Peter Sheffield1,2, Michael D. Noseworthy,
2,3
1School of Biomedical Engineering,
McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, Canada; 2Brain-Body Institute,
St. Joseph's Healthcare, Hamilton, ON, Canada; 3Electrical and
Computer Engineering, School of Biomedical Engineering, McMaster University,
Hamilton, ON, Canada
Herein
we demonstrate the necessity for separating control subjects by gender when
analyzing the metabolites of the GABA/glutamate/glutamine (Glx) spin system.
Seven male and five female subjects were recruited to assess differences in
these metabolites using a STEAM sequence optimized for Glx quantification.
Results indicate that GABA concentrations in the anterior cingulate cortex of
females are significantly lower than in males, in contrast to previous
occipital GABA studies. Therefore, care must be taken when developing control
groups for Glx metabolite analysis. Our results also illuminate a possible
etiology for executive mood disorder obscured by previous reports.
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