Abstract
Using a surface coil, we have obtained 1H NMR spectra from metabolites in the human brain. Localization was achieved by combining depth pulses with image-selected in vivo spectroscopy magnetic field gradient methods. 1H spectra in which total creatine (3.03 ppm) has a signal/noise ratio of 95:1 were obtained in 4 min from 14 ml of brain. A resonance at 2.02 ppm consisting predominantly of N-acetylaspartate was measured relative to the creatine peak in gray and white matter, and the ratio was lower in the white matter. The spin-spin relaxation times of N-acetylaspartate and creatine were measured in white and gray matter and while creatine relaxation times were the same in both, the N-acetylaspartate relaxation time was longer in white matter. Lactate was detected in the normoxic brain and the average of three measurements was ~0.5 mM from comparison with the creatine plus phosphocreatine peak, which was assumed to be 10.5 mM.
Original language | English (US) |
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Pages (from-to) | 1821-1825 |
Number of pages | 5 |
Journal | Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America |
Volume | 85 |
Issue number | 6 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - 1988 |
Externally published | Yes |
Keywords
- lactate
- N-acetylaspartate
- neurochemistry
- surface coils
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Genetics
- General