NMR in biomedicine
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The MRI-based evaluation of the quantity and regional distribution of adipose tissue is one objective measure in the investigation of obesity. The aim of this article was to report a comprehensive and automatic analytical method for the determination of the volumes of subcutaneous fat tissue (SFT) and visceral fat tissue (VFT) in either the whole human body or selected slices or regions of interest. Using an MRI protocol in an examination position that was convenient for volunteers and patients with severe diseases, 22 healthy subjects were examined. ⋯ MRI data analysis was able to determine SFT and VFT volume percentages using new analytical strategies. With the techniques described, it was possible to detect changes in SFT and VFT percentages of the whole body and selected regions. The techniques presented in this study are likely to be of use in obesity-related investigations, as well as in the examination of longitudinal changes in weight during various medical conditions.
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Spontaneous fluctuations in the blood oxygenation level-dependent (BOLD) MRI signal during the resting state are increasingly being studied in healthy and diseased brain in humans and animal models. Yet, the relationship between functional brain status and the characteristics of spontaneous BOLD fluctuations remains poorly understood. In order to obtain more insights into this relationship and, in particular, the effects of anesthesia thereupon, we investigated the spatial and temporal correlations of spontaneous BOLD fluctuations in somatosensory and motor regions of rat brain at different inhalation levels of the frequently applied anesthetic isoflurane. ⋯ Under 2.9% isoflurane anesthesia, the temporal scaling characteristics approached those of Gaussian white noise (H = 0.5), the relative amplitude of BOLD low-frequency fluctuations declined, and cross-correlations of these oscillations between functionally connected regions decreased significantly. Loss of interhemispheric functional connectivity at 2.9% isoflurane anesthesia was stronger between bilateral motor regions than between bilateral somatosensory regions, which points to distinct effects of anesthesia on differentially organized neuronal networks. Although we cannot completely rule out a possible contribution from hemodynamic signals with a non-neuronal origin, our results emphasize that spatiotemporal characteristics of spontaneous BOLD fluctuations are related to the brain's specific functional status and network organization, and demonstrate that these are largely preserved under light to mild anesthesia with isoflurane.
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This study investigates T(2)* quantification in carotid plaques before and after the administration of ultrasmall superparamagnetic iron oxide particles (USPIOs) in a cohort of patients receiving statin therapy. Phantom studies were performed using gels with varying concentrations of USPIOs. In the phantom study, 12 gels were prepared with a range of freely distributed concentrations of USPIO nanoparticles (0-0.05 mg/mL). ⋯ The post-USPIO qT(2)* values were as follows: baseline: low dose, 13.6 ± 5.5 ms; high dose, 12.9 ± 6.2 ms; 6 weeks: low dose, 13.3 ± 6.7 ms; high dose, 14.3 ± 7.7 ms; 12 weeks: low dose, 14.0 ± 7.6 ms; high dose, 18.3 ± 11.2 ms. It can be concluded that qT(2)* measurements provide an alternative method of quantifying USPIO uptake. These results also demonstrate that changes in USPIO uptake can be measured using post-USPIO imaging only.
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The characterisation of the extravascular (EV) contribution to the blood oxygenation level-dependent (BOLD) effect is important for understanding the spatial specificity of BOLD contrast and for modelling approaches that aim to extract quantitative metabolic parameters from the BOLD signal. Using bipolar crusher gradients, total (b = 0 s/mm(2) ) and predominantly EV (b = 100 s/mm(2) ) gradient echo BOLD ΔR(2)* and signal changes (ΔS/S) in response to visual stimulation (flashing checkerboard; f = 8 Hz) were investigated sequentially (within < 3 h) at 1.5, 3.0 and 7.0 T in the same subgroup of healthy volunteers (n = 7) and at identical spatial resolutions (3.5 × 3.5 × 3.5 mm(3)). Total ΔR(2)* (z-score analysis) values were -0.61 ± 0.10 s(-1) (1.5 T), -0.74 ± 0.05 s(-1) (3.0 T) and -1.37 ± 0.12 s(-1) (7.0 T), whereas EV ΔR(2)* values were -0.28 ± 0.07 s(-1) (1.5 T), -0.52 ± 0.07 s(-1) (3.0 T) and -1.25 ± 0.11 s(-1) (7.0 T). ⋯ Furthermore, unlike ΔR(2)*, total and EV ΔS/S did not converge at 7.0 T. These trends were similar whether a z-score analysis or occipital lobe-based region-of-interest approach was used for voxel selection. These findings suggest that calibrated BOLD approaches may benefit from an EV ΔR(2)* measurement as opposed to a ΔS/S measurement at a single TE.
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Resolution enhancement for glutamate (Glu), glutamine (Gln) and glutathione (GSH) in the human brain by TE-optimized point-resolved spectroscopy (PRESS) at 7 T is reported. Sub-TE dependences of the multiplets of Glu, Gln, GSH, γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA) and N-acetylaspartate (NAA) at 2.2-2.6 ppm were investigated with density matrix simulations, incorporating three-dimensional volume localization. The numerical simulations indicated that the C4-proton multiplets can be completely separated with (TE(1), TE(2)) = (37, 63) ms, as a result of a narrowing of the multiplets and suppression of the NAA 2.5 ppm signal. ⋯ In spectral fitting by LCModel, Cramér-Rao lower bounds (CRLBs) of Glu, Gln and GSH were 2 ± 1, 5 ± 1 and 6 ± 2 (mean ± SD), respectively. To evaluate the performance of the optimized PRESS method under identical experimental conditions, stimulated-echo spectra were acquired with (TE, TM) = (14, 37) and (74, 68) ms. The CRLB of Glu was similar between PRESS and short-TE stimulated-echo acquisition mode (STEAM), but the CRLBs of Gln and GSH were lower in PRESS than in both STEAM acquisitions.