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Dynamic phosphocreatine imaging with unlocalized pH assessment of the human lower leg muscle following exercise at 3T
Author(s) -
Khegai Oleksandr,
Madelin Guillaume,
Brown Ryan,
Parasoglou Prodromos
Publication year - 2018
Publication title -
magnetic resonance in medicine
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.696
H-Index - 225
eISSN - 1522-2594
pISSN - 0740-3194
DOI - 10.1002/mrm.26728
Subject(s) - phosphocreatine , nuclear magnetic resonance , calf muscle , magnetic resonance imaging , nuclear medicine , voxel , chemistry , biomedical engineering , medicine , physics , radiology , energy metabolism
Purpose To develop a high temporal resolution imaging method that measures muscle‐specific phosphocreatine (PCr) resynthesis time constant ( τ PCr ) and pH changes in muscles of the lower leg following exercise on a clinical 3T MRI scanner. Methods We developed a frequency‐selective 3D non‐Cartesian FLORET sequence to measure PCr with 17‐mm nominal isotropic resolution (28 mm actual resolution) and 6‐s temporal resolution to capture dynamic metabolic muscle activity. The sequence was designed to additionally collect inorganic phosphate spectra for pH quantification, which were localized using sensitivity profiles of individual coil elements. Nineteen healthy volunteers were scanned while performing a plantar flexion exercise on an in‐house developed ergometer. Data were acquired with a dual‐tuned multichannel coil array that enabled phosphorus imaging and proton localization for muscle segmentation. Results After a 90‐s plantar flexion exercise at 0.66 Hz with resistance set to 40% of the maximum voluntary contraction, τ PCr was estimated at 22.9 ± 8.8 s (mean ± standard deviation) with statistical coefficient of determination r 2 = 0.89 ± 0.05. The corresponding pH values after exercise were in the range of 6.9‐7.1 in the gastrocnemius muscle. Conclusion The developed technique allows measurement of muscle‐specific PCr resynthesis kinetics and pH changes following exercise, with a temporal resolution and accuracy comparable to that of single voxel 31 P‐MRS sequences. Magn Reson Med 79:974–980, 2018. © 2017 International Society for Magnetic Resonance in Medicine.