Measurement of the T1 Of 31P-Metabolites at 7 Tesla in the Human Heart

Matthew D. Robson¹, Stefan Neubauer¹, Christopher T. Rodgers¹

Measurement of high-energy metabolite concentrations in the heart offers insight and understanding of myocardial disease and may yield unique diagnostic information. A novel Look-Locker Inversion Recovery Chemical Shift Imaging sequence was developed for evaluation of ³¹P T₁ in-vivo. Validation of this method on skeletal muscle agrees with previous work. In 5 healthy males, the measured cardiac T₁s were: PCr=2.810.47s, &[gamma]-ATP=1.860.15s, &[alpha]-ATP=1.340.09s, and &[beta]-ATP=0.980.15s. This reduction in T₁ compared to lower fields is consistent with work in skeletal muscle. CK flux has a significant influence over the apparent T₁ of PCr and &[gamma]-ATP.