Sikh contribution in every branch of knowledge and every field of human activity is far greater than their numbers warrant. Their contribution is a tribute to the inherent dynamism and enlightened approach of their faith Sikhism. Sikhs are not only excellent farmers they alone converted famishing India into surplus country in food grains or intrepid soldiers but have also distinguished themselves in sophisticated and highly technical fields. S. Mohinder Singhis engaged in determining radioisotopes aid in the diagnosis of brain and heart diseases.
On hearing the term “metabolism research,” most people might envision white coated doctors evaluating their patients’ responses to nutritional changes or studying thyroid functions. A cyclotron would probably not come to mind. But scientists at LBL depend on the 88Inch Cyclotron for the radioactive tracers needed in their metabolism research.
Several researchers in the Biology and Medicine Division are studying the brain’s metabolism in order to no surgically diagnose Alzheimer disease, schizophrenia, stroke, and tumors. Using high-resolution positron emission tomography (PET images), they are able to measure specific metabolic and blood flow changes that indicate illness. “From the knowledge of what is happening, doctors can make accurate diagnoses and prescribe effective therapy,” says Yukio Yano, one of the researchers.
Positron emitters Although few hospitals now have high-resolution PET equipment it is excellent for quantitatively measuring minute amounts of tracer compounds in the body. Positron emitting compounds, administered by intravenous injection, follow normal metabolic and blood flow pathways. Their course is monitored by sensors within the PET detector ring to give researchers information about blood flow, blood volume, and metabolic activity.
Yano and his colleagues, Chester Mathis, Stephen Moerlein, Mohindar Singh, and Tony Sargent, are primarily interested in developing radioisotopes and radiopharmaceuticals for measuring metabolic and blood flow activity in the human brain and heart.
Article extracted from this publication >> October 11, 1985
