Brain GABA Levels of P5 Wild Type and Fragile X Mouse Model (FMR1 KO): Comparison of Mass Spectroscopy and In vivo 1H MRS

An imbalance between excitatory glutaminergic and inhibitory GABAergic processes is one of the leading hypotheses for fragile X syndrome. We investigated GABAergic differences by measuring brain GABA levels of male five-day-old mouse pups (P5) in Wild-Type (WT) and Fragile X knockout (FMR1 KO) models. .. Ex vivo mass spectrometry detected thalamus and frontal differences in both WT and FMR1 KO models and lower GABA levels in the FMR1 KO animals. In vivo 1H spectra at 7T found similar regional GABA differences between thalamus- and frontal-rich regions, but was unable to detect Wild-Type versus FMR1 KO differences.