Multi-Band Frequency Encoding Method for Metabolic Imaging with Hyperpolarized [1-13C]Pyruvate

Cornelius von Morze¹, Galen Reed¹, Peter J. Shin¹, Peder E. Larson¹, Robert Bok¹, Simon Hu¹, Daniel B. Vigneron¹

We describe a new method for metabolic imaging of multiple hyperpolarized ¹³C compounds based on frequency encoding of a single echo. This approach capitalizes on the large chemical shifts between ¹³C resonances to achieve comparable or faster speeds than previous fast MRSI approaches, while avoiding complex acquisition and reconstruction methods. The method was tested in application to metabolic imaging studies of [1-¹³C]pyruvate and its metabolic products lactate and alanine in preclinical normal and transgenic murine models of prostate cancer. Elevated lactate signals were observed in the prostatic regions of the tumor mice corresponding to regions of T2-weighted signal changes.