Xiangchuan Chen1, Reena Anand2, 3, Xiaoping Hu1, Ebrahim Haroon2, 3
1Biomedical Imaging Technology Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, United States; 2School of Medicine, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, United States; 3Winship Cancer Institute, Atlanta, GA, United States
Metabolic alterations induced by chronic administration of interferon (IFN)-alpha for the treatment of hepatitis C virus infection were examined with single voxel magnetic resonance spectroscopy. The results showed that the metabolisms of glutamate, myo-inositol and choline in the anterior cingulate cortex, left and right basal ganglia were altered by the treatment with IFN-alpha. These metabolic changes in the abovementioned brain regions may be the underlying mechanism for the behavioral alterations (e.g., depression) induced by the treatment.