Abstract #2437

Measuring Glutamate Metabolism in Vivo in Tumors Using Dynamic Nuclear Polarization

Ferdia Aidan Gallagher^1,2, Mikko I. Kettunen^2,3, De-en Hu^2,3, Sam E. Day^2,3, Magnus Karlsson⁴, Anna Gisselsson⁴, Mathilde H. Lerche⁴, Kevin M. Brindle^2,3

¹Radiology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK; ²CRUK Cambridge Research Institute, Cambridge, UK; ³Biochemistry, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK; ⁴Imagnia AB, Malm, Sweden

The number of metabolites that can be hyperpolarized using Dynamic Nuclear Polarization is increasing. Here we show that [1-¹³C]glutamic acid can also be polarized. The metabolism of hyperpolarized glutamate to -ketoglutarate, catalyzed by the enzyme alanine transaminase, was detected in vitro and in vivo in tumor models. As non-polarized -ketoglutarate is below the threshold for MRS detection, this presents a new method for probing tumor metabolism.