Background: This study evaluated total-body glucose metabolism in a preclinical lab animal, the rabbit, by employing a dynamic glucose metabolic image obtained with total-body fluorine-18 fluorodeoxyglucose (18F-FDG) positron emission tomography/computed tomography (PET/CT). Methods: The dynamic total-body PET/CT system was used to obtain glucose metabolic imaging from 10 sedated body-matched rabbits. The standard uptake value (SUV) of 18F-FDG was used to evaluate glucose metabolism. In

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... , the correlation between glucose metabolism and age was assessed, as well as metabolic differences of the major organs between genders and between left- and right sides. Results: We found a statistically significant distribution of glucose in several organs across the entire body. There were no significant metabolic differences between genders and between bilateral sides in the 10 rabbits. Thereafter, we assayed the major organ SUV changes by dynamic PET/CT of the major organs. The heart, kidneys, liver, and bladder took up more 18F-FDG, whereas the skeletal muscle, brain, spinal cord, and lungs incorporated less 18F-FDG. The phenotype of SUV uptake was highly correlated with the physiological functions. However, the low 18F-FDG uptake in the brain and spinal cord was due to sedation.Conclusions: The total-body glucose metabolic atlas depicted with 18F-FDG dynamic PET/CT may be used as a reference for assessing pathological 18F-FDG uptake. Furthermore, this study could be a reference for lab animal research involving deregulated glucose metabolism.