title: Facilitating multimodal preclinical imaging studies in mice by using an immobilization bed.
abstract: We have designed an immobilization bed that accommodates mice of all ages and sizes, to improve image registration for multimodal scans and for longitudinal preclinical imaging studies. Stationary pegs were placed such that they effectively immobilized mice and reduced set-up time.  (22)Na fiducial markers were placed into the pegs at unique depths to provide 3D references to facilitate image registration. Multiple users registered positron emission tomographic (PET) and CT data obtained with and without the bed to examine the effect of the bed on registration accuracy  and interuser variability. The image registrations performed by different users were evaluated for their similarity by using the Entropy Correlation Coefficient as a metric. The immobilization bed significantly reduced variations in body movement and interuser variability. Average differences  in quantification of tumor PET signal among users when registering images without versus with the fiduciary-marker bed fell from 9.1% to 0.8% for maximal percentage injected dose per gram (%ID/g), from 15.6% to 2.3% for mean %ID/g, and from 9.4% to 0.7% for the 90th percentile of the maximum  %ID/g. The bed improves animal immobilization, greatly reduces interuser variability, and supports registration of image data acquired from different imaging sessions.
authors.affiliation: Radiation Physics, Department of Radiation Oncology, Stanford University, Stanford, California, USA.
authors.forename: Geoffrey S
authors.initials: GS
authors.lastname: Nelson
authors.forename: Jessica
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Perez
authors.forename: Marta
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Vilalta
authors.forename: Marta V
authors.initials: MV
authors.lastname: Colomer
authors.forename: Rehan
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Ali
authors.forename: Edward
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Graves
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D007103:Immobilization / Q000295:instrumentation* / Q000379:methods / Q000662:veterinary*; D051379:Mice; D008819:Mice, Nude; D064847:Multimodal Imaging / Q000379:methods / Q000662:veterinary*; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis*; D049268:Positron-Emission Tomography; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012979:Sodium Radioisotopes; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed
chemical_list: D012979:Sodium Radioisotopes