Richard Carson, PhD
Cards
About
Titles
Professor of Radiology and Biomedical Imaging and of Biomedical Engineering
Director of Graduate Studies, Biomedical EngineeringBiography
Richard E. Carson received his Ph.D. from UCLA in 1983 in Biomathematics. From that time on, he has focused his research on the development and application of mathematical techniques for the study of human beings and non-human primates with Positron Emission Tomography (PET), a noninvasive imaging technology that uses radiopharmaceuticals to trace in vivo physiology and pharmacology. From 1983 until 2005, Dr. Carson was an integral part of the PET program at the National Institutes of Health, rising to the rank of Senior Scientist. In 2005, Dr. Carson joined the faculty of Yale University as Professor of Biomedical Engineering and Diagnostic Radiology. He was Director of the Yale PET Center from 2007 to 2022, a state-of-the-art facility focused on quantitative PET techniques using novel radiopharmaceuticals. Dr. Carson is also Director of Graduate Studies in Biomedical Engineering. Dr. Carson’s research interests are concentrated in the following areas: 1) Ultra-high resolution brain PET systems and algorithms for image reconstruction with PET, 2) Development of mathematical models for novel radiopharmaceuticals to produce images of physiological parameters, 3) Use of receptor-binding ligands to measure drug occupancy and dynamic changes in neurotransmitters by analysis of PET tracer signals, and 4) applications of PET tracers in clinical populations and preclinical models of disease. Dr. Carson has published over 400 papers in peer-reviewed journals, given over 200 invited lectures and is a member of the editorial board of two of the leading journals in the field of brain PET, the Journal of Nuclear Medicine, and the Journal of Cerebral Blood Flow and Metabolism. Dr. Carson was awarded the Kuhl-Lassen award from the Brain Imaging Council of the Society of Nuclear Medicine in 2007. He became a member of the College of Fellows of the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering in 2008 and was awarded the Sheffield Distinguished Teaching Award from the Yale School of Engineering. In 2009, he was named the winner of the Ed Hoffman Memorial Award from the Computer and Instrumentation Council of the Society of Nuclear Medicine. In 2010, Dr. Carson was named as a member of the Connecticut Academy of Science and Engineering. In 2016, Dr. Carson was given the Distinguished Investigator Award from the Academy of Radiology Research. In 2017, Dr. Carson received the Edward J. Hoffman Medical Imaging Scientist Award from the IEEE. In 2018, Dr. Carson gave the Henry N. Wagner Jr. Lectureship at the Society of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging annual meeting in Philadelphia. In 2019, Dr. Carson was named as a Fellow of the IEEE. In 2023, Dr. Carson received the Yale University Graduate Mentor Award. In 2024, Dr. Carson received the Image of the Year award at the Society of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging annual meeting.
Appointments
Radiology & Biomedical Imaging
Professor Phased RetirementPrimaryBiomedical Engineering
ProfessorSecondary
Other Departments & Organizations
- Alzheimer's Disease Research Center (ADRC)
- Bioimaging Sciences
- Biomedical Engineering
- Center for Brain & Mind Health
- Dean's Workshops
- Diabetes Research Center
- Mental Health PET Radioligand Development (MHPRD) Program
- Neuroscience Research Training Program (NRTP)
- Positron Emission Tomography (PET)
- Radiobiology and Genome Integrity
- Radiology & Biomedical Imaging
- Stress & Addiction Clinical Research Program
- Wu Tsai Institute
- Yale Cancer Center
- Yale Stress Center
- Yale Ventures
Education & Training
- PhD
- University of California at Los Angeles (1983)
- BS
- Brown University, Applied Math-Biology (1977)
Research
Academic Achievements and Community Involvement
Links & Media
Media
SynapticDensityImaging_SciTranslMed_cover
Our work on synaptic density imaging was published in Science Translational Medicine on July 20, 20162443450
Collage of PET images from the Yale PET CenterPET_images_2010
Human PET brain images with 10 different tracers
News
- July 06, 2023
NeuroEXPLORER Images Unveiled at SNMMI
- January 29, 2023
Symposium Highlights Importance of Biomedical Imaging for Understanding Neurological Disease
- February 16, 2022
Discoveries & Impact (February 2022)
- December 12, 2021
Yale Study: Lower Prefrontal Cortical Synaptic Vesicle Binding in Cocaine Use Disorder
Get In Touch
Contacts
Radiology & Biomedical Imaging
PO Box 208048, 15 York Street
New Haven, CT 06520-8048
United States