Slow Magic Angle Spinning
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Metabolic profiling of intact excised mouse lung 1H PASS (80Hz) versus fast-MAS (2kHz) (Full size image)
Summary
This represents a revolutionary new method for improving resolution in magnetic resonance spectroscopy and imaging. Relatively large resonance line widths represent an inherent limitation of conventional magnetic resonance spectroscopy, particularly for biological objects. Methods of addressing this limitation have included the use of higher magnetic fields and magic angle spinning (MAS). However, improvements due to higher fields have been limited due to magnetic susceptibility broadening, and the use of conventional MAS has been restricted to solids due to the relatively high spin rates (typically on the order of kHz) required.
The new method developed at PNNL enables high resolution at spinning rates below 8 Hz. Much improved spectral data from live animals has been obtained at these spin rates with no negative impacts on the animals. For "ex-vivo" studies, slow-MAS at 80 Hz has been shown to consistently provide better spectral resolution than fast-MAS at 2kHz on tissue samples analyzed in the same instrument. The technique has also been successfully used to obtain relatively well-resolved spectral data from the liver and heart of a live mouse. The technique is thought to be useful for both in-vivo and ex-vivo biological research in which line broadening limits spectral resolution, but the integrity of the sample would be damaged by conventional MAS. The detailed spectroscopic information provided by the method could be a valuable complement to information obtained with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Eventually, it is believed that the method could be applied to human patients through rotation of the magnetic field rather than rotation of the patient.