91 ADIPOSE TISSUE FAT COMPOSITION MEASURED BY CARBON 13 MAGNETIC RESONANCE SPECTROSCOPY

Natural abundance carbon 13 magnetic resonance spectroscopy (13C MRS) allows the proportion of saturated and unsaturated fatty acids in adipose tissue to be measured repeatedly and non-invasively. Eleven infants and two of their mothers underwent 13C MRS. Ten infants were studied in the first week of life, one also at 6 weeks and one at 10 weeks only. Using an enveloping transmitter coil and a surface receiver coil, coupled 13C spectra were obtained with repetition times of 0.3 seconds and 30 seconds. These were analysed by the NMRI curve fitting program and the percentages of saturated and unsaturated fatty acids calculated1. The results are shown either individually or as the median and range in the table:One of the two mothers studied, a vegan, had a higher proportion of unsaturated fatty acids compared to the other mother who consumed a mixed diet (87% vs 71 %). These preliminary results suggest that 13C MRS might be used to perform longitudinal studies of different influences on the composition of adipose tissue in infants. 1 Magnetic Resonance in Medicine, 1992:27:97-106