Multichannel receiver coils for improved coverage in cardiac metabolic imaging using prepolarized 13C substrates

Area of Science:

• Medical Imaging
• Cardiovascular Research
• Metabolic Imaging

Background:

• Hyperpolarized carbon-13 magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) offers real-time cardiac metabolism insights.
• Optimizing radiofrequency (RF) coils is crucial for maximizing signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) in fast, non-recoverable magnetization imaging.

Purpose of the Study:

• To compute and evaluate three distinct receiver-coil configurations for hyperpolarized (13)C cardiac MRI.
• To enhance SNR in posterior myocardial regions for improved metabolite visualization.

Main Methods:

• Development and computational modeling of three receiver-coil configurations using pig and human models.
• Demonstration of sensitivity maps using phantoms and in vivo pig experiments.
• Comparison of SNR across different coil configurations, focusing on posterior heart regions.

Main Results:

• The best multichannel coil configuration demonstrated up to an 80% increase in SNR in the posterior heart.
• Sensitivity maps confirmed improved performance in phantoms and in vivo.
• The optimized coils significantly enhance imaging capabilities for posterior myocardium.

Conclusions:

• New multichannel RF coil configurations substantially improve SNR for hyperpolarized (13)C cardiac MRI.
• These advancements enable imaging of metabolite signals in previously inaccessible posterior myocardial regions.
• The findings pave the way for more comprehensive in vivo cardiac metabolism studies.