NeuroImage
-
A method for quantitative determination of the glutamate (Glu) concentration in human brain using PRESS-based single voxel MR spectroscopy (MRS) at 3 T has been developed and validated by repeatedly analyzing voxels comprising the anterior cingulate cortex (acc) and the left hippocampus (hc) in 40 healthy volunteer brains. At an optimum echo time of 80 ms, the C4 resonance of Glu appears well resolved and separated from major interferents, that is, glutamine and N-acetylaspartate. As a complementary method, a multiple quantum coherence filter sequence for Glu was employed. ⋯ When the concentrations were corrected by individual cerebrospinal fluid fractions obtained by segmentation using spm, CVs tended to increase and the correlation coefficients for the two MRS sessions tended to decrease, indicating that this type of correction adds uncertainty to the data. The concentrations of Glu in the two voxels studied were found to be significantly different (11.6 mmol/l in acc, 10.9 mmol/l in hc, P = 0.023) and decrease with age (P < 0.04). These concentrations agreed well with those determined using the quantum coherence filter method although the uncertainty of the latter limits reliable analysis.
-
White matter hyperintensities (WMHs) are commonly seen on brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans of elderly individuals, but their functional significance remains controversial. We used perfusion-weighted MRI to determine the impact of WMHs on cortical regional cerebral blood volume (rCBV). We studied 24 elderly stroke patients and 27 control subjects with conventional MRI which included T2-weighted FLAIR coronal slices through whole brain and gadolinium-DTPA (0.2 mmol/kg)-based perfusion MRI (pMRI) with echo planar imaging. ⋯ Although the trends of correlation still existed when the two groups were analyzed separately, they were not significant. The correlations between cortical rCBV and WMHs in the same lobe were significant for subjects with more severe hyperintensities irrespective of the group. In conclusion, T2-weighted WMHs are associated with reduced rCBV in the cerebral cortex, particularly in individuals with extensive hyperintensities.