Fibroblast activation protein-α (FAP-α) is a type II transmembrane glycoprotein that is overexpressed in activated fibroblasts such as those occurring in the stroma of tumors or in the fibrotic processes accompanying various benign diseases. The recent development and clinical implementation of radiolabeled quinolone-based tracers suitable for positron emission tomography (PET) that act as FAP inhibitors have opened a new perspective in molecular imaging. While multiple studies have investigated the use of FAP imaging in cancer, evidence concerning its use in non-malignant diseases is still scarce. Herein, we provide a comprehensive review of fibroblast activation imaging in non-malignant diseases to clarify the current and potential role of this class of molecules in nuclear medicine.

成纤维细胞活化蛋白-α (FAP-α) 是一种 II 型跨膜糖蛋白，在活化的成纤维细胞中过度表达，例如在肿瘤基质或伴随各种良性疾病的纤维化过程中出现的那些。最近开发和临床应用的放射性标记的喹诺酮类示踪剂适用于作为 FAP 抑制剂的正电子发射断层扫描 (PET)，这为分子成像开辟了新的视角。虽然多项研究调查了 FAP 成像在癌症中的应用，但关于其在非恶性疾病中的应用的证据仍然很少。在此，我们全面回顾了非恶性疾病中的成纤维细胞活化成像，以阐明此类分子在核医学中的当前和潜在作用。