Quantitative Pancreatic Β-Cell MRI using Manganese-Enhanced Look-Locker Imaging & Two-Site Water Exchange Analysis

Patrick F. Antkowiak¹, Moriel Vandsburger, Frederick H. Epstein

Pancreatic beta cells release insulin to maintain blood glucose homeostasis, but in diabetes mellitus, functional beta cell mass decreases. Currently there is no ideal method to monitor beta cell function and mass noninvasively, which would be useful for monitoring diabetic disease progression or therapeutic response. Here we developed a two-compartment model of pancreatic T1 relaxation after injection of MnCl and used it to probe model parameters that may indicate β cell mass and function. We applied this model to normal, pharmacologically-treated, and diabetic mice and found that model parameters reflect both beta cell function and mass.