Kim C.C. van de Ven1,
2, Marinette van der Graaf1, 3, Bastiaan E. de
Galan4, Cees J. Tack4, Arend Heerschap1
1Radiology,
Radboud University Nijmegen Medical Centre, Nijmegen, Netherlands; 2Present
Address: Philips Healthcare, Best, Netherlands; 3Pediatrics,
Radboud University Nijmegen Medical Centre, Nijmegen, Netherlands; 4General
Internal Medicine, Radboud University Nijmegen Medical Centre, Nijmegen,
Netherlands
Cerebral glucose metabolism was studied by 13C-MRS during [1-13C]glucose infusion under euglycemic and hypoglycemic conditions in patients with uncomplicated type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM). Time courses of 13C-label incorporation into different metabolites were used to calculate the tricarboxylic acid cycle flux (VTCA) by a one-compartment metabolic model. VTCA did not differ between the two glycemic conditions. However, upon comparison with results previously obtained among healthy volunteers, VTCA was approximately 45% higher in patients than in healthy subjects under hypoglycemic conditions. This finding suggests that the brain of T1DM patients may endure moderate hypoglycemia better than that of healthy subjects.
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