Sensitivity of OGSE ActiveAx to Microstructural Dimensions on a Clinical Scanner

Axon diameter can play a key role in the function and performance of nerve pathways of the central and peripheral nervous system. Previously, a number of techniques to measure axon diameter using diffusion MR I have been proposed, majority of which uses single diffusion encoding (SDE) spin-echo sequence. However, recent theoretical research suggests that low-frequency oscillating gradient spin echo (OGSE ) offers benefits over SDE for imaging diameters when fibres are of unknown orientation. Furthermore, it suggests that resolution limit for clinical scanners (gradient strength of 60–80 mT/m) is ≈ 6 μm. Here we investigate the sensitivity of OGSE to fibre diameters experimentally on a clinical scanner, using microcapillaries of unknown orientation. We use the orientationally invariant OGSE ActiveAx method to image microcapillaries with diameters of 5, 10 or 20 μm. As predicted by theory, we find that 5 μm diameters are undistinguishable from zero. Furthermore, we find accurate and precise estimates for 10 and 20 μm. Finally, we find that low frequency oscillating gradient waveforms are optimal for accurate diameter estimation.

[1]  J. M. Ritchie,et al.  On the relation between fibre diameter and conduction velocity in myelinated nerve fibres , 1982, Proceedings of the Royal Society of London. Series B. Biological Sciences.

[2]  F. K. Sanders.  The thickness of the myelin sheaths of normal and regenerating peripheral nerve fibres , 1948, Proceedings of the Royal Society of London. Series B - Biological Sciences.

[3]  Nilsson Markus.  Estimating the axon diameter from intra-axonal water diffusion with arbitrary gradient waveforms: Resolution limit in parallel and dispersed fibers , 2016 .

[4]  Daniel C. Alexander,et al.  Optimising oscillating waveform-shape for pore size sensitivity in diffusion-weighted MR , 2013 .

[5]  Tim B. Dyrby,et al.  Orientationally invariant indices of axon diameter and density from diffusion MRI , 2010, NeuroImage.

[6]  Lucio Frydman,et al.  Size Distribution Imaging by Non-Uniform Oscillating-Gradient Spin Echo (NOGSE) MRI , 2015, PloS one.

[7]  B. Pakkenberg,et al.  Marked loss of myelinated nerve fibers in the human brain with age , 2003, The Journal of comparative neurology.

[8]  Daniel C Alexander,et al.  Estimation of pore size in a microstructure phantom using the optimised gradient waveform diffusion weighted NMR sequence. , 2012, Journal of magnetic resonance.

[9]  M. Holz,et al.  Biological applications of scanning tunnelling microscopy , 1993 .

[10]  Timothy Edward John Behrens,et al.  Characterization and propagation of uncertainty in diffusion‐weighted MR imaging , 2003, Magnetic resonance in medicine.

[11]  M. Holz,et al.  Temperature-dependent self-diffusion coefficients of water and six selected molecular liquids for calibration in accurate 1H NMR PFG measurements , 2000 .

[12]  P. Basser,et al.  New modeling and experimental framework to characterize hindered and restricted water diffusion in brain white matter , 2004, Magnetic resonance in medicine.

[13]  H. Persson,et al.  Myelinated nerve fibres in the CNS , 1993, Progress in Neurobiology.

[14]  Hui Zhang,et al.  Gaussian phase distribution approximations for oscillating gradient spin echo diffusion MRI. , 2013, Journal of magnetic resonance.

[15]  P. Basser,et al.  Axcaliber: A method for measuring axon diameter distribution from diffusion MRI , 2008, Magnetic resonance in medicine.

[16]  S Arndt,et al.  An MRI study of the corpus callosum in autism. , 1997, The American journal of psychiatry.

[17]  Daniel C Alexander,et al.  Optimizing gradient waveforms for microstructure sensitivity in diffusion-weighted MR. , 2010, Journal of magnetic resonance.

[18]  P. Hubbard,et al.  Biomimetic phantom for the validation of diffusion magnetic resonance imaging , 2015, Magnetic resonance in medicine.

[19]  S Cluskey,et al.  Mechanisms of neurodegeneration in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis , 2001, Molecular pathology : MP.

[20]  K. Brodda,et al.  Changes of the ratio between myelin thickness and axon diameter in the human developing sural nerve , 1978, Acta Neuropathologica.

[21]  Felix W. Wehrli,et al.  Quantifying axon diameter and intra-cellular volume fraction in excised mouse spinal cord with q-space imaging , 2010, NeuroImage.

[22]  Peter J. Basser,et al.  Mapping average axon diameters in porcine spinal cord white matter and rat corpus callosum using d-PFG MRI , 2013, NeuroImage.

[23]  Michael Brady,et al.  Improved Optimization for the Robust and Accurate Linear Registration and Motion Correction of Brain Images , 2002, NeuroImage.

[24]  Peter J Basser,et al.  Pore diameter mapping using double pulsed-field gradient MRI and its validation using a novel glass capillary array phantom. , 2011, Journal of magnetic resonance.

[25]  J. S. Murday,et al.  Self‐Diffusion Coefficient of Liquid Lithium , 1968 .

[26]  Yoram Cohen,et al.  From single‐pulsed field gradient to double‐pulsed field gradient MR: gleaning new microstructural information and developing new forms of contrast in MRI , 2010, NMR in biomedicine.

[27]  Hui Zhang,et al.  PGSE, OGSE, and sensitivity to axon diameter in diffusion MRI: Insight from a simulation study , 2015, Magnetic resonance in medicine.

[28]  D. Rice,et al.  Critical periods of vulnerability for the developing nervous system: evidence from humans and animal models. , 2000, Environmental health perspectives.

[29]  John C Gore,et al.  Impact of transcytolemmal water exchange on estimates of tissue microstructural properties derived from diffusion MRI , 2017, Magnetic resonance in medicine.

[30]  John C Gore,et al.  Fast and robust measurement of microstructural dimensions using temporal diffusion spectroscopy. , 2014, Journal of magnetic resonance.

[31]  John C Gore,et al.  Temporal diffusion spectroscopy: Theory and implementation in restricted systems using oscillating gradients , 2006, Magnetic resonance in medicine.