Searching for the neurite density with diffusion MRI : Challenges for biophysical modeling
(2019) In Human Brain Mapping 40(8). p.2529-2545- Abstract
In vivo mapping of the neurite density with diffusion MRI (dMRI) is a high but challenging aim. First, it is unknown whether all neurites exhibit completely anisotropic (“stick-like”) diffusion. Second, the “density” of tissue components may be confounded by non-diffusion properties such as T2 relaxation. Third, the domain of validity for the estimated parameters to serve as indices of neurite density is incompletely explored. We investigated these challenges by acquiring data with “b-tensor encoding” and multiple echo times in brain regions with low orientation coherence and in white matter lesions. Results showed that microscopic anisotropy from b-tensor data is associated with myelinated axons but not with dendrites. Furthermore,... (More)
In vivo mapping of the neurite density with diffusion MRI (dMRI) is a high but challenging aim. First, it is unknown whether all neurites exhibit completely anisotropic (“stick-like”) diffusion. Second, the “density” of tissue components may be confounded by non-diffusion properties such as T2 relaxation. Third, the domain of validity for the estimated parameters to serve as indices of neurite density is incompletely explored. We investigated these challenges by acquiring data with “b-tensor encoding” and multiple echo times in brain regions with low orientation coherence and in white matter lesions. Results showed that microscopic anisotropy from b-tensor data is associated with myelinated axons but not with dendrites. Furthermore, b-tensor data together with data acquired for multiple echo times showed that unbiased density estimates in white matter lesions require data-driven estimates of compartment-specific T2 values. Finally, the “stick” fractions of different biophysical models could generally not serve as neurite density indices across the healthy brain and white matter lesions, where outcomes of comparisons depended on the choice of constraints. In particular, constraining compartment-specific T2 values was ambiguous in the healthy brain and had a large impact on estimated values. In summary, estimating neurite density generally requires accounting for different diffusion and/or T2 properties between axons and dendrites. Constrained “index” parameters could be valid within limited domains that should be delineated by future studies.
(Less)
- author
- Lampinen, Björn LU ; Szczepankiewicz, Filip LU ; Novén, Mikael LU ; van Westen, Danielle LU ; Hansson, Oskar LU ; Englund, Elisabet LU ; Mårtensson, Johan LU ; Westin, Carl Fredrik and Nilsson, Markus LU
- organization
-
- Medical Radiation Physics, Lund
- MR Physics (research group)
- Multidimensional microstructure imaging (research group)
- General Linguistics
- Neuroradiology (research group)
- MultiPark: Multidisciplinary research focused on Parkinson´s disease
- Clinical Memory Research (research group)
- Tumor microenvironment
- Logopedics, Phoniatrics and Audiology
- Diagnostic Radiology, (Lund)
- publishing date
- 2019-02-25
- type
- Contribution to journal
- publication status
- published
- subject
- keywords
- anisotropy, axons, dendrites, diffusion MRI, myelin, neurites
- in
- Human Brain Mapping
- volume
- 40
- issue
- 8
- pages
- 2529 - 2545
- publisher
- Wiley-Blackwell
- external identifiers
-
- scopus:85062351656
- pmid:30802367
- ISSN
- 1065-9471
- DOI
- 10.1002/hbm.24542
- language
- English
- LU publication?
- yes
- id
- 1e2ed0b0-11ae-432c-977e-3ba4136cfc61
- date added to LUP
- 2019-03-13 14:59:05
- date last changed
- 2024-09-18 14:47:02
@article{1e2ed0b0-11ae-432c-977e-3ba4136cfc61, abstract = {{<p>In vivo mapping of the neurite density with diffusion MRI (dMRI) is a high but challenging aim. First, it is unknown whether all neurites exhibit completely anisotropic (“stick-like”) diffusion. Second, the “density” of tissue components may be confounded by non-diffusion properties such as T2 relaxation. Third, the domain of validity for the estimated parameters to serve as indices of neurite density is incompletely explored. We investigated these challenges by acquiring data with “b-tensor encoding” and multiple echo times in brain regions with low orientation coherence and in white matter lesions. Results showed that microscopic anisotropy from b-tensor data is associated with myelinated axons but not with dendrites. Furthermore, b-tensor data together with data acquired for multiple echo times showed that unbiased density estimates in white matter lesions require data-driven estimates of compartment-specific T2 values. Finally, the “stick” fractions of different biophysical models could generally not serve as neurite density indices across the healthy brain and white matter lesions, where outcomes of comparisons depended on the choice of constraints. In particular, constraining compartment-specific T2 values was ambiguous in the healthy brain and had a large impact on estimated values. In summary, estimating neurite density generally requires accounting for different diffusion and/or T2 properties between axons and dendrites. Constrained “index” parameters could be valid within limited domains that should be delineated by future studies.</p>}}, author = {{Lampinen, Björn and Szczepankiewicz, Filip and Novén, Mikael and van Westen, Danielle and Hansson, Oskar and Englund, Elisabet and Mårtensson, Johan and Westin, Carl Fredrik and Nilsson, Markus}}, issn = {{1065-9471}}, keywords = {{anisotropy; axons; dendrites; diffusion MRI; myelin; neurites}}, language = {{eng}}, month = {{02}}, number = {{8}}, pages = {{2529--2545}}, publisher = {{Wiley-Blackwell}}, series = {{Human Brain Mapping}}, title = {{Searching for the neurite density with diffusion MRI : Challenges for biophysical modeling}}, url = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/hbm.24542}}, doi = {{10.1002/hbm.24542}}, volume = {{40}}, year = {{2019}}, }