Research Summary

I am a member of both Pediatric Malignancies and Prostate Cancer programs of the HDFCCC. I have extensive experience in quantitative data analysis, as well as instrumentation and software development using ionizing radiation imaging modalities (PET, SPECT, and CT), since I joined the UCSF Physics Research Laboratory (PRL), the birthplace of the dual-modality functional-anatomical imaging system (SPECT/CT and PET/CT). My broad training and expertise in experimental particle physics and medical imaging physics, combined with my leadership roles in extramurally funded projects, have proven a strong asset to many preclinical and clinical SPECT/CT, PET/CT, and PET/MRI projects. My particular research interest is, but not limited to, to develop technologies for combined dual-modality imaging systems to assess both structure and function in human diseases. I serve as a group leader for the UCSF PRL, and co-direct the preclinical SPECT/CT and PET/CT imaging research program at the Department of Radiology and Biomedical Imaging.

Research Funding

  • April 1, 2018 - December 31, 2021 - Energy-independent single photon molecular imaging technology, Principal Investigator. Sponsor: NIH/NIBIB, Sponsor Award ID: R01EB026331
  • May 1, 2017 - April 30, 2021 - Dynamic cardiac SPECT, Principal Investigator. Sponsor: NIH/NHLBI, Sponsor Award ID: R01HL135490
  • September 21, 2018 - September 20, 2019 - Preclinical Dark-Field/Phase-Contrast Scanner Using X-ray Biprisms, Co-Principal Investigator. Sponsor: NIH/NIBIB, Sponsor Award ID: R43EB027535
  • April 1, 2011 - March 31, 2017 - Pretherapy 124I-MIBG Dosimetry for Planning 131I-MIBG Neuroblastoma Therapy, Principal Investigator. Sponsor: NIH/NCI, Sponsor Award ID: R01CA154561

Education

Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, B.S., 1995, Physics
University of Alabama in Huntsville, M.S., 1997, Physics/Space Plasma
University of California, Irvine, 1998-1999, Physics/Medical Physics
University of California, Los Angeles, M.S., 2001, Physics
University of California, Los Angeles, Ph.D., 2002, Physics/Astroparticle Physics
University of California, Los Angeles, Post-doc, 2002-2003, Physics/Neutrino Physics
University of California, San Francisco, Post-doc, 2003-2006, Medical Imaging Physics

Honors & Awards

  • 1992-95
    Government Scholarship, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, Daejeon, Korea
  • 2006-11
    Mentored Quantitative Research Career Development Award, National Cancer Institute
  • 2010
    Frost & Sullivan Technology Innovation of the Year Award, Prostate Cancer Diagnosis North America
  • 2011
    Physicist of the Year Award, Korean Association of Medical Physicists in North America
  • 2016
    Distinguished Investigator Award, Academy for Radiology & Biomedical Imaging Research
  • 2019
    Alexander R. Margulis Award for Scientific Excellence, Radiological Society of North America

Selected Publications

  1. Chillakuru YR, Munjal S, Laguna B, Chen TL, Chaudhari GR, Vu T, Seo Y, Narvid J, Sohn JH. Development and web deployment of an automated neuroradiology MRI protocoling tool with natural language processing. BMC Med Inform Decis Mak. 2021 07 12; 21(1):213.  View on PubMed
  2. Pearson TS, Gupta N, San Sebastian W, Imamura-Ching J, Viehoever A, Grijalvo-Perez A, Fay AJ, Seth N, Lundy SM, Seo Y, Pampaloni M, Hyland K, Smith E, de Oliveira Barbosa G, Heathcock JC, Minnema A, Lonser R, Elder JB, Leonard J, Larson P, Bankiewicz KS. Gene therapy for aromatic L-amino acid decarboxylase deficiency by MR-guided direct delivery of AAV2-AADC to midbrain dopaminergic neurons. Nat Commun. 2021 07 12; 12(1):4251.  View on PubMed
  3. Shah V, Chillakuru YR, Rybkin A, Seo Y, Vu T, Sohn JH. Algorithmic Prediction of Delayed Radiology Turn-Around-Time during Non-Business Hours. Acad Radiol. 2021 Jun 27.  View on PubMed
  4. Gullberg GT, Shrestha UM, Veress AI, Segars WP, Liu J, Ordovas K, Seo Y. Novel Methodology for Measuring Regional Myocardial Efficiency. IEEE Trans Med Imaging. 2021 06; 40(6):1711-1725.  View on PubMed
  5. Liu G, Mitra D, Jones EF, Franc BL, Behr SC, Nguyen A, Bolouri MS, Wisner DJ, Joe BN, Esserman LJ, Hylton NM, Seo Y. Mask-Guided Convolutional Neural Network for Breast Tumor Prognostic Outcome Prediction on 3D DCE-MR Images. J Digit Imaging. 2021 Jun; 34(3):630-636.  View on PubMed
  6. Chillakuru YR, Kranen K, Doppalapudi V, Xiong Z, Fu L, Heydari A, Sheth A, Seo Y, Vu T, Sohn JH. High precision localization of pulmonary nodules on chest CT utilizing axial slice number labels. BMC Med Imaging. 2021 Apr 09; 21(1):66.  View on PubMed
  7. Huh Y, Yang J, Dim OU, Cui Y, Tao W, Huang Q, Gullberg GT, Seo Y. Evaluation of a variable-aperture full-ring SPECT system using large-area pixelated CZT modules: A simulation study for brain SPECT applications. Med Phys. 2021 May; 48(5):2301-2314.  View on PubMed
  8. Yang J, Shi L, Wang R, Miller EJ, Sinusas AJ, Liu CJ, Gullberg GT, Seo Y. Direct Attenuation Correction Using Deep Learning for Cardiac SPECT: A Feasibility Study. J Nucl Med. 2021 Feb 26.  View on PubMed
  9. Torkaman M, Yang J, Shi L, Wang R, Miller EJ, Sinusas AJ, Liu C, Gullberg GT, Seo Y. Direct Image-Based Attenuation Correction using Conditional Generative Adversarial Network for SPECT Myocardial Perfusion Imaging. Proc SPIE Int Soc Opt Eng. 2021 Feb; 11600.  View on PubMed
  10. Lee M, Ryu M, Joo M, Seo YJ, Lee J, Kim HM, Shin E, Yeom JH, Kim YH, Bae J, Lee K. Endoribonuclease-mediated control of hns mRNA stability constitutes a key regulatory pathway for Salmonella Typhimurium pathogenicity island 1 expression. PLoS Pathog. 2021 02; 17(2):e1009263.  View on PubMed
  11. Sohn JH, Behr SC, Hernandez Pampaloni M, Seo Y. Quantitative Assessment of Myocardial Ischemia With Positron Emission Tomography. J Thorac Imaging. 2021 Jan 22.  View on PubMed
  12. Kim DI, Cho YB, Lim Y, Hong SH, Hahm B, Lee SM, Kang SC, Seo YJ. Chios mastic gum inhibits influenza A virus replication and viral pathogenicity. J Gen Virol. 2021 03; 102(3).  View on PubMed
  13. Chen TL, Emerling M, Chaudhari GR, Chillakuru YR, Seo Y, Vu TH, Sohn JH. Domain specific word embeddings for natural language processing in radiology. J Biomed Inform. 2021 01; 113:103665.  View on PubMed
  14. Hathi DK, Li W, Seo Y, Flavell RR, Kornak J, Franc BL, Joe BN, Esserman LJ, Hylton NM, Jones EF. Evaluation of primary breast cancers using dedicated breast PET and whole-body PET. Sci Rep. 2020 12 14; 10(1):21930.  View on PubMed
  15. Divgi C, Carrasquillo JA, Meredith R, Seo Y, Frey EC, Bolch WE, Zimmerman BE, Akabani G, Jacobson DA, Brown B, Davern SM, Hobbs RF, Humm J, Moros EG, Morse D, Papineni R, Zanzonico P, Benedict SH, Sgouros G. Overcoming Barriers to Radiopharmaceutical Therapy (RPT): An Overview From the NRG-NCI Working Group on Dosimetry of Radiopharmaceutical Therapy. Int J Radiat Oncol Biol Phys. 2021 03 15; 109(4):905-912.  View on PubMed
  16. Wang S, Li J, Hua J, Su Y, Beckford-Vera DR, Zhao W, Jayaraman M, Huynh TL, Zhao N, Wang YH, Huang Y, Qin F, Shen S, Gioeli D, Dreicer R, Sriram R, Egusa EA, Chou J, Feng FY, Aggarwal R, Evans MJ, Seo Y, Liu B, Flavell RR, He J. Molecular Imaging of Prostate Cancer Targeting CD46 Using ImmunoPET. Clin Cancer Res. 2021 Mar 01; 27(5):1305-1315.  View on PubMed
  17. Yang J, Sohn JH, Behr SC, Gullberg GT, Seo Y. CT-less Direct Correction of Attenuation and Scatter in the Image Space Using Deep Learning for Whole-Body FDG PET: Potential Benefits and Pitfalls. Radiol Artif Intell. 2021 Mar; 3(2):e200137.  View on PubMed
  18. Zhao N, Huang Y, Wang YH, Muir RK, Chen YC, Wei J, Hooshdaran N, Viswanath P, Seo Y, Ruggero D, Renslo AR, Evans MJ. Ferronostics: Measuring Tumoral Ferrous Iron with PET to Predict Sensitivity to Iron-Targeted Cancer Therapies. J Nucl Med. 2021 Jul 01; 62(7):949-955.  View on PubMed
  19. Shrestha UM, Sciammarella M, Pampaloni MH, Botvinick EH, Gullberg GT, DeMarco T, Seo Y. Assessment of late-term progression of cardiac allograft vasculopathy in patients with orthotopic heart transplantation using quantitative cardiac 82Rb PET. Int J Cardiovasc Imaging. 2021 Apr; 37(4):1461-1472.  View on PubMed
  20. Aboian M, Barajas R, Shatalov J, Ravanfar V, Bahroos E, Tong E, Taylor JW, Bush NO, Sneed P, Seo Y, Cha S, Hernandez-Pampaloni M. Maximizing the use of batch production of 18F-FDOPA for imaging of brain tumors to increase availability of hybrid PET/MR imaging in clinical setting. Neurooncol Pract. 2021 Feb; 8(1):91-97.  View on PubMed

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