Functional MRS at 7T to Study Neuronal Inhibition in Humans

描述(由申请人提供)：描述工作人脑中神经元放电抑制的潜在代谢/神经化学事件是一项具有挑战性的任务。质子磁共振波谱(MRS)可以对人脑中的代谢物浓度进行非侵入性测量。然而，质子磁共振波谱的低灵敏度可能会限制该方法检测代谢物浓度微小变化的可靠性和准确性，特别是低浓度的代谢物，如葡萄糖、乳酸或g-氨基丁酸(GABA)。这些限制阻碍了对神经元过程的强有力的研究，这些过程会在大脑的神经化学轮廓中产生细微的变化，例如神经元放电抑制。在这个项目中，我们将受益于更高的灵敏度 由7T扫描仪提供，能够可靠和准确地检测大脑神经化学特征的变化，这是表征神经元放电抑制的关键。通过在7T进行功能性MRS的研究，我们在过去已经获得了在初级视皮层神经元活动增加的功能范例中多种代谢物变化的强有力的结果。这些结果被证明对了解生理条件下的大脑新陈代谢非常有帮助。在目前的项目中，我们将扩展这项技术，以进一步解决神经元抑制的代谢/神经化学底物。有机会测量抑制性(GABA)和兴奋性(谷氨酸)神经递质以及大脑的燃料(主要是葡萄糖和乳酸)，对于全面了解抑制的代谢/神经化学相关性至关重要。这项研究将为帮助理解人类大脑中的神经元抑制提供新的实验证据，这不仅对于我们对大脑整体功能的基本了解很重要，而且对于了解和监测许多大脑疾病，如精神分裂症、癫痫或帕金森氏症等。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): The characterization of the underlying metabolic/neurochemical events of neuronal firing suppression in the working human brain is a challenging task. Proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) allows the non- invasive measurement of metabolite concentrations in the human brain. However, the low sensitivity of proton MRS can limit the reliability and accuracy of the method to detect small variations in the concentration of metabolites, especially of those present in low concentration, such as glucose, lactate or g-aminobutyric acid (GABA). These limitations impair a robust investigation of neuronal processes which produce subtle changes in the neurochemical profile of the brain, such as neuronal firing suppression. In this project we will benefit from the increased sensitivity offered by 7T scanners to enable the reliable and accurate detection of changes in the brain neurochemical profile which are critical to characterize neuronal firing suppression. By conducting studies of functional MRS at 7T, we have in the past obtained robust results of multiple metabolite changes during functional paradigms of increased neuronal activity in the primary visual cortex. These results were proven to be extremely helpful to understand brain metabolism in physiological conditions. With the present project, we will extend this technology to further address the metabolic / neurochemical substrates of neuronal inhibition. The opportunity to measure inhibitory (GABA) and excitatory (glutamate) neurotransmitters, as well as the fuels of the brain (mainly glucose and lactate), is critical to gain comprehensive insight into the metabolic/neurochemical correlates of inhibition. This research will provide new experimental evidence to help understand neuronal inhibition in the human brain, which is important not only for our basic understanding of overall brain function, but also for the understanding and monitoring of many brain disorders such as schizophrenia, epilepsy or Parkinson's disease.