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In vivo absolute quantification of carnosine in the vastus lateralis muscle with 1H MRS using a surface coil and water as internal reference

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Abstract

Objective

To standardize a method for 1H MRS intramuscular absolute quantification of carnosine in the thigh, using a surface coil and water as internal reference.

Materials and methods

Carnosine spectra were acquired in phantoms (5, 10, and 15 mM) as well as in the right gastrocnemius medialis (GM) and right vastus lateralis (VLM) muscles of young team sports athletes, using volume (VC) and surface (SC) coils on a 3 T scanner, with the same receiver gain. Water spectra were used as internal reference for the absolute quantification of carnosine.

Results

Phantom’s experiments showed a maximum error of 7%, highlighting the validity of the measurements in the study setup. The carnosine concentrations (mmol/kg ww, mean ± SD) measured in the GM were 6.8 ± 2.2 with the VC (CcarVC) and 10.2 ± 3.0 with the SC (CcarSC) (P = 0.013; n = 9). Therefore, a correction was applied to these measurements (CcarVC = 0.6582*CcarSC), to make coils performance comparable (6.8 ± 2.2 for VC and 6.7 ± 2.0 for SC, P = 0.97). After that, only the SC was used to quantify carnosine in the VLM, where a concentration of 5.4 ± 1.5 (n = 30) was found, with significant differences between men (6.2 ± 1.3; n = 15) and women (4.6 ± 1.2; n = 15). The error in quantitation was 5.3–5.5% with both coils.

Conclusion

The method using the SC and water as internal reference can be used to quantify carnosine in voluminous muscles and regions of the body in humans, where the VC is not suitable, such as the VLM.

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Acknowledgements

The authors want to thank to the volunteers and Funding

Funding

CODI, 2565, Juan C Calderón. Departamento Administrativo de Ciencia, Tecnología e Innovación (COLCIENCIAS)-Coldeportes, Convocatoria 626-2014, project 111562638757 from 2014, Juan C Calderón. Universidad de Antioquia, 13041, Juan C Calderón. Fundación Banco de la República, 4339, Juan C Calderón.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Physiology and Biochemistry Research Group-PHYSIS, Faculty of Medicine, University of Antioquia UdeA, Calle 70 No 52-21, Medellín, Colombia

    Gloria Vega, Raul Narvaez-Sanchez & Juan C. Calderón

  2. Group of Biophysics, University of Antioquia, Medellín, Colombia

    Germán Ricaurte

  3. Pablo Tobón Uribe Hospital, Medellín, Colombia

    Mauricio Estrada-Castrillón

  4. Group of Sports Medicine GRINMADE, Faculty of Medicine, University of Antioquia, Medellín, Colombia

    Mauricio Estrada-Castrillón & Jaime A. Gallo-Villegas

  5. NMR Laboratory, Neuromuscular Investigation Center, Institute of Myology, Paris, France

    Harmen Reyngoudt

  6. Indeportes Antioquia, Medellín, Colombia

    Oscar M. Cardona

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  1. Gloria Vega
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Correspondence to Juan C. Calderón.

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Ethical approval

All procedures involving human participants in this study were in accordance with the ethical standards of the 1993 Resolution number 8430 by the National Ministry of Health of Colombia, the Bioethics Committee of the University of Antioquia (minutes 013 from September 2013) and IPS Universitaria (minutes 97 from June 2016) and with the 1964 Declaration of Helsinki and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards. Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study.

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Vega, G., Ricaurte, G., Estrada-Castrillón, M. et al. In vivo absolute quantification of carnosine in the vastus lateralis muscle with 1H MRS using a surface coil and water as internal reference. Skeletal Radiol 52, 157–165 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00256-022-04149-8

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