Figure 1
From: Multi-echo single-shot EPI for hyperpolarized 13C cardiac metabolic imaging of small animals
Metabolic images of pyruvate (left), lactate (center) and bicarbonate (right) as a sum over the signal bolus. Signal loss in the posterior wall of the heart is due to the sensitivity of the surface coil lying on the chest of the rat. The thin slice excitation reduces the impact of dephasing due to magnetic field inhomogeneities across the slice as well as partial volume effects. The result is a higher effective in-plane resolution.