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Abstract #2960

Functional spectroscopic imaging: mapping glutamate levels in the mouse brain during electrical stimulation of the hind paw

Aline Seuwen 1 , Aileen Schrter 1 , and Markus Rudin 1,2

1 Institute for Biomedical Engineering, ETH & University of Zrich, Zrich, Zrich, Switzerland, 2 Institute for Pharmacology and Toxicology, University of Zrich, Zrich, Switzerland

Glutamate is the most prevalent neurotransmitter in the brain and acts in excitatory synapses. During neuronal activity, glutamate levels can vary. In this study, we used slice selective proton spectroscopic imaging to measure changes in glutamate levels during electrical stimulation in the mouse hind paw. Glutamate levels were found to be increased in the contralateral somatosensory cortex, but remained almost constant on the ipsilateral side. This unilateral response is encouraging and indicates good specificity. Measuring glutamate level changes upon sensory stimulation might constitute an alternative to standard BOLD-fMRI in mice, for which systemic hemodynamic effects may contribute to the response.

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