Abstract #3443

Gade T, Matei C, Mazaheri Y, Koutcher J

Past studies have established elevated levels of choline (Cho) metabolites as markers of malignancy. However, the mechanisms in the active transport and diffusion of choline across cellular membranes are not fully understood. The goals of this study are to measure the diffusion characteristics of choline in an attempt to understand the characteristics of tumor microenvironment and the transport of metabolites. In particular, we have used diffusion tensor spectroscopy (DTS) and imaging (DTI) to: 1. measure diffusion of Cho and water in a tumor animal model, and 2. compare our finding to pathology maps. We present our preliminary results.