Abstract #0108

Probing perturbed hepatic metabolism in bile-duct-ligated rats with hyperpolarized 13C pyruvate and arginine

Hikari A. I. Yoshihara¹, Dmitri Firsov², Cristina Cudalbu³, and Rolf Gruetter⁴

¹Laboratory for Functional and Metabolic Imaging, Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, Lausanne (EPFL), Lausanne, Switzerland, ²Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland, ³Centre d'Imagerie Biomedicale (CIBM), Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, Lausanne (EPFL), Lausanne, Switzerland, ⁴Laboratory for Functional and Metabolic Imaging & Centre d'Imagerie Biomedicale (CIBM), Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, Lausanne (EPFL), Lausanne, Switzerland

Detoxification of ammonia by the urea cycle and maintenance of glucose homeostasis by gluconeogenesis are two critical functions of the liver. The bile duct ligation (BDL) model of cirrhosis was used to test the ability of hyperpolarized [6-¹³C]arginine and [1-¹³C]pyruvate to detect changes in liver function. The conversion of hyperpolarized L-[6-¹³C]arginine to ¹³C-urea was observed in a sham-operated rat but not in BDL rats. Striking differences in pyruvate metabolism between the two groups were also noted, indicating that these probes can sense changes in hepatic mitochondrial and cytoplasmic metabolism associated with biliary cirrhosis.

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