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. 2001 May;45(5):899-907.
doi: 10.1002/mrm.1119.

Region and tissue differences of metabolites in normally aged brain using multislice 1H magnetic resonance spectroscopic imaging

N Schuff  1 , F Ezekiel, A C Gamst, D L Amend, A A Capizzano, A A Maudsley, M W Weiner
Affiliations

Region and tissue differences of metabolites in normally aged brain using multislice 1H magnetic resonance spectroscopic imaging

N Schuff et al. Magn Reson Med. 2001 May.

Abstract

Quantitative measurements of regional and tissue specific concentrations of brain metabolites were measured in elderly subjects using multislice proton magnetic resonance spectroscopic imaging ((1)H MRSI). Selective k-space extrapolation and an inversion-recovery sequence were used to minimize lipid contamination and linear regression was used to account for partial volume problems. The technique was applied to measure the concentrations of N-acetyl aspartate (NAA), and creatine (Cr)- and choline (Cho)-containing compounds in cortical gray and white matter, and white matter lesions of the frontal and the parietal lobe in 40 normal elderly subjects (22 females and 18 males, 56-89 years old, mean age 74 +/- 8). NAA was about 15% lower in cortical gray matter and 23% lower in white matter lesions when compared to normal white matter. Cr was 11% higher in cortical gray matter than in white matter, and also about 15% higher in the parietal cortex than in the frontal cortex. Cho was 28% lower in cortical gray matter than in white matter. Furthermore, NAA and Cr changes correlated with age. In conclusion, regional and tissue differences of brain metabolites must be considered in addition to age-related changes when interpreting (1)H MRSI data.

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Figures

FIG. 1
FIG. 1
Metabolite images of NAA, Cr, and Cho, and the corresponding anatomical images from a 75-year-old male subject. Also shown are representative spectra from a location in the frontal (a) and parietal (b) cortex, as indicated in the NAA images. Dashed lines represent raw spectral data; solid lines represent results from the automated spectral fit.
FIG. 2
FIG. 2
Regression plots of NAA, Cr, and Cho intensity changes (in arbitrary units) against cortical gray matter weight in MRSI voxels. Cortical gray matter weight is defined as the ratio of cortical gray matter to total brain tissue in a voxel. Its value is unity when all tissue in a voxel is cortical gray matter.
FIG. 3
FIG. 3
Changes of NAA and Cr concentrations (in arbitrary units) in white matter as a function of age.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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