Le Zhang, Michael Antonacci, Alex Burant, Andrew McCallister, Michele Kelley, Nicholas Bryden, Christian McHugh, Sebastian Atalla, Leah Holmes, Laurence Katz, Rosa Tamara Branca
BACKGROUND: Absolute temperature measurements of tissues inside the human body are difficult to perform non-invasively. Yet, for brown adipose tissue (BAT), these measurements would enable direct monitoring of its thermogenic activity and its association with metabolic health. METHODS: Here, we report direct measurement of absolute BAT temperature in humans during cold exposure by magnetic resonance (MR) with laser polarized xenon gas. This methodology, which leverages on the sensitivity of the chemical shift of the 129 Xe isotope to temperature-induced changes in fat density, is first calibrated in vitro and then tested in vivo in rodents...
October 17, 2023: Commun Med (Lond)