Nuclear Magnetic Resonance in Laboratory Animals

Publisher Summary This chapter elaborates the use of nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) in the study of laboratory animals. NMR has been applied to a wide range of animals, including pinnipeds, birds, sheep, and monkeys, among others and by far the majority of animals undergoing NMR examinations are rats and mice as these serve as the main model systems in biomedical research, mostly for practical reasons. An endogenous contrast agent is provided by deoxyhemoglobin, which affects the intensity of the water signal, using particular MR image recordings. The water signal may be affected by magnetic active compounds, of which the clinically used lanthanide-based NMR contrast agent Gd-DTPA is best known. It is found that when this compound is administered intravenously to the animal it only has an effect on the water signal at locations where it passes by, and thus acts as a contrast agent. By using the strong signal of water protons from the tissue itself, the local homogeneity of the magnetic field can be optimized and NMR images can be made as guides for localization. The anesthesia and physiological monitoring of animals in NMR experiments is also elaborated in this chapter.