Youngho Seo

Research Interests

Development of quantitative SPECT/CT and PET/CT imaging techniques for human cancer management; Small animal brain imaging for stroke research

Research Summary

1. Human cancer management with multimodality imaging

My research interest is development of quantitative radionuclide imaging techniques that can be applied to human cancer management such as prostate cancer. I am not particularly restricted to a single imaging modality; however the current focus is SPECT/CT and PET/CT imaging of prostate cancer, and their correlations with MRI and MR Spectroscopy. However, I am particularly interested in quantitative imaging techniques so that imaging results can be interpreted with absolute numbers as well as visual representations. This work includes developments of a physically accurate image reconstruction algorithm, signal discrimination techniques when multiple radiopharmaceuticals are imaged simultaneously, image registration techniques, pharmacokinetic modeling techniques, and improved imaging protocols and instrumentations.

2. Imaging small animal models of cerebrovascular diseases

My work in small animal imaging has been focused on SPECT and CT (and MRI and PET in the near future) imaging of cerebrovascular diseases in small animals. In collaboration with other investigators, I focus my efforts in the quantitative image analysis and robust imaging techniques for stroke research using small animals.

For both areas of research, I maintain close research relationships with Hasegawa and Franc laboratories as well as other outstanding research teams at UCSF.

Selected Publications

*Multimodality molecular imaging papers

J. He, E. F. Jones, H. F. VanBrocklin, Y. Seo, D. Hanahan, and B. L. Franc, Nanoprobes for medical diagnosis and management: Current status of nanotechnology in molecular imaging, Current Nanoscience, In press (invited review).

Y. Seo, Quantification of SPECT and PET for drug development, Current Radiopharmaceuticals 1, 17-21, 2008.

Y. Seo, J. Kurhanewicz, B. L. Franc, R. A. Hawkins, and B. H. Hasegawa, Improved prostate cancer imaging with SPECT/CT and MRI/MRSI, IEEE Transactions on Nuclear Science 52, 1316-1320, 2005.

*PET(/CT) papers

Y. Seo, B. K. Teo, M. Hadi, C. Schreck, S. L. Bacharach, and B. H. Hasegawa, Quantitative accuracy of PET/CT for image-based kinetic analysis, Medical Physics, In press.

B. K. Teo, S. Badiee, M. Hadi, T. Lam, L. Johnson, Y. Seo, S. L. Bacharach, B. H. Hasegawa, and B. L. Franc, Correcting tumor SUV for enhanced bone marrow uptake: Retrospective 18F-FDG PET-CT studies, Nuclear Medicine Communications, In press.

  B. K. Teo, Y. Seo, S. L. Bacharach, J. A. Carrasquillo, S. K. Libutti, H. Shukla, B. H. Hasegawa, R. A. Hawkins, and B. L. Franc, Partial volume correction in PET: Validation of an iterative post-reconstruction method with phantom and patient data, Journal of Nuclear Medicine 48, 802-810, 2007.

*SPECT(/CT) papers

Y. Seo, C. M. Aparici, and B. H. Hasegawa BH, Technological development and advances in SPECT/CT, Seminars in Nuclear Medicine, In press (invited review).

Y. Seo, B. L. Franc, R. A. Hawkins, K. H. Wong, and B. H. Hasegawa, Progress in SPECT/CT imaging of prostate cancer, Technology in Cancer Research and Treatment 5, 329-336, 2006.

Y. Seo, K. H. Wong, and B. H. Hasegawa, Calculation and validation of the use of effective attenuation coefficient for attenuation correction in In-111 SPECT, Medical Physics 32, 3628-3635, 2005.

Y. Seo, K. H. Wong, M. Sun, B. L. Franc, R. A. Hawkins, and B. H. Hasegawa, Correction of photon attenuation and collimator response for a body-contouring SPECT/CT imaging system, Journal of Nuclear Medicine 46, 868-877, 2005.

*microSPECT(/CT) papers

Y. Seo, D. W. Gao, B. H. Hasegawa, M. W. Dae, and B. L. Franc BL, Rodent brain imaging with SPECT/CT, Medical Physics 34, 1217-1220, 2007.

*microCT papers

Y. Seo, T. Hashimoto, Y. Nuki, and Hasegawa BH, In vivo microCT imaging of rodent cerebral vasculature, Physics in Medicine and Biology, In press.