Sodium MRI

Sodium (²³ Na) imaging has a place somewhere between ¹ H-MRI and MR spectroscopy (MRS). Like MRS it potentially provides information on metabolic processes, but only one single resonance of ionic ²³ Na is observed. Therefore pulse sequences do not need to code for a chemical shift dimension, allowing ²³ Na images to be obtained at high resolutions as compared to MRS. In this chapter the biological significance of sodium in the brain will be discussed, as well as methods for observing it with ²³ Na-MRI. Many vital cellular processes and interactions in excitable tissues depend on the maintenance of a low intracellular and high extracellular sodium concentration. Healthy cells maintain this concentration gradient at the cost of energy. Leaky cell membranes or an impaired energy metabolism immediately leads to an increase in cytosolic total tissue sodium. This makes sodium a biomarker for ischemia, cancer, excessive tissue activation, or tissue damage as might be caused by ablation therapy. Special techniques allow quantification of tissue sodium for the monitoring of disease or therapy in longitudinal studies or preferential observation of the intracellular component of the tissue sodium. New methods and high-field magnet technology provide new opportunities for ²³ Na-MRI in clinical and biomedical research.