Imaging Renal Urea Handling in Rats at Millimeter Resolution using Hyperpolarized Magnetic Resonance Relaxometry
- Resource Type
- Working Paper
- Authors
- Reed, Galen D.; von Morze, Cornelius; Verkman, Alan S.; Koelsch, Bertram L.; Chaumeil, Myriam M.; Lustig, Michael; Ronen, Sabrina M.; Sands, Jeff M.; Larson, Peder E. Z.; Wang, Zhen J.; Larsen, Jan Henrik Ardenkjær; Kurhanewicz, John; Vigneron, Daniel B.
- Source
- Subject
- Physics - Medical Physics
Physics - Biological Physics
Quantitative Biology - Tissues and Organs
- Language
\textit{In vivo} spin spin relaxation time ($T_2$) heterogeneity of hyperpolarized \textsuperscript{13}C urea in the rat kidney was investigated. Selective quenching of the vascular hyperpolarized \textsuperscript{13}C signal with a macromolecular relaxation agent revealed that a long-$T_2$ component of the \textsuperscript{13}C urea signal originated from the renal extravascular space, thus allowing the vascular and renal filtrate contrast agent pools of the \textsuperscript{13}C urea to be distinguished via multi-exponential analysis. The $T_2$ response to induced diuresis and antidiuresis was performed with two imaging agents: hyperpolarized \textsuperscript{13}C urea and a control agent hyperpolarized bis-1,1-(hydroxymethyl)-1-\textsuperscript{13}C-cyclopropane-$^2\textrm{H}_8$. Large $T_2$ increases in the inner-medullar and papilla were observed with the former agent and not the latter during antidiuresis suggesting that $T_2$ relaxometry may be used to monitor the inner-medullary urea transporter (UT)-A1 and UT-A3 mediated urea concentrating process. Two high resolution imaging techniques - multiple echo time averaging and ultra-long echo time sub-2 mm$^3$ resolution 3D imaging - were developed to exploit the particularly long relaxation times observed.