Progress of apoptosis imaging using Annexin V labeled with positron radionuclides

Annexin V is a protein that highly binds to exposed phosphatidylserine (PS) on apoptosis cells and non-invasive positron emission computed tomography (PET) imaging of apoptosis in vivo may have important implications for clinical practice, assisting in early detection of disease, monitoring of disease course, assessment of treatment efficacy, or management of personalized patients. This review provides a critical and thorough overview of the development of Annexin V labeled with positron emitting nuclides and in vivo evaluation of apoptosis-detecting PET radiopharmaceuticals that have emerged so far, along with their possible applications in nuclear medicine. (authors)