Evidence for the Role of Intracellular Water Lifetime as a Tumour Biomarker Obtained by In Vivo Field‐Cycling Relaxometry. Issue 25 (14th April 2018) - Ruggiero, Maria Rosaria
Abstract: It was established through in vivo T1 measurements at low magnetic fields that tumour cells display proton T1 values that are markedly longer than those shown by healthy tissue. Moreover, it has been found that the elongation of T1 parallels the aggressiveness of the investigated tumour. The T1 lengthening is associated with an enhanced water exchange rate across the transcytolemmal membrane through an overexpression/upregulation of GLUT1 and Na + /K + ATPase transporters. It follows that the intracellular water lifetime represents a hallmark of tumour cells that can be easily monitored by measuring T1 at different magnetic field strengths ranging from 0.2 to 200 mT. Abstract : Nuclear magnetic resonance dispersion profiles of breast tumours and muscle in mice show that the observed increase in T 1 parallels the aggressiveness of the tumours and their metastatic potential. Changes in intracellular water lifetime represent a significant hallmark of tumour cells that can be monitored non‐invasively by measuring T 1 relaxation times at low magnetic fields (0.2–200 mT).