N-Acetylaspartate and N-Acetylaspartylglutamate in Central Nervous System Health and Disease

N-acetylaspartate (NAA) and N-acetylaspartylglutamate (NAAG) are related neurometabolites used in the diagnosis of a variety of CNS pathologies and neurological disorders. NAA is one of the most concentrated metabolites and NAAG is one of the most concentrated neuroactive peptides in the brain. NAA is best known as a neuronal integrity marker in magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) studies where NAA represents the largest peak on spectrograms of healthy human brain. NAAG can also be detected by MRS. NAA and NAAG are present predominantly in neurons and therefore MRS can be used to noninvasively monitor neuronal health and viability by quantifying the levels of these metabolites. NAA and NAAG levels are changed in a number of neuropsychiatric disorders, and a growing body of evidence suggests that both of these related metabolites may have roles in mediating or modulating higher brain functions.