In vivo 31P nuclear magnetic resonance studies of arsenite induced changes in hepatic phosphate levels.

Hepatic phosphate resonances were evaluated in vivo by 31P nuclear magnetic resonance (31P-NMR) following a single intravenous dose of sodium arsenite (10 mg/kg). Acute in vivo administration of arsenite rapidly decreased intracellular pools of all ATP phosphate with concomitant increases in inorganic phosphate and phosphomonoesters. In the phosphodiester resonance region, glycerolphosphorylcholine was also increased. The data suggest that liver cannot compensate for the rapid loss of NAD-linked substrate oxidation via other metabolic pathways, such as glycolysis for the production of ATP, and also demonstrate that 31P-NMR spectroscopy can disclose time-dependent metabolic changes of the liver in vivo.