Longitudinal Change in the Developmental Rat Brain using in vivo Glutamate Chemical Exchange Saturation Transfer

Our study results and analyses show the trend in glutamate concentration and the decreases in T2 and ADC values influenced by myelination, neuronal change, and the water and macromolecule content of the developing rat brain, and also provide evidence indicating the time point where a neurochemical balance is achieved. Our results demonstrating changes in glutamate concentration up to the eighth postnatal week should provide valuable reference data for other studies of the developing healthy rat brain, and should be useful for comparisons with diseased rat brain in further developmental studies.