title: Proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy of the hippocampus in patients with mild cognitive impairment: a pilot study.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To assess the brain metabolites in the hippocampus of patients with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) using proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy at 0.5 T.
  
  
  METHODS
  Absolute concentrations and ratios to creatine of N-acetyl aspartate, myoinositol, glutamate + glutamine, and choline were measured in the right and left hippocampus of 5 MCI patients and 5 control subjects.
  
  
  RESULTS
  In MCI subjects, reduced N-acetyl aspartate was found in the right hippocampus (P = 0.01), and increased myoinositol was found in the left hippocampus (P = 0.02). Myoinositol/N-acetyl aspartate ratios were higher in the right (P = 0.03) and left (P = 0.01) hippocampus of MCI subjects. No significant difference in the concentration of glutamate + glutamine was observed between the control and MCI groups.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  An increase in myoinositol and a decrease in N-acetyl aspartate may be observed in the preclinical stages of dementia. Ratio measurements of these metabolites may serve as a biomarker for MCI.
authors: Departments of Neurology, Medical College of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, WI 53226, USA. mfranczak@neuroscience.mcw.edu
authors: Malgorzata
authors: M
authors: Franczak
authors: Robert W
authors: RW
authors: Prost
authors: Piero G
authors: PG
authors: Antuono
authors: Leighton P
authors: LP
authors: Mark
authors: Jennifer L
authors: JL
authors: Jones
authors: John L
authors: JL
authors: Ulmer
mesh_terms: D000704:Analysis of Variance; D001224:Aspartic Acid / Q000031:analogs & derivatives* / Q000378:metabolism; D001923:Brain Chemistry; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D003072:Cognition Disorders / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology; D006624:Hippocampus / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology; D006801:Humans; D007091:Image Processing, Computer-Assisted; D007294:Inositol / Q000378:metabolism*; D009682:Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy / Q000379:methods*; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests; D010865:Pilot Projects; D011522:Protons
chemical_list: D011522:Protons; D001224:Aspartic Acid; D007294:Inositol; C000179:N-acetylaspartate