Giovannetti, G., et al., A radiofrequency system for in vivo hyperpolarized (13) C MRS experiments in mice with a 3T MRI clinical scanner. Scanning, 2016. 38(6): p. 710-719.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/27059822
Hyperpolarized carbon-13 magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) is a powerful tool to explore tissue metabolic state, by permitting the study of intermediary metabolism of biomolecules in vivo. However, a number of technological problems still limit this technology and need innovative solutions. In particular, the low molar concentration of derivate metabolites give rise to low signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), which makes the design and development of dedicated radiofrequency (RF) coils a fundamental task. In this article, the authors describe the simulation and the design of a RF coils configuration for MR experiments in mice, constituted by a (1) H whole body volume RF coil for imaging and a (13) C single circular loop surface RF coil for performing (13) C acquisitions. After the building, the RF system was employed in an in vivo experiment in a mouse injected with hyperpolarized [1-(13) C]pyruvate by using a 3 T clinical MR scanner. SCANNING 38:710-719, 2016. (c) 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.