RESUMO
Considerable attention has been directed toward studying the impact of diabetes on the central nervous system. The current study investigates the biochemical changes in the brain tissue of streptozotocin (STZ)-induced diabetic rat using 31P magnetic resonance spectroscopy (31P MRS). The 31P NMR spectra of the whole brain show no significant changes of phosphomonoesters and phosphodiesters levels one week after STZ induction, suggesting no apparent structural changes in cell membranes. The results identifies the increased level of adenosine diphosphate, negligible changes of phosphocreatine ( PCr ) and adenosine triphosphate ( ATP) , but the decreased ratio of PCr/ATP, indicating that PCr plays a role of balancing the energy. Moreover, the decreased pH value indicates the changes of the intracellular environment in STZ-diabetic brains in rats. After 15 weeks of STZ injection, the metabolism of phospholipid membrane and brain energy metabolism has been obviously disturbed. Our study successfully shows that 31 P MRS can not only study phospholipid and energy metabolism non-invasively, but also measure intracellular pH and other important biochemical information. All of these spectroscopic characterizations contribute significantly to the understanding of pathogenesis and evolution of diabetes, and provide theoretical basis for early diagnosis and clinical treatment in diabetes.