Verification of redox and pyruvate metabolic changes using hyperpolarized MRI in early alcohol-related liver disease model mice

Motivation: What metabolic changes occur in alcohol-associated liver disease (ALD)? Is it possible to detect reversible/irreversible points of fibrosis in ALD by hyperpolarized MRI? Goal(s): To elucidate whether there are changes in redox metabolic activity and the metabolic activity of pyruvate to lactate in the early stage of ALD (eALD) model mice. Approach: We visualized and evaluated these metabolic activities by using two types of hyperpolarized MRI. Results: The redox metabolic activity might be decreased in the eALD mice compared to the control mice with NADH-deficient state. No difference was found in the metabolic activity of pyruvate to lactate in the eALD mice. Impact: This study lays groundwork for the future investigations to detect reversible/irreversible points of fibrosis in chronic ALD using hyperpolarized MRI as an imaging marker.