Skip to main content

Lund University Publications

LUND UNIVERSITY LIBRARIES

Compartmental anisotropy of filtered exchange imaging (FEXI) in human white matter : What is happening in FEXI?

Shin, Hyeong-Geol ; Li, Xu ; Heo, Hye-Young ; Knutsson, Linda LU orcid ; Szczepankiewicz, Filip LU orcid ; Nilsson, Markus LU and van Zijl, Peter C M (2024) In Magnetic Resonance in Medicine
Abstract

PURPOSE: To investigate the effects of compartmental anisotropy on filtered exchange imaging (FEXI) in white matter (WM).

THEORY AND METHODS: FEXI signals were measured using multiple combinations of diffusion filter and detection directions in five healthy volunteers. Additional filters, including a trace-weighted diffusion filter with trapezoidal gradients, a spherical b-tensor encoded diffusion filter, and a T2 filter, were tested with trace-weighted diffusion detection.

RESULTS: A large range of apparent exchange rates (AXR) and both positive and negative filter efficiencies (σ) were found depending on the mutual orientation of the filter and detection gradients relative to WM fiber orientation. The data demonstrated... (More)

PURPOSE: To investigate the effects of compartmental anisotropy on filtered exchange imaging (FEXI) in white matter (WM).

THEORY AND METHODS: FEXI signals were measured using multiple combinations of diffusion filter and detection directions in five healthy volunteers. Additional filters, including a trace-weighted diffusion filter with trapezoidal gradients, a spherical b-tensor encoded diffusion filter, and a T2 filter, were tested with trace-weighted diffusion detection.

RESULTS: A large range of apparent exchange rates (AXR) and both positive and negative filter efficiencies (σ) were found depending on the mutual orientation of the filter and detection gradients relative to WM fiber orientation. The data demonstrated that the fast-diffusion compartment suppressed by diffusional filtering is not exclusively extra-cellular, but also intra-cellular. While not comprehensive, a simple two-compartment diffusion tensor model with water exchange was able to account qualitatively for the trends in positive and negative filtering efficiencies, while standard model imaging (SMI) without exchange could not. This two-compartment diffusion tensor model also demonstrated smaller AXR variances across subjects. When employing trace-weighted diffusion detection, AXR values were on the order of the R
1 (=1/T1) of water at 3T for crossing fibers, while being less than R
1 for parallel fibers.

CONCLUSION: Orientation-dependent AXR and σ values were observed when using multi-orientation filter and detection gradients in FEXI, indicating that WM FEXI models need to account for compartmental anisotropy. When using trace-weighted detection, AXR values were on the order of or less than R
1, complicating the interpretation of FEXI results in WM in terms of biological exchange properties. These findings may contribute toward better understanding of FEXI results in WM.

(Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
; ; ; ; ; and
organization
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
epub
subject
in
Magnetic Resonance in Medicine
publisher
John Wiley & Sons Inc.
external identifiers
  • scopus:85189208954
  • pmid:38525601
ISSN
1522-2594
DOI
10.1002/mrm.30086
language
English
LU publication?
yes
additional info
© 2024 International Society for Magnetic Resonance in Medicine.
id
079f7e32-14e2-4df0-9140-137aaee189a0
date added to LUP
2024-03-27 20:58:41
date last changed
2024-04-16 12:34:26
@article{079f7e32-14e2-4df0-9140-137aaee189a0,
  abstract     = {{<p>PURPOSE: To investigate the effects of compartmental anisotropy on filtered exchange imaging (FEXI) in white matter (WM).</p><p>THEORY AND METHODS: FEXI signals were measured using multiple combinations of diffusion filter and detection directions in five healthy volunteers. Additional filters, including a trace-weighted diffusion filter with trapezoidal gradients, a spherical b-tensor encoded diffusion filter, and a T2 filter, were tested with trace-weighted diffusion detection.</p><p>RESULTS: A large range of apparent exchange rates (AXR) and both positive and negative filter efficiencies (σ) were found depending on the mutual orientation of the filter and detection gradients relative to WM fiber orientation. The data demonstrated that the fast-diffusion compartment suppressed by diffusional filtering is not exclusively extra-cellular, but also intra-cellular. While not comprehensive, a simple two-compartment diffusion tensor model with water exchange was able to account qualitatively for the trends in positive and negative filtering efficiencies, while standard model imaging (SMI) without exchange could not. This two-compartment diffusion tensor model also demonstrated smaller AXR variances across subjects. When employing trace-weighted diffusion detection, AXR values were on the order of the R<br>
 1 (=1/T1) of water at 3T for crossing fibers, while being less than R<br>
 1 for parallel fibers.<br>
 </p><p>CONCLUSION: Orientation-dependent AXR and σ values were observed when using multi-orientation filter and detection gradients in FEXI, indicating that WM FEXI models need to account for compartmental anisotropy. When using trace-weighted detection, AXR values were on the order of or less than R <br>
 1, complicating the interpretation of FEXI results in WM in terms of biological exchange properties. These findings may contribute toward better understanding of FEXI results in WM.<br>
 </p>}},
  author       = {{Shin, Hyeong-Geol and Li, Xu and Heo, Hye-Young and Knutsson, Linda and Szczepankiewicz, Filip and Nilsson, Markus and van Zijl, Peter C M}},
  issn         = {{1522-2594}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  month        = {{03}},
  publisher    = {{John Wiley & Sons Inc.}},
  series       = {{Magnetic Resonance in Medicine}},
  title        = {{Compartmental anisotropy of filtered exchange imaging (FEXI) in human white matter : What is happening in FEXI?}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/mrm.30086}},
  doi          = {{10.1002/mrm.30086}},
  year         = {{2024}},
}