The sensitivity of magnetic resonance image signals of the brain to the change in the cerebral blood oxygenation was measured in gradient echo images of rat brains at a field strength of 7 T. The sensitivity depended on the blood vessel volume relative to the tissue volume within the image voxel, and signal intensities in the cortical area were well correlated with the change in the venous blood de-oxygenation level at the sagittal sinus. Tissue signals in the image (15 ms echo time) showed a sensitivity of 10-20% change for the full range of deoxygenation level from 0-100%. From these observations and image simulations, the extent of the signal response to some neuro-stimulation which induces an increase in regional cerebral blood flow has been estimated for 4 T field strength.

A quantitative in vivo method for obtaining maps of tissue sodium concentration (TSC) by MRI is compared to the invasive, global 22Na radionuclide dilutional technique in the normal rat brain. The MR method uses a three-dimensional projectional acquisition scheme to minimize signal losses from transverse relaxation. Internal calibration standards are used to convert the signal intensity into TSC after correction for B1 inhomogeneities by using the ratio of 23Na and 1H images obtained with identical B1 distributions and sensitivities at the two frequencies. Over the biological range of concentrations, the TSC, measured as the ratio of MR signals of 23Na and 1H, gives a linear response with concentration. In the normal rat brain, the mean TSC measured using the MRI method (TSC = 45 +/- 4 mM, animals = 5) is not significantly different from the global 22Na radionuclide method (TSC = 49 +/- 6 mM, animals = 7).

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2D COSY 'H NMR with surface coil has been used to resolve and assign cerebral metabolites which had previously been detected but could not be resolved or assigned in situ in the living animal by conventional 1D 'H NMR. A wide range of cerebral metabolites, including alanine, N-acetyl aspartate, aspartate, choline derivatives, creatine/phosphocreatine pool, GABA, glucose, glutamate/glutamine pool, inositol, lactate and taurine were simultaneously resolved and assigned in situ in the whole animal using the 2D COSY correlation graphs. Global irreversible ischemia caused the appearance and the disappearance of cross-peaks in the 2D COSY 'H NMR map, corresponding to increases in alanine, GABA and lactate and glucose depletion.Brain metabolism; 'H NMR; 2D COSY NMR; Ischemia