Noninvasive analysis of water movement in rat testis using deuterium magnetic resonance imaging

To measure water movement in the testis without the effects from the blood-testis barrier, we performed in vivo deuterium magnetic resonance imaging (2H MRI) of rats administered with deuterated saline. Alcohol was injected into one testis of each animal and the other was administered with normal saline as a control. Dynamic 2H MRI was obtained at 2 T by FLASH pulse sequence (TR, 300 ms; TE, 10 ms; α = 90°) using a surface coil (3 cm in diameter). The variation in 2H signal intensity between the two testes as a function of time after deuterated saline injection was examined every 1.1 min up to 20 min. The signal intensity in the testis receiving the alcohol treatment was lower than that in the normal control. Thus, deuterium MRI can be used to analyze functional disorders of the testis.