Monitoring creatine and phosphocreatine by 13C MR spectroscopic imaging during and after 13C4 creatine loading: a feasibility study

• Published in: Amino acids Vol. 48; no. 8; pp. 1857 - 1866
• Main Authors: Janssen, Barbara H., Lassche, Saskia, Hopman, Maria T., Wevers, Ron A., van Engelen, Baziel G. M., Heerschap, Arend
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Vienna Springer Vienna 01.08.2016; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Analytical Chemistry; Biochemical Engineering; Biochemistry; Biomedical and Life Sciences; chromium; Creatine; Feasibility studies; females; image analysis; In vivo methods and tests; Ingestion; Life Sciences; longitudinal studies; Magnetic resonance imaging; Males; Monitoring; Muscles; Neurobiology; Original; Original Article; patients; Phosphocreatine; Proteomics; Signal to noise ratio; spectroscopy; stable isotopes; Turnover rate; Human muscle; C; Creatine; MR spectroscopy
• DOI: 10.1007/s00726-016-2294-0
• ISSN: 0939-4451

Creatine (Cr) supplementation to enhance muscle performance shows variable responses among individuals and different muscles. Direct monitoring of the supplied Cr in muscles would address these differences. In this feasibility study, we introduce in vivo 3D 13 C MR spectroscopic imaging (MRSI) of the leg with oral ingestion of 13 C4–creatine to observe simultaneously Cr and phosphocreatine (PCr) for assessing Cr uptake, turnover, and the ratio PCr over total Cr (TCr) in individual muscles. 13 C MRSI was performed of five muscles in the posterior thigh in seven subjects (two males and two females of ~20 years, one 82-year-old male, and two neuromuscular patients) with a 1 H/ 13 C coil in a 3T MR system before, during and after intake of 15 % 13 C4-enriched Cr. Subjects ingested 20 g Cr/day for 4 days in four 5 g doses at equal time intervals. The PCr/TCr did not vary significantly during supplementation and was similar for all subjects and investigated muscles (average 0.71 ± 0.07), except for the adductor magnus (0.64 ± 0.03). The average Cr turnover rate, assessed in male muscles, was 2.1 ± 0.7 %/day. The linear uptake rates of Cr were variable between muscles, although not significantly different. This assessment was possible in all investigated muscles of young male volunteers, but less so in muscles of the other subjects due to lower signal-to-noise ratio. Improvements for future studies are discussed. In vivo 13 C MRSI after 13 C–Cr ingestion is demonstrated for longitudinal studies of Cr uptake, turnover, and PCr/TCr ratios of individual muscles in one exam.