Non-invasive quantification of brain glycogen absolute concentration.

The only currently available method to measure brain glycogen in vivo is 13C NMR spectroscopy. Incorporation of 13C-labeled glucose (Glc) is necessary to allow glycogen measurement, but might be affected by turnover changes. Our aim was to measure glycogen absolute concentration in the rat brain by eliminating label turnover as variable. The approach is based on establishing an increased, constant 13C isotopic enrichment (IE). 13C-Glc infusion is then performed at the IE of brain glycogen. As glycogen IE cannot be assessed in vivo, we validated that it can be inferred from that of N-acetyl-aspartate IE in vivo: After [1-13C]-Glc ingestion, glycogen IE was 2.2 +/- 0.1 fold that of N-acetyl-aspartate (n = 11, R(2) = 0.77). After subsequent Glc infusion, glycogen IE equaled brain Glc IE (n = 6, paired t-test, p = 0.37), implying isotopic steady-state achievement and complete turnover of the glycogen molecule. Glycogen concentration measured in vivo by 13C NMR (mean +/- SD: 5.8 +/- 0.7 micromol/g) was in excellent agreement with that in vitro (6.4 +/- 0.6 micromol/g, n = 5). When insulin was administered, the stability of glycogen concentration was analogous to previous biochemical measurements implying that glycogen turnover is activated by insulin. We conclude that the entire glycogen molecule is turned over and that insulin activates glycogen turnover.

Relaxivity of Gd-based contrast agents on X nuclei with long intrinsic relaxation times in aqueous solutions.

The relaxivity of commercially available gadolinium (Gd)-based contrast agents was studied for X-nuclei resonances with long intrinsic relaxation times ranging from 6 s to several hundred seconds. Omniscan in pure 13C formic acid had a relaxivity of 2.9 mM(-1) s(-1), whereas its relaxivity on glutamate C1 and C5 in aqueous solution was approximately 0.5 mM(-1) s(-1). Both relaxivities allow the preparation of solutions with a predetermined short T1 and suggest that in vitro substantial sensitivity gains in their measurement can be achieved. 6Li has a long intrinsic relaxation time, on the order of several minutes, which was strongly affected by the contrast agents. Relaxivity ranged from approximately 0.1 mM(-1) s(-1) for Omniscan to 0.3 for Magnevist, whereas the relaxivity of Gd-DOTP was at 11 mM(-1) s(-1), which is two orders of magnitude higher. Overall, these experiments suggest that the presence of 0.1- to 10-microM contrast agents should be detectable, provided sufficient sensitivity is available, such as that afforded by hyperpolarization, recently introduced to in vivo imaging.

Gadonanotubes as ultrasensitive pH-smart probes for magnetic resonance imaging.

With their nanoscalar, superparamagnetic Gd(3+)-ion clusters (1 x 5 nm) confined within ultrashort (20-80 nm) single-walled carbon nanotube capsules, gadonanotubes are high-performance T1-weighted contrast agents for magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). At 1.5 T, 37 degrees C, and pH 6.5, the r1 relaxivity (ca. 180 mM(-1) s(-1) per Gd(3+) ion) of gadonanotubes is 40 times greater than any current Gd(3+) ion-based clinical agent. Herein, we report that gadonanotubes are also ultrasensitive pH-smart probes with their r1/pH response from pH 7.0-7.4 being an order of magnitude greater than for any other MR contrast agent. This result suggests that gadonanotubes might be excellent candidates for the development of clinical agents for the early detection of cancer where the extracellular pH of tumors can drop to pH=7 or below. In the present study, gadonanotubes have also been shown to maintain their integrity when challenged ex vivo by phosphate-buffered saline solution, serum, heat, and pH cycling.

Multiple-frequency EPR spectra of two aqueous Gd3+ polyamino polypyridine carboxylate complexes: a study of high field effects.

In the search for highly efficient magnetic resonance imaging contrast agents, polyamino polypyridine carboxylate complexes of Gd3+ have shown unusual properties with both very rapid and very slow electron spin relaxation in solution observed by electron paramagnetic resonance. Since the relationship between the molecular structure and the electron spin properties remains quite obscure at this point, detailed studies of such complexes may offer useful clues for the design of Gd3+ compounds with tailored electronic features. Furthermore, the availability of very high-frequency EPR spectrometers based on quasi-optical components provides us with an opportunity to test the existing relaxation theories at increasingly high magnetic fields and observation frequencies. We present a detailed EPR study of two gadolinium polyamino polypyridine carboxylate complexes, [Gd(tpaen)]- and [Gd(bpatcn)(H2O)], in liquid aqueous solutions at multiple temperatures and frequencies between 9.5 and 325 GHz. We analyze the results using the model of random zero-field splitting modulations through Brownian rotation and molecular deformations. We consider the effect of concentration on the line width, as well as the possible existence of an additional g-tensor modulation relaxation mechanism and its possible impact on future experiments. We use (17)O NMR to characterize the water exchange rate on [Gd(bpatcn)(H2O)] and find it to be slow (approximately 0.6 x 10(6) s-1).

Rotational dynamics account for pH-dependent relaxivities of PAMAM dendrimeric, Gd-based potential MRI contrast agents.

The EPTPA5) chelate, which ensures fast water exchange in GdIII complexes, has been coupled to three different generations (5, 7, and 9) of polyamidoamine (PAMAM) dendrimers through benzylthiourea linkages (H5EPTPA = ethylenepropylenetriamine-N,N,N',N'',N''-pentaacetic acid). The proton relaxivities measured at pH 7.4 for the dendrimer complexes G5-(GdEPTPA)111, G7-(GdEPTPA)253 and G9-(GdEPTPA)1157 decrease with increasing temperature, indicating that, for the first time for dendrimers, slow water exchange does not limit relaxivity. At a given field and temperature, the relaxivity increases from G5 to G7, and then slightly decreases for G9 (r1 = 20.5, 28.3 and 27.9 mM(-1) s(-1), respectively, at 37 degrees C, 30 MHz). The relaxivities show a strong and reversible pH dependency for all three dendrimer complexes. This originates from the pH-dependent rotational dynamics of the dendrimer skeleton, which was evidenced by a combined variable-temperature and multiple-field 17O NMR and 1H relaxivity study performed at pH 6.0 and 9.9 on G5-(GdEPTPA)111. The longitudinal 17O and 1H relaxation rates of the dendrimeric complex are strongly pH-dependent, whereas they are not for the [Gd(EPTPA)(H2O)]2- monomer chelate. The longitudinal 17O and 1H relaxation rates have been analysed by the Lipari-Szabo spectral density functions and correlation times have been calculated for the global motion of the entire macromolecule (tau(gO)) and the local motion of the GdIII chelates on the surface (tau(lO)), correlated by means of an order parameter S2. The dendrimer complex G5-(GdEPTPA)111 has a considerably higher tau(gO) under acidic than under basic conditions (tau(298)gO = 4040 ps and 2950 ps, respectively), while local motions are less influenced by pH (tau(298)lO = 150 and 125 ps). The order parameter, characterizing the rigidity of the macromolecule, is also higher at pH 6.0 than at pH 9.9 (S2 = 0.43 vs 0.36, respectively). The pH dependence of the global correlation time can be related to the protonation of the tertiary amine groups in the PAMAM skeleton, which leads to an expanded and more rigid dendrimeric structure at lower pH. The increase of tau(gO) with decreasing pH is responsible for the pH dependent proton relaxivities. The water exchange rate on G5-(GdEPTPA)111(k(298)ex = 150 x 10(6) s(-1)) shows no significant pH dependency and is similar to the one measured for the monomer [Gd(EPTPA)(H2O)]2-. The proton relaxivity of G5-(GdEPTPA)111 is mainly limited by the important flexibility of the dendrimer structure, and to a small extent, by a faster than optimal water exchange rate.

Destroying gadofullerene aggregates by salt addition in aqueous solution of Gd@C(60)(OH)(x) and Gd@C(60)[C(COOH(2))](10).

A combined proton relaxivity and dynamic light scattering study has shown that aggregates formed in aqueous solution of water-soluble gadofullerenes can be disrupted by addition of salts. The salt content of fullerene-based materials will strongly influence properties related to aggregation phenomena, therefore, their behavior in biological or medical applications. In particular, the relaxivity of gadofullerenes decreases dramatically with phosphate addition. Moreover, real biological fluids present a rather high salt concentration which will have consequences on fullerene aggregation and influence fullerene-based drug delivery.

GdIII complexes with fast water exchange and high thermodynamic stability: potential building blocks for high-relaxivity MRI contrast agents.

On the basis of structural considerations in the inner sphere of nine-coordinate, monohydrated Gd(III) poly(aminocarboxylate) complexes, we succeeded in accelerating the water exchange by inducing steric compression around the water binding site. We modified the common DTPA(5-) ligand (DTPA=(diethylenetriamine-N,N,N',N",N"-pentaacetic acid) by replacing one (EPTPA(5-)) or two (DPTPA(5-)) ethylene bridges of the backbone by propylene bridges, or one coordinating acetate by a propionate arm (DTTA-prop(5-)). The ligand EPTPA(5-) was additionally functionalized with a nitrobenzyl linker group (EPTPA-bz-NO(2) (5-)) to allow for coupling of the chelate to macromolecules. The water exchange rate, determined from a combined variable-temperature (17)O NMR and EPR study, is two orders of magnitude higher on [Gd(eptpa-bz-NO(2))(H(2)O)](2-) and [Gd(eptpa)(H(2)O)](2-) than on [Gd(dtpa)(H(2)O)](2-) (k(ex)298=150x10(6), 330x10(6), and 3.3x10(6) s(-1), respectively). This is optimal for attaining maximum proton relaxivities for Gd(III)-based, macrocyclic MRI contrast agents. The activation volume of the water exchange, measured by variable-pressure (17)O NMR spectroscopy, evidences a dissociative interchange mechanism for [Gd(eptpa)(H(2)O)](2-) (DeltaV(not equal sign)=(+6.6+/-1.0) cm(3) mol(-1)). In contrast to [Gd(eptpa)(H(2)O)](2-), an interchange mechanism is proved for the macrocyclic [Gd(trita)(H(2)O)](-) (DeltaV (not equal sign)=(-1.5+/-1.0) cm(3) mol(-1)), which has one more CH(2) group in the macrocycle than the commercial MRI contrast agent [Gd(dota)(H(2)O)](-), and for which the elongation of the amine backbone also resulted in a remarkably fast water exchange. When one acetate of DTPA(5-) is substituted by a propionate, the water exchange rate on the Gd(III) complex increases by a factor of 10 (k(ex)298=31x10(6) s(-1)). The [Gd(dptpa)](2-) chelate has no inner-sphere water molecule. The protonation constants of the EPTPA-bz-NO(2) (5-) and DPTPA(5-) ligands and the stability constants of their complexes with Gd(III), Zn(II), Cu(II) and Ca(II) were determined by pH potentiometry. Although the thermodynamic stability of [Gd(eptpa-bz-NO(2))(H(2)O)](2-) is reduced to a slight extent in comparison with [Gd(dtpa)(H(2)O)](2-), it is stable enough to be used in medical diagnostics as an MRI contrast agent. Therefore both this chelate and [Gd(trita)(H(2)O)](-) are potential building blocks for the development of high-relaxivity macromolecular agents.