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Abstract #0917

Glutamate and Glutamine Changes Induced by Ethanol Treatment in the Rat Brain Detectable with CT-PRESS at 3T

Natalie May Zahr1,2, Meng Gu3, Dirk Mayer, 2,3, Daniel Mark Spielman3, Edith V. Sullivan1, Adolf Pfefferbaum, 12

1Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, United States; 2Neuroscience, SRI International, Menlo Park, CA, United States; 3Radiology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, United States


Glutamate (Glu) and glutamine (Gln) were quantified individually to determine the effects of ethanol (EtOH) on rat brain metabolites. CT-PRESS was acquired at baseline (MRS1) and after 16 (MRS2) and 24 weeks (MRS3) of EtOH exposure. Previous analysis revealed an increase in the combined resonances of Glu+Gln (i.e., Glx) with escalating EtOH doses. The current investigation unveils that underlying the increase in Glx at MRS2 was an increase in Gln, and underlying the increase in Glx at MRS3 was an increase in Glu. These results caution against interpretations regarding changes to Glx as a surrogate marker for Glu or Gln.