Human IDH mutant 1p/19q co-deleted gliomas have low tumor acidity as evidenced by molecular MRI and PET: a retrospective study

Co-deletion of 1p/19q is a hallmark of oligodendroglioma and predicts better survival. However, little is understood about its metabolic characteristics. In this study, we aimed to explore the extracellular acidity of WHO grade II and III gliomas associated with 1p/19q co-deletion. We included 76 glioma patients who received amine chemical exchange saturation transfer (CEST) imaging at 3 T. Magnetic transfer ratio asymmetry (MTR(asym)) at 3.0 ppm was used as the pH-sensitive CEST biomarker, with higher MTR(asym) indicating lower pH. To control for the confounder factors, T(2) relaxometry and l-6-(18)F-fluoro-3,4-dihydroxyphenylalnine ((18)F-FDOPA) PET data were collected in a subset of patients. We found a significantly lower MTR(asym) in 1p/19q co-deleted gliomas (co-deleted, 1.17% ± 0.32%; non-co-deleted, 1.72% ± 0.41%, P = 1.13 × 10(−7)), while FDOPA (P = 0.92) and T(2) (P = 0.61) were not significantly affected. Receiver operating characteristic analysis confirmed that MTR(asym) could discriminate co-deletion status with an area under the curve of 0.85. In analysis of covariance, 1p/19q co-deletion status was the only significant contributor to the variability in MTR(asym) when controlling for age and FDOPA (P = 2.91 × 10(−3)) or T(2) (P = 8.03 × 10(−6)). In conclusion, 1p/19q co-deleted gliomas were less acidic, which may be related to better prognosis. Amine CEST-MRI may serve as a non-invasive biomarker for identifying 1p/19q co-deletion status.