Magnetic resonance diffusion-tensor imaging metrics in High Grade Gliomas: Correlation with IDH1 gene status in WHO 2016 era

Comparison of SIMOA and VEUS technologies for serum neurofilament light chain measurement in multiple sclerosis

INTRODUCTION

The gold standard for serum neurofilament light chain (sNfL) determination is the single molecule array (SIMOA), the use of which is limited by availability and cost. The VEUS method is a fully automated, user-friendly diagnostic system requiring no sample preparation, with high reported sensitivity, multiplexing capability, and rapid diagnostics. The aim of this study was to compare the SIMOA and VEUS methods for determining sNfL levels in patients with multiple sclerosis (MS).

METHODOLOGY

A single-centre cross-sectional study was conducted at the MS Centre of University Hospital Ostrava. Patients were enrolled in the study from January 18 to January 31, 2024. Inclusion criteria were: 1) diagnosis of MS according to the revised 2017 McDonald criteria, 2) age ≥18 years, and 3) signed informed consent. The NF-light V2 diagnostic kit (SIMOA, Quanterix) and the Singleplex Neurology assay kit (VEUDx, EZDiatech) were used to determine sNfL concentrations. The two methods were compared by use of Spearman correlation, Passing-Bablok regression, and Bland-Altman analysis.

RESULTS

A total of 49 patients were included in the study, of whom 39 (79.6 %) were female. The median sNfL concentration was 7.73 (IQR 5.80-9.93) ng/L determined by SIMOA and 1.31 (IQR 1.18-1.65) ng/L by VEUS. We did not find a correlation between SIMOA and VEUS (rs = 0.025, p = 0.866). Passing-Bablok regression demonstrated a systematic and proportional difference between the two methods. A significant disagreement between them was also confirmed by the Bland-Altman plots. On average, sNfL values measured by SIMOA were 3.56 ng/L (95 % CI 0.78 to 6.34) higher than those measured by VEUS.

CONCLUSION

Our investigation uncovered noteworthy disparities between the SIMOA and VEUS techniques in determining sNfL levels. Specifically, the VEUS technique systematically produces lower estimates of sNFL levels. This substantial variance emphasizes the importance of carefully evaluating assay methods when quantifying sNfL.

Advanced MR Techniques for Preoperative Glioma Characterization: Part 1

Preoperative clinical magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) protocols for gliomas, brain tumors with dismal outcomes due to their infiltrative properties, still rely on conventional structural MRI, which does not deliver information on tumor genotype and is limited in the delineation of diffuse gliomas. The GliMR COST action wants to raise awareness about the state of the art of advanced MRI techniques in gliomas and their possible clinical translation or lack thereof. This review describes current methods, limits, and applications of advanced MRI for the preoperative assessment of glioma, summarizing the level of clinical validation of different techniques. In this first part, we discuss dynamic susceptibility contrast and dynamic contrast-enhanced MRI, arterial spin labeling, diffusion-weighted MRI, vessel imaging, and magnetic resonance fingerprinting. The second part of this review addresses magnetic resonance spectroscopy, chemical exchange saturation transfer, susceptibility-weighted imaging, MRI-PET, MR elastography, and MR-based radiomics applications. Evidence Level: 3 Technical Efficacy: Stage 2.

Multiband diffusion tensor imaging for presurgical mapping of motor and language pathways in patients with brain tumors

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE

Assessment of the essential white matter fibers of arcuate fasciculus and corticospinal tract (CST), required for preoperative planning in brain tumor patients, relies on the reliability of diffusion tensor imaging (DTI). The recent development of multiband DTI (mb-DTI) based on simultaneous multislice excitation could maintain the overall quality of tractography while not exceeding standard clinical care time. To address this potential, we performed quantitative analyses to evaluate tractography results of arcuate fasciculus and CST acquired by mb-DTI in brain tumor patients.

METHODS

We retrospectively analyzed 44 patients with brain lesions who underwent presurgical single-shot DTI (s-DTI) and mb-DTI. We measured DTI parameters: fractional anisotropy (FA) and mean diffusivity (MD [mm² s^-1 ]) in whole brain and tumor regions; and the tractography parameters: fiber FA, MD (mm² s^-1 ), volume (mm³ ), and length (mm) in the whole brain, arcuate fasciculus, and CST. Additionally, three neuroradiologists performed a blinded visual assessment comparing s-DTI with mb-DTI.

RESULTS

The mb-DTI showed higher mean FA and lower MD (r > .95, p < .002) in whole brain and tumor regions of interest; slightly higher fiber FA, volume, and length; and slightly lower fiber MD in whole brain, arcuate fasciculus, and CST than in s-DTI. These differences were significant for fiber FA in all tracts; length (mm) in arcuate fasciculus; and fiber MD (mm² s^-1 ) and volume (mm³ ) in all patients with tumor involved in the arcuate fasciculus, CST, and whole brain tracts (p = .001). Visual assessment demonstrated that both techniques produced visually similar tracts.

CONCLUSIONS

This study demonstrated the clinical potential and significant advantages of preoperative mb-DTI in brain tumor patients.