Double-wave-vector diffusion-weighted imaging reveals microscopic diffusion anisotropy in the living human brain
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Double-wave-vector diffusion-weighted imaging reveals microscopic diffusion anisotropy in the living human brain. / Lawrenz, Marco; Finsterbusch, Jürgen.
in: MAGN RESON MED, Jahrgang 69, Nr. 4, 01.04.2013, S. 1072-82.Publikationen: SCORING: Beitrag in Fachzeitschrift/Zeitung › SCORING: Zeitschriftenaufsatz › Forschung › Begutachtung
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TY - JOUR
T1 - Double-wave-vector diffusion-weighted imaging reveals microscopic diffusion anisotropy in the living human brain
AU - Lawrenz, Marco
AU - Finsterbusch, Jürgen
N1 - Copyright © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
PY - 2013/4/1
Y1 - 2013/4/1
N2 - Diffusion-tensor imaging is widely used to characterize diffusion in biological tissue, however, the derived anisotropy information, e.g., the fractional anisotropy, is ambiguous. For instance, low values of the diffusion anisotropy in brain white matter voxels may reflect a reduced axon density, i.e., a loss of fibers, or a lower fiber coherence within the voxel, e.g., more crossing fibers. This ambiguity can be avoided with experiments involving two diffusion-weighting periods applied successively in a single acquisition, so-called double-wave-vector or double-pulsed-field-gradient experiments. For a long mixing time between the two periods such experiments are sensitive to the cells' eccentricity, i.e., the diffusion anisotropy present on a microscopic scale. In this study, it is shown that this microscopic diffusion anisotropy can be detected in white matter in the living human brain, even in a macroscopically isotropic region-of-interest (fractional anisotropy = 0). The underlying signal difference between parallel and orthogonal wave vector orientations does not show up in standard diffusion-weighting experiments but is specific to the double-wave-vector experiment. Furthermore, the modulation amplitude observed is very similar for regions-of-interest with different fractional anisotrpy values. Thus, double-wave-vector experiments may provide a direct and reliable access to white matter integrity independent of the actual fiber orientation distribution within the voxel.
AB - Diffusion-tensor imaging is widely used to characterize diffusion in biological tissue, however, the derived anisotropy information, e.g., the fractional anisotropy, is ambiguous. For instance, low values of the diffusion anisotropy in brain white matter voxels may reflect a reduced axon density, i.e., a loss of fibers, or a lower fiber coherence within the voxel, e.g., more crossing fibers. This ambiguity can be avoided with experiments involving two diffusion-weighting periods applied successively in a single acquisition, so-called double-wave-vector or double-pulsed-field-gradient experiments. For a long mixing time between the two periods such experiments are sensitive to the cells' eccentricity, i.e., the diffusion anisotropy present on a microscopic scale. In this study, it is shown that this microscopic diffusion anisotropy can be detected in white matter in the living human brain, even in a macroscopically isotropic region-of-interest (fractional anisotropy = 0). The underlying signal difference between parallel and orthogonal wave vector orientations does not show up in standard diffusion-weighting experiments but is specific to the double-wave-vector experiment. Furthermore, the modulation amplitude observed is very similar for regions-of-interest with different fractional anisotrpy values. Thus, double-wave-vector experiments may provide a direct and reliable access to white matter integrity independent of the actual fiber orientation distribution within the voxel.
KW - Algorithms
KW - Anisotropy
KW - Brain
KW - Diffusion Tensor Imaging
KW - Humans
KW - Image Enhancement
KW - Image Interpretation, Computer-Assisted
KW - Nerve Fibers, Myelinated
KW - Reproducibility of Results
KW - Sensitivity and Specificity
U2 - 10.1002/mrm.24347
DO - 10.1002/mrm.24347
M3 - SCORING: Journal article
C2 - 22711603
VL - 69
SP - 1072
EP - 1082
JO - MAGN RESON MED
JF - MAGN RESON MED
SN - 0740-3194
IS - 4
ER -