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Review
. 2021 Apr 3;11(4):219.
doi: 10.3390/metabo11040219.

Comprehensive Literature Review of Hyperpolarized Carbon-13 MRI: The Road to Clinical Application

Affiliations
Review

Comprehensive Literature Review of Hyperpolarized Carbon-13 MRI: The Road to Clinical Application

Michael Vaeggemose et al. Metabolites. .

Abstract

This review provides a comprehensive assessment of the development of hyperpolarized (HP) carbon-13 metabolic MRI from the early days to the present with a focus on clinical applications. The status and upcoming challenges of translating HP carbon-13 into clinical application are reviewed, along with the complexity, technical advancements, and future directions. The road to clinical application is discussed regarding clinical needs and technological advancements, highlighting the most recent successes of metabolic imaging with hyperpolarized carbon-13 MRI. Given the current state of hyperpolarized carbon-13 MRI, the conclusion of this review is that the workflow for hyperpolarized carbon-13 MRI is the limiting factor.

Keywords: clinical application; hyperpolarized carbon-13 MRI; review.

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Conflict of interest statement

M.V. and R.F.S. are employees of GE Healthcare. The authors report no conflicts of interest. The authors alone are responsible for the content and writing of the paper.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
PRISMA 2009 flow diagram of the paper selection process.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Illustration of the hyperpolarizing experiment in a SPINlab dissolution dynamic nuclear polarizer (d-DNP). First, the dissolution of 13C-pyruvate is placed in a 0.8 K cold environment at 5 T within the DPN to achieve hyperpolarization. Secondly, the dissolution achieves massively increased magnetic properties and is ready for injection into the experiment subject. With the use of fast MR sequences, spectra and images of the pyruvate metabolism is achieved (Courtesy of Christian Ø. Mariager).
Figure 3
Figure 3
Flow chart of a pipeline for data acquisition, reconstruction, processing, and analysis of hyperpolarized carbon-13 MR spectra. The pipeline illustrates the conventional approach (light green) and suggestions for extended steps (light grey).
Figure 4
Figure 4
Analysis of hyperpolarized carbon-13 spectra from pyruvate injection. (A) Metabolite signal change in the spectral and temporal dimension since injection. (B) Total signal of downstream metabolites in a temporal summed spectrum. (C) Kinetics of the metabolites with enhanced view of smaller signal metabolites (red dashed box).

References

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