Feasibility of CEST Imaging on the Guinea Pig Stifle at 9.4 T

Matthew Fenty¹, Victor Babu Kassey¹, Feliks Kogan¹, Ravinder Reddy¹

Osteoarthritis (OA) is a common and painful condition with a multi-factorial etiology of the musculoskeletal system affecting more than 50% of the U.S. population over 65. Degeneration of the articular cartilage tissue is a slow process and typically takes decades to develop. Dunkin-Hartley guinea pigs have been shown to develop OA with the earliest stage of detection manifesting as early as three to four months of age. Chemical Exchange Saturation Transfer (CEST) has become a popular method for measurement of metabolites with exchangeable protons. GAG contains amino groups and hydroxyl groups that exchange protons with bulk water that can be that exploited for CEST. Here we will show preliminary results of implementation and optimization of CEST imaging using GAG-dependent contrast on healthy guinea pig cartilage samples on a 9.4 T Varian scanner.