Two-Dimensional Proton Chemical-Shift Imaging of Human Muscle Metabolites

Large lipid signals and strong susceptibility gradients introduced by muscle-bone interfaces represent major technical challenges for in vivo proton MRS of human muscle. Here, the demonstration of two-dimensional proton chemical-shift imaging of human muscle metabolites is presented. This technique utilizes a chemical-shift-selective method for water and lipid suppression and automatic shimming for optimal homogeneity of the magnetic field. The 2D ¹H CSI technique described facilitates the acquisition of high-spatial-resolution spectra, and allows one to acquire data from multiple muscle groups in a single experiment. A preliminary investigation utilizing this technique in healthy adult males (n = 4) revealed a highly significant difference in the ratio of the creatine to trimethylamine resonance between the fast and slow twitch muscle groups examined. The technique is robust, can be implemented on a commercial scanner with relative ease, and should prove to be a useful tool for both clinical and basic investigators.