Test-retest reliability of multi-metabolite edited MRS at 3T using PRESS and sLASER.
| Publication Type | Preprint |
| Authors | Archibald J, Bouchard A, Noeske R, Shungu D, Mikkelsen M |
| Journal | bioRxiv |
| Date Published | 06/11/2025 |
| ISSN | 2692-8205 |
| Abstract | PURPOSE: Spectral editing is the most common MRS approach for noninvasive in vivo measurement of low-concentration, strongly overlapped metabolites in the brain, such as γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA) and glutathione (GSH). Multi-metabolite editing methods, including HERMES and HERCULES, have recently been introduced, where multiple J -coupled metabolites can be edited in a single acquisition without increasing total scan time. Yet little is known regarding the reliability of these methods. This study assessed the test-retest reliability of HERMES and HERCULES, where volume localization was achieved using either PRESS or sLASER. METHODS: Sixteen healthy adult volunteers were scanned twice in two separate sessions. Single-voxel edited MRS data were acquired in the medial parietal lobe using the following sequences: (1) HERMES-PRESS; (2) HERMES-sLASER; (3) HERCULES-PRESS; (4) HERCULES-sLASER. Spectra were processed and metabolites were quantified using the Osprey software. Data quality metrics and reliability statistics were estimated for all four acquisitions. RESULTS: HERMES-sLASER demonstrated lower within-subjects coefficients of variation (CV ws ) for GSH, glutamine (Gln), and glutamate (Glu) + Gln (Glx), suggesting improved reliability compared to HERMES-PRESS. However, GABA + co-edited macromolecules (GABA+) and Glu showed higher CV ws for HERMES-sLASER. HERCULES-sLASER produced better reliability than HERCULES-PRESS for GABA+, GSH, Glu, Gln, Glx, aspartate (Asp), and lactate (Lac). N -acetylaspartate (NAA) and N -acetylaspartylglutamate (NAAG) showed higher CV ws for HERCULES-sLASER. These findings suggest that sLASER may be more advantageous than PRESS for volume localization in simultaneous multi-metabolite editing. CONCLUSION: Using sLASER yielded better test-retest reliability for most metabolites than using PRESS for volume localization for HERMES and HERCULES. |
| DOI | 10.1101/2025.06.07.657685 |
| PubMed ID | 40661367 |
| PubMed Central ID | PMC12259001 |