Comparison of high-resolution echo-planar spectroscopic imaging with conventional MR imaging of prostate tumors in mice

High spectral and spatial resolution (HiSS) MRI of rodent tumors has previously been performed using conventional spectroscopic imaging to obtain images with improved contrast and anatomic detail. The work described here evaluates the use of much faster echo-planar spectroscopic imaging (EPSI) to acquire HiSS data from rodent tumor models of prostate cancer. A high-resolution EPSI pulse sequence was implemented on a 4.7 T Bruker scanner. Three-dimensional EPSI data were Fourier-transformed along the k-space and temporal (free-induction decay) axes to produce detailed water and fat spectra associated with each small image voxel. The data were used to generate images of spectral parameters, e.g. peak-height images for each small voxel. Two variants of EPSI were performed; gradient-echo or spin-echo excitation with EPSI readout. These imaging methods were tested in commonly used rodent prostate cancers, including seven mice implanted with non-metastatic AT2.1 (n = 3) and metastatic AT3.1 (n = 4) prostate tumors on the hind leg, and 10 mice implanted with LNCaP prostate cancers in situ. The peak-height images derived from EPSI datasets provide more detailed tumor anatomy, improved signal-to-noise and contrast-to-noise ratios compared with the gradient-echo or spin-echo images at all echo times. The results suggest that HiSS MRI data from small animal models of prostate cancer can be acquired using EPSI, and that this approach improves imaging of heterogeneous tissue and vascular environments inside the tumors compared with conventional MR techniques.