Imaging of 13C-labeled glucose and sorbitol in bovine lens by 1H-detected 13C nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy

Bovine lenses were incubated in a solution containing [1-13C]glucose (50 mM) for 1, 2 and 4 days. Spectroscopic images of [1-13C]glucose and [1-13C]sorbitol were constructed using 1H-detected gradient-enhanced heteronuclear multiple-quantum coherence (GE-HMQC) in a 2.0-tesla magnetic field. Accumulations of [1-13C]glucose and [1-13C]sorbitol were mainly observed at the periphery of the lens. Their distributions corresponded to the cortex. 1H-detected 13C nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopic imaging by GE-HMQC successfully demonstrated the distribution of [1-13C]glucose and [1-13C]sorbitol at the periphery of bovine lenses.