Proton MR spectroscopy demonstration of taurine peaks in megalencephalic leukoencephalopathy with cysts

✍ Scribed by R.N Sener

• Publisher: Elsevier Science
• Year: 2003
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 196 KB
• Volume: 27
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0895-6111
• DOI: 10.1016/s0895-6111(02)00053-8

✦ Synopsis

Taurine is an amino acid. It has roles in neurotransmitter activities, facilitates synaptic connections, and possesses cyto-protective properties. Normally, it is invisible on proton MR spectroscopy acquired at low field strengths (i.e. 1.5T). In a patient with megalencephalic leukoencephalopathy with cysts (MLC), distinct taurine peaks centered at 3.35ppm were found on hybrid-CSI spectroscopy obtained at 1.5T with a long TE value (i.e. TE=135ms). This suggested increased concentrations of this metabolite in MLC. In this leukoencephalopathy taurine may be linked to a metabolic disturbance related with neurotransmitters associated with a disturbance in synaptic connections, and cyto-protective mechanisms. Further spectroscopic and clinical studies are required to evaluate this observation.