT availability of 55 % per decade was found for both genders, in agreement with previous reports The data collected in this study may serve as a reference database for nuclear medicine centres and for clinical trials using [123I]FP-CIT SPECT as the imaging marker

EANM Practice Guideline/SNMMI Procedure Standard for Dopaminergic Imaging in Parkinsonian Syndromes 1.0

Abstract: This joint practice guideline or procedure standard was developed collaboratively by the European Association of Nuclear Medicine (EANM) and the Society of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging (SNMMI). The goal of this guideline is to assist nuclear medicine practitioners in recommending, performing, interpreting, and reporting the results of dopaminergic imaging in parkinsonian syndromes. Currently nuclear medicine investigations can assess both presynaptic and postsynaptic function of dopaminergic synapses. To date both EANM and SNMMI have published procedural guidelines for dopamine transporter imaging with single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) (in 2009 and 2011, respectively). An EANM guideline for D2 SPECT imaging is also available (2009). Since the publication of these previous guidelines, new lines of evidence have been made available on semiquantification, harmonization, comparison with normal datasets, and longitudinal analyses of dopamine transporter imaging with SPECT. Similarly, details on acquisition protocols and simplified quantification methods are now available for dopamine transporter imaging with PET, including recently developed fluorinated tracers. Finally, [18F]fluorodopa PET is now used in some centers for the differential diagnosis of parkinsonism, although procedural guidelines aiming to define standard procedures for [18F]fluorodopa imaging in this setting are still lacking. All these emerging issues are addressed in the present procedural guidelines for dopaminergic imaging in parkinsonian syndromes.

Automatic semi-quantification of [123I]FP-CIT SPECT scans in healthy volunteers using BasGan version 2: results from the ENC-DAT database.

Abstract: Purpose The aim of this study was to assess striatal dopamine transporter (DAT) availability in a large group of normal subjects.

Calibration of gamma camera systems for a multicentre European ¹²³I-FP-CIT SPECT normal database.

Abstract: Purpose A joint initiative of the European Association of Nuclear Medicine (EANM) Neuroimaging Committee and EANM Research Ltd. aimed to generate a European database of [123I]FP-CIT single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) scans of healthy controls. This study describes the characterization and harmonization of the imaging equipment of the institutions involved.

An Evidence-Based Review of Quantitative SPECT Imaging and Potential Clinical Applications

Abstract: SPECT has traditionally been regarded as nonquantitative. Advances in multimodality γ-cameras (SPECT/CT), algorithms for image reconstruction, and sophisticated compensation techniques to correct for photon attenuation and scattering have, however, now made quantitative SPECT viable in a manner similar to quantitative PET (i.e., kBq cm(-3), standardized uptake value). This review examines the evidence for quantitative SPECT and demonstrates clinical studies in which the accuracy of the reconstructed SPECT data has been assessed in vivo. SPECT reconstructions using CT-based compensation corrections readily achieve accuracy for (99m)Tc to within ± 10% of the known concentration of the radiotracer in vivo. Quantification with other radionuclides is also being introduced. SPECT continues to suffer from poorer photon detection efficiency (sensitivity) and spatial resolution than PET; however, it has the benefit in some situations of longer radionuclide half-lives, which may better suit the biologic process under examination, as well as the ability to perform multitracer studies using pulse height spectroscopy to separate different radiolabels.

Survival and dementia in GBA-associated Parkinson's disease: The mutation matters.

Abstract: Objective To investigate survival, dementia and genotype-phenotype correlations in patients with Parkinson's disease (PD) with and without mutations on the Glucocerebrosidase gene (GBA). Methods We included 2764 unrelated consecutive PD patients: 123 GBA-carriers (67 mild-p.N370S, 56 severe mainly p.L444P) and 2641 non-carriers. Brain perfusion and dopamine transporter imaging was analyzed, including Dementia with Lewy Bodies (DLB) as additional control group. Results Multivariable analysis adjusted by gender, age at onset and disease duration attributed to GBA-carriers a greater risk for dementia (HR=3.16, p<0.001) and death (HR=1.85, p=0.002) than non-carriers. When dementia was introduced in the model as time-dependent covariate, the mortality risk remained greater in carriers (HR=1.65, p=0.016), suggesting that other clinical features are likely to contribute to reduced survival. At last examination GBA-carriers had worse motor symptoms, particularly non-dopaminergic features. Carriers of severe mutations had greater risk for dementia compared to mild mutations (p<0.001), but similar mortality risk. Consistent with clinical data, GBA-carriers showed reduced posterior parietal and occipital cortical synaptic activity and nigrostriatal function than PD non-carriers. Neuroimaging features of carriers of mild mutations overlapped with PD non-carriers, while carriers of severe mutations were closer to DLB. Interpretation Survival is reduced in GBA-carriers compared to non-carriers; this seems to be partially independent from the increased risk for early dementia. The risk for dementia is strongly modulated by the type of mutation. In the clinical continuum between PD and DLB, patients with GBA mutations seem to localize midway, with carriers of severe mutations closer to DLB than to idiopathic PD. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.