MagLab scientists use powerful magents to understand strokes
By Kristin Roberts, MagLab
New technique could further research on multiple nerological disorders
New research conducted at the Florida State Universitybased National High Magnetic Field Laboratory has
revealed a new, innovative way to classify the severity of a
stroke, aid in diagnosis and evaluate potential treatments.
“Stroke affects millions of adults and children worldwide,”
said Sam Grant, MagLab researcher and associate professor
of Chemical & Biomedical Engineering at the FAMU-FSU
College of Engineering.
“The new technique is a way
of narrowly applying energy to
the metabolites of a specimen
exposed to a very high magnetic
field.”
The research is detailed in two papers, “Metabolic
properties in stroked rats revealed by relaxation-enhanced
magnetic resonance spectroscopy at ultrahigh fields,” in
Nature Communications and “Metabolic T1 dynamics and
longitudinal relaxation enhancement in vivo at ultrahigh
magnetic fields on ischemia” in the Journal of Cerebral
Blood Flow and Metabolism.
The new technique is a way of narrowly applying energy
to the metabolites of a specimen exposed to a very high
magnetic field. Metabolites are the biological compounds
used in the chemical process of breaking down food or other
chemicals into energy and producing new materials.
By selectively “exciting” these metabolites and analyzing their
distribution and confinement in brain tissue, the research
team can investigate the metabolic microenvironment and
tell whether cells were shrinking or expanding, a critical tool
to understanding the severity of stroke, Grant said.
That information could help medical professionals better
treat patients.
“Strokes cause an interruption of blood and oxygen to flow
to the brain,” explained Jens Rosenberg, a MagLab researcher
and one of Grant’s co-authors. “Through this research, we
can see how neurons and other neural cells respond to the
disruption of blood flow after stroke and use that information
to better understand the full impacts of stroke.”
The MagLab’s flagship 900 MHz Ultra Widebore NMR magnet
system was a critical component to the research. Utilizing
this powerful magnet, the research team, which included
scientists from the Champaulimod Center in Portugal and the
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(left) Jens Rosenberg and (right) Sam Grant, Associate Professor in the Department of Chemical & Biomedical Engineering
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