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Brain SPECT in the Impulsive-Aggressive Dog

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PET and SPECT in Psychiatry

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Abstract

Dogs can be used as research models in order to contribute to a better understanding of human neuropsychiatric disorders and to explore treatment options. In general, smaller laboratory animals, most often mice and rats, have been extensively used. Nevertheless, the implementation of larger animal (e.g. dogs) models has several important advantages. Their larger brain size omits the need for dedicated equipment (micro-PET or micro-SPECT) and the larger portion of the frontal cortex (crucial to behaviour regulation) in particular allows superior investigation of this area. They can further be used to investigate normal physiology and interaction of several neurotransmitter systems and the effects of drugs on brain function and chemistry. In this regard, they can also be used to obtain information on the pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of newly developed drugs and the dosage at which maximal response and least side effects occur. Finally, natural animal behavioural models of disorders can be used to enlighten the biological base of several human neuropsychiatric disorders. In this chapter, an overview will be given on the use of functional brain imaging in dogs suffering from impulsive aggression.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Veterinary Medical Imaging and Small Animal Orthopaedics, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Ghent University, Salisburylaan 133, B-9820, Merelbeke, Belgium

    Kathelijne Peremans, Simon Vermeire, Tim Waelbers, Eva Vandermeulen & André Dobbeleir

  2. Drug Quality and Registration, Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Ghent University, Harelbekestraat, B-9000, Gent, Belgium

    Bart De Spiegeleer

  3. Department of Psychiatry and Medical Psychology, University Hospital, Ghent University, De Pintelaan 185, B-9000, Gent, Belgium

    Kurt Audenaert

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  1. Kathelijne Peremans
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  2. Simon Vermeire
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  3. Tim Waelbers
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  4. Eva Vandermeulen
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  5. André Dobbeleir
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  6. Bart De Spiegeleer
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  7. Kurt Audenaert
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Correspondence to Kathelijne Peremans .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging, University Medical Center Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands

    Rudi A.J.O. Dierckx

  2. Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Information Technology, University of Applied Sciences Offenburg, Offenburg, Germany

    Andreas Otte

  3. Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging, University Medical Center Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands

    Erik F. J. de Vries

  4. Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging, University Medical Center Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands

    Aren van Waarde

  5. Department of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging, University Medical Center Groningen (UMCG), Groningen, The Netherlands

    Johan A. den Boer

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Peremans, K. et al. (2014). Brain SPECT in the Impulsive-Aggressive Dog. In: Dierckx, R., Otte, A., de Vries, E., van Waarde, A., den Boer, J. (eds) PET and SPECT in Psychiatry. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-40384-2_26

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