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Updated: Oct 19, 2026

A Computerized Test Battery to Study Pharmacodynamic Effects on the Central Nervous System of Cholinergic Drugs in Early Phase Drug Development
Published on: February 11, 2019
Neither short-term nor long-term administration of oral choline alters metabolite concentrations in human brain
P Dechent1, P J Pouwels, J Frahm
1Biomedizinische NMR Forschungs GmbH am Max-Planck-Institut für Biophysikalische Chemie, Göttingen, Germany.
Background:
This study reexamined conflicting proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) reports of increased or unaffected choline-containing compounds (Cho) in human brain in response to a single dose of 50 mg/kg choline bitartrate.
Methods:
The present work was based on a well-established strategy for quantitative proton MRS (2.0 T, STEAM localization sequence, TR/TE/TM = 6000/20/10 ms, LCModel automated spectral evaluation) that allows the determination of cerebral metabolite concentrations rather than T1-weighted resonance intensity ratios. Moreover, the investigations were extended to a possible long-term effect of oral choline by monitoring the continuous ingestion of 2 x 16 g of lecithin per day for 4 weeks. Six young healthy volunteers participated in each study and metabolite concentrations were determined in standardized locations in gray matter, white matter, cerebellum, and thalamus.
Results:
Neither for short-term nor for long-term administration of choline do the data reveal statistically significant deviations from the basal concentrations of Cho, total N-acetyl-containing compounds (neuronal markers), total creatine, and myo-inositol (glial marker) in any of the investigated brain regions.
Conclusions:
Previous reports of increased Cho are not confirmed.
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