Assessment of antioxidative ability in brain: technetium-99m-meso-HMPAO as an imaging agent for glutathione localization.

UNLABELLED To visualize the regional localization of glutathione (GSH) in the brain, the relationship between the concentrations of tissue GSH and uptake of [99mTc]meso-hexamethyl propyleneamine oxime ([99mTc] meso-HMPAO) or [99mTc]d,l-hexamethyl propyleneamine oxime ([99mTc]d,l-HMPAO) was studied in mice. METHODS The uptake of [99mTc]meso-HMPAO in the mouse brain was decreased to 35% of control paralleling the decrease in GSH content by pre-loading of diethyl maleate (DEM), an agent to reduce GSH. In contrast, pre-treatment with DEM scarcely affected the 99mTc-d,l-HMPAO uptake in the brain. RESULTS The DEM treatment decreased the GSH content in liver, kidney, spleen, fat and lung but did not affect the uptake of [99mTc]meso-HMPAO in those tissues except lung. The images of rat brain acquired with a gamma camera showed a significant reduction of [99mTc]meso-HMPAO uptake by DEM treatment. CONCLUSION Technetium-99m-meso-HMPAO may be a potential tool to assess GSH content and to estimate antioxidative ability in the brain.