Regional quantification of cardiac metabolism with hyperpolarized [1-13C]-pyruvate MRI

Hyperpolarized (HP) 13C-pyruvate MRI is a promising new tool for non-invasive quantification of myocardial glycolytic and Krebs cycle metabolism. In this study we evaluated whole-heart imaging and metabolism quantification methods in 7 healthy volunteers under a fasted and fed state. We observed that the 13C-pyruvate-to-bicarbonate conversion rate, kPB, a measure of PDH flux, had the highest, statistically significant correlation with blood glucose levels, with smaller changes in the 13C-lactate/pyruvate ratio and 13C-pyruvate-to-lactate conversion rate, kPL. 13C-pyruvate and 13C-lactate were detected simultaneously in the RV blood pool, immediately after intravenous injection, reflecting LDH activity in blood.