Diving Into the norepinephrine (NE) system
Description: Due to the lack of in vivo molecular imaging solutions in humans, knowledge of the noradrenergic (NE) system, mainly from animal studies, is limited and controversial. However, the alteration of NE transmission is likely to play a crucial role in the onset of certain symptoms but also in the onset and progression of major neurodegenerative diseases, including Parkinson's disease (PD). The development of new PET radiotracers has recently paved the way for data collection in the human brain. Our recent work using 11C-Yohimbine has shown the direct link between the availability of alpha2-adrenoceptors (ARs) and a significant number of both motor and non-motor symptoms in PD. However, this precursory work has only made it possible to give a global (dys)functional mapping of alpha2-ARs. It is now a question of imaging the subtypes of alpha2-ARs, and primarily the alpha2C in view of their high density at the level of the striatum and their possible role in the modulation of NE and dopaminergic transmission. The aim of this project is to use a radiotracer of alpha2C-ARs recently developed (11C-ORM-13070) but still never used on a clinical scale in humans, in order to 1) identify their functional mapping in healthy subjects, 2) characterize the normal course of their disease related to aging, and 3) understand their alteration in PD. Our team has both the technological and human resources and the specific experience to achieve these goals. The use of a hybrid PET/MRI scanner will allow to combine molecular and clinical data with anatomical and functional connectivity data crucial for (i) shedding light on the neuroprotective role of the NE system, (ii) identifying markers for early diagnosis of PD, and (iii) developing new therapeutic options.
Funder: Agence Nationale de la Recherche
Amount: €644,700
Funding type: research
Funder scheme: AAPG2025
Start date: 2025-10-01
Investigator: Bénédicte BALLANGER
Institution: CENTRE NATIONAL DE LA RECHERCHE SCIENTIFIQUE
Subfield: Neurology
Field: Medicine
Domain: Health Sciences
Funded outputs count: 0
Funder award ID: ANR-25-CE37-0659
OpenAlex ID: G6300796296