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Abstract #1389

Serial Proton MRS of the Human Brain After Oral Administration of 12C & 13C Enriched Glucose

Arabhi C. Nagasunder1,2, Ashok Panigrahy1,3, Fawzi Boumezbeur4, Marvin D. Nelson1, Stefan Bluml1,2

1Radiology, Childrens Hospital Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, United States; 2Rudi Schulte Research Institute, Santa Barbara, CA, United States; 3Radiology, Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh of UPMC, Pittsburgh, PA, United States; 4Commissariat lEnergie Atomique, Institute for Biomedical Imaging, Gif-sur-Yvette, Paris, France


Regular glucose (12C Glc) and 13C enriched (U-13C) glucose was administered orally to healthy controls. MR spectra, using a standard PRESS sequence on a clinical 3T scanner, were acquired before and after Glc administration. Increased brain glucose concentrations were readily detectable after 12C Glc administration. When U-13C Glc was used, 13C label replaced 12C and resulted in an apparent reduction of the 1H MRS detectable breakdown products of glucose such as glutamate (Glu). This study demonstrates the feasibility of monitoring glucose metabolism in the human brain using widely available and FDA approved methods. Despite the limitations in specificity, this approach could be useful when the logistical challenges, posed by advanced approaches to study in vivo Glc metabolism, cannot be overcome.