Regional Absolute Quantification of the Neurochemical Profile of the Canine Brain: Investigation by Proton Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy and Tissue Extraction

The purpose of this study was to characterize the neurochemical profiles of various parts of the canine brain using proton nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy, tissue extraction, and external simulated phantom concentration quantification. The occipital, frontal, and temporal lobes, thalami, cerebellar cortices, and spinal cords of five pure bred adult beagles were collected, and heavy water solutions for the nuclear magnetic resonance sample were prepared using the methanol–chloroform–water extraction method. The metabolite concentrations in canine brain tissues were measured and compared with those found in human and rat brain tissues. In addition, the cross peaks of Lac, Glu/Gln, and mIns were identified using two-dimensional correlation spectroscopy in the canine frontal cortex. The present study demonstrated the absolute quantification of canine neuronal parts using in vitro high-resolution magnetic resonance spectroscopy, with tissue extraction used to accurately measure metabolite concentrations, thus providing valuable metabolic information regarding the various canine neuronal regions.