NMR compartmentalization of free water in the perfused rat heart.

Spin-lattice (T1) and spin-spin (T2) relaxation times have been measured on perfused rat hearts under two experimental conditions. T1 exhibits a monoexponential decay. On the other hand T2 has a decay with two components: a short one T2s and a long one T2l. These facts have been discussed according to cross-relaxation and a bicompartmentalization of tissue assuming a slow exchange model for spin-spin relaxation and a fast exchange model for spin-lattice relaxation. Increasing the osmotic pressure of the perfusion solution decreased the absolute density proton of the T2s compartment reflecting the loss of its water content. The paramagnetic ion manganese diminishes the values of T1 and those of the long component T2l without affecting its short component. Therefore the short component could be assigned to intracellular and the long component to extracellular free water. The extracellular T2 (459 ms) is approximatively 10-fold higher than the intracellular T2 (45 ms). With images of "pure T2" such a difference could be useful to enhance the contrast between organs and the surrounding liquid or between organs with different water compartmentalization.