Characterization of the macromolecule baseline in localized (1)H-MR spectra of human brain

Short-echo-time magnetic resonance spectra of human brain contain broad contributions from macromolecules. As they are a priori of unknown shape and intensity, they pose a problem if one wants to quantitate the overlying spectral features from low-molecular-weight metabolites. On the other hand, the macromolecular contributions may provide relevant clinical information themselves, if properly evaluated. Several methods, based on T(1), T(2), or spectral shape, have previously been suggested to suppress or edit the macromolecule contributions. Here, a method is presented based on a series of saturation recovery scans and that allows for simultaneous recording of the macromolecular baseline and the fully relaxed metabolite spectrum. In comparison to an inversion recovery technique aimed at nulling signals from long-T(1) components, the saturation recovery method is less susceptible to T(1) differences inherent in signals from different metabolites or introduced by pathology. The saturation recovery method was used to quantitate the macromolecular baseline in white and/or gray matter locations of the human brain in 40 subjects. It was found that the content and composition of MR visible macromolecules depends on cerebral location, as well as the age of the investigated subject, while no gender dependence could be found.