1
|
Karasawa T, Saikawa J, Munaka T, Kobayashi T. Homogeneous B0 coil design method for open-access ultra-low field magnetic resonance imaging: A simulation study. Magn Reson Imaging 2024; 112:128-135. [PMID: 38986889 DOI: 10.1016/j.mri.2024.07.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/26/2024] [Revised: 06/10/2024] [Accepted: 07/03/2024] [Indexed: 07/12/2024]
Abstract
A multimodal brain function measurement system integrating functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) and magnetoencephalography (MEG) is expected to be a tool that will provide new insights into neuroscience. To integrate fMRI and MEG, an ultra-low-field MRI (ULF-MRI) scanner that can generate a static magnetic field (B0) with an electromagnetic coil and turn off the B0 during MEG measurements is desirable. While electromagnetic B0 coil has the above advantages, it also has a trade-off between size and the broadness of the magnetic field homogeneity. In this study, we proposed a method for designing a B0 multi-stage circular coil arrangement that determines the number of coils required to maximize magnetic field homogeneity and minimize the total wiring length of the coils. The optimized multi-stage coil arrangement had an external shape of 600 mm in diameter and a maximum height of 600 mm, with an aperture of 600 mm in diameter and 300 mm in height. The magnetic field homogeneity was <100 ppm over a 210 mm diameter spherical volume (DSV). Compared to a previous two coil pairs arrangement with the same magnetic field homogeneity, the diameter was 1/1.9 times smaller, indicating that the newly designed B0 coil arrangement realized a smaller size and wider magnetic field homogeneity.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Tomohiro Karasawa
- Technology Research Laboratory, Shimadzu corporation, 3-9-4, Hikaridai, Seika-cho, Soraku-gun 619-0237, Japan
| | - Jiro Saikawa
- Technology Research Laboratory, Shimadzu corporation, 3-9-4, Hikaridai, Seika-cho, Soraku-gun 619-0237, Japan
| | - Tatsuya Munaka
- Technology Research Laboratory, Shimadzu corporation, 3-9-4, Hikaridai, Seika-cho, Soraku-gun 619-0237, Japan
| | - Tetsuo Kobayashi
- Office of Institutional Advancement and Communications, Kyoto University, Yoshida-honmachi, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto 606-8501, Japan.
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Albertova P, Gram M, Blaimer M, Bauer WR, Jakob PM, Nordbeck P. Rotary excitation of non-sinusoidal pulsed magnetic fields: Towards non-invasive direct detection of cardiac conduction. Magn Reson Med 2024. [PMID: 38934418 DOI: 10.1002/mrm.30190] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/24/2023] [Revised: 04/09/2024] [Accepted: 05/21/2024] [Indexed: 06/28/2024]
Abstract
PURPOSE There is a need for high resolution non-invasive imaging methods of physiologic magnetic fields. The purpose of this work is to develop a MRI detection approach for non-sinusoidal magnetic fields based on the rotary excitation (REX) mechanism which was previously successfully applied for the detection of oscillating magnetic fields in the sub-nT range. METHODS The new detection concept was examined by means of Bloch simulations, evaluating the interaction effect of spin-locked magnetization and low-frequency pulsed magnetic fields. The REX detection approach was validated under controlled conditions in phantom experiments at 3 T. Gaussian and sinc-shaped stimuli were investigated. In addition, the detection of artificial fields resembling a cardiac QRS complex, which is the most prominent peak visible on a magnetocardiogram, was tested. RESULTS Bloch simulations demonstrated that the REX method has a high sensitivity to pulsed fields in the resonance case, which is met when the spin-lock frequency coincides with a non-zero Fourier component of the stimulus field. In the experiments, we found that magnetic stimuli of different durations and waveforms can be distinguished by their characteristic REX response spectrum. The detected REX amplitude was proportional to the stimulus peak amplitude (R2 > 0.98) and the lowest field detection was 1 nT. Furthermore, the detection of QRS-like fields with varying QRS durations yielded significant results in a phantom setup (p < 0.001). CONCLUSION REX detection can be transferred to non-sinusoidal pulsed magnetic fields and could provide a non-invasive, quantitative tool for spatially resolved assessment of cardiac biomagnetism. Potential applications include the direct detection and characterization of cardiac conduction.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Petra Albertova
- Department of Internal Medicine I, University Hospital Würzburg, Würzburg, Germany
- Experimental Physics 5, University of Würzburg, Würzburg, Germany
| | - Maximilian Gram
- Department of Internal Medicine I, University Hospital Würzburg, Würzburg, Germany
- Experimental Physics 5, University of Würzburg, Würzburg, Germany
| | - Martin Blaimer
- Fraunhofer Institute for Integrated Circuits IIS, Würzburg, Germany
| | | | | | - Peter Nordbeck
- Department of Internal Medicine I, University Hospital Würzburg, Würzburg, Germany
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
Towards robust in vivo quantification of oscillating biomagnetic fields using Rotary Excitation based MRI. Sci Rep 2022; 12:15375. [PMID: 36100634 PMCID: PMC9469076 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-19275-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/24/2022] [Accepted: 08/26/2022] [Indexed: 11/28/2022] Open
Abstract
Spin-lock based functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) has the potential for direct spatially-resolved detection of neuronal activity and thus may represent an important step for basic research in neuroscience. In this work, the corresponding fundamental effect of Rotary EXcitation (REX) is investigated both in simulations as well as in phantom and in vivo experiments. An empirical law for predicting optimal spin-lock pulse durations for maximum magnetic field sensitivity was found. Experimental conditions were established that allow robust detection of ultra-weak magnetic field oscillations with simultaneous compensation of static field inhomogeneities. Furthermore, this work presents a novel concept for the emulation of brain activity utilizing the built-in MRI gradient system, which allows REX sequences to be validated in vivo under controlled and reproducible conditions. Via transmission of Rotary EXcitation (tREX), we successfully detected magnetic field oscillations in the lower nano-Tesla range in brain tissue. Moreover, tREX paves the way for the quantification of biomagnetic fields.
Collapse
|
4
|
Sogabe T, Ueda H, Ito Y, Taniguchi Y, Kobayashi T. Dependence of stimulus-induced rotary saturation on the direction of target oscillating magnetic fields: A phantom and simulation study. JOURNAL OF MAGNETIC RESONANCE (SAN DIEGO, CALIF. : 1997) 2020; 321:106849. [PMID: 33128915 DOI: 10.1016/j.jmr.2020.106849] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/15/2020] [Revised: 09/23/2020] [Accepted: 10/09/2020] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
Several noninvasive techniques for the direct measurement of the neuronal activity using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) have recently been reported. As a promising candidate, we focus on a spin-lock MRI sequence (i.e., stimulus-induced rotary saturation (SIRS)) directly measuring a tiny oscillating magnetic field. Previous phantom studies on SIRS have applied the target oscillating magnetic field parallel to the direction of the static magnetic field B0. However, in practice, the neuromagnetic fields are not always aligned in the same direction as in such a condition. This study investigates the MR signal changes during SIRS when the target magnetic field direction is not the same as that of the B0 field through both phantom experiments and Bloch simulations. The experimental results indicate that only the target magnetic field component along the B0 field affects the signal change, indicating that SIRS has partial sensitivity, even if the target magnetic fields are tilted from the B0 field. Furthermore, the simulation results show good agreements with the experimental results. These results clarify the sensitivity direction of SIRS-based fMRI and lead to the possibility that the direction of the generated neuromagnetic fields can be estimated, such that we can separate directional information from the other information contained in neuromagnetic fields (e.g., phase information).
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Tomoyuki Sogabe
- Department of Electrical Engineering, Graduate School of Engineering, Kyoto University, Kyoto-daigaku Katsura, Nishikyo-ku, Kyoto 615-8510, Japan
| | - Hiroyuki Ueda
- Department of Electrical Engineering, Graduate School of Engineering, Kyoto University, Kyoto-daigaku Katsura, Nishikyo-ku, Kyoto 615-8510, Japan
| | - Yosuke Ito
- Department of Electrical Engineering, Graduate School of Engineering, Kyoto University, Kyoto-daigaku Katsura, Nishikyo-ku, Kyoto 615-8510, Japan
| | - Yo Taniguchi
- Research & Development Group, Hitachi, Ltd., Japan
| | - Tetsuo Kobayashi
- Department of Electrical Engineering, Graduate School of Engineering, Kyoto University, Kyoto-daigaku Katsura, Nishikyo-ku, Kyoto 615-8510, Japan.
| |
Collapse
|
5
|
Sveinsson B, Koonjoo N, Zhu B, Witzel T, Rosen MS. Detection of nanotesla AC magnetic fields using steady-state SIRS and ultra-low field MRI. J Neural Eng 2020; 17:034001. [PMID: 32268305 DOI: 10.1088/1741-2552/ab87fe] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/11/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) is commonly used to measure brain activity through the blood oxygen level dependent (BOLD) signal mechanism, but this only provides an indirect proxy signal to neuronal activity. Magnetoencephalography (MEG) provides a more direct measurement of the magnetic fields created by neuronal currents in the brain, but requires very specialized hardware and only measures these fields at the scalp. Recently, progress has been made to directly detect neuronal fields with MRI using the stimulus-induced rotary saturation (SIRS) effect, but interference from the BOLD response complicates such measurements. Here, we describe an approach to detect nanotesla-level, low-frequency alternating magnetic fields with an ultra-low field (ULF) MRI scanner, unaffected by the BOLD signal. APPROACH A steady-state implementation of the stimulus-induced rotary saturation (SIRS) method is developed. The method is designed to generate a strong signal at ultra-low magnetic field as well as allowing for efficient signal averaging, giving a high contrast-to-noise ratio (CNR). The method is tested in computer simulations and in phantom scans. MAIN RESULTS The simulations and phantom scans demonstrated the ability of the method to measure magnetic fields at different frequencies at ULF with a stronger contrast than non-steady-state approaches. Furthermore, the rapid imaging functionality of the method reduced noise efficiently. The results demonstrated sufficient CNR down to 7 nT, but the sensitivity will depend on the imaging parameters. SIGNIFICANCE A steady-state SIRS method is able to detect low-frequency alternating magnetic fields at ultra-low main magnetic field strengths with a large signal response and contrast-to-noise, presenting an important step in sensing biological fields with ULF MRI.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Bragi Sveinsson
- A. A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, United States of America. Department of Radiology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States of America. Author to whom any correspondence should be addressed
| | | | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
6
|
Ito Y, Ueno M, Kobayashi T. Neural magnetic field dependent fMRI toward direct functional connectivity measurements: A phantom study. Sci Rep 2020; 10:5463. [PMID: 32214147 PMCID: PMC7096527 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-62277-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/24/2019] [Accepted: 03/10/2020] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Recently, the main issue in neuroscience has been the imaging of the functional connectivity in the brain. No modality that can measure functional connectivity directly, however, has been developed yet. Here, we show the novel MRI sequence, called the partial spinlock sequence toward direct measurements of functional connectivity. This study investigates a probable measurement of phase differences directly associated with functional connectivity. By employing partial spinlock imaging, the neural magnetic field might influence the magnetic resonance signals. Using simulation and phantom studies to model the neural magnetic fields, we showed that magnetic resonance signals vary depending on the phase of an externally applied oscillating magnetic field with non-right flip angles. These results suggest that the partial spinlock sequence is a promising modality for functional connectivity measurements.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Yosuke Ito
- Department of Electrical Engineering, Graduate School of Engineering, Kyoto University, Kyoto-Daigaku-Katsura, Nishikyo-ku, Kyoto, 615-8510, Japan.
| | - Masahito Ueno
- Department of Electrical Engineering, Graduate School of Engineering, Kyoto University, Kyoto-Daigaku-Katsura, Nishikyo-ku, Kyoto, 615-8510, Japan
| | - Tetsuo Kobayashi
- Department of Electrical Engineering, Graduate School of Engineering, Kyoto University, Kyoto-Daigaku-Katsura, Nishikyo-ku, Kyoto, 615-8510, Japan
| |
Collapse
|
7
|
Ueda H, Seki H, Ito Y, Oida T, Taniguchi Y, Kobayashi T. Dynamics of magnetization under stimulus-induced rotary saturation sequence. JOURNAL OF MAGNETIC RESONANCE (SAN DIEGO, CALIF. : 1997) 2018; 295:38-44. [PMID: 30096551 DOI: 10.1016/j.jmr.2018.07.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/15/2018] [Revised: 06/26/2018] [Accepted: 07/07/2018] [Indexed: 06/08/2023]
Abstract
We studied stimulus-induced rotary-saturation preparation (which enables measurement of oscillating magnetic fields using MRI) and derived an analytical solution of the Bloch equation to understand magnetization dynamics mathematically and comprehensively and to conduct simulations without sequential-calculation techniques such as the Runge-Kutta method. We formulated the dynamics using the Bloch equation, introducing an additional rotating frame and some approximations to make it into a homogeneous differential equation. Moreover, we found that there are two modes depending on the target oscillating magnetic field. To confirm the validity of the solution, we experimentally investigated its characteristics and performed curve fitting using the analytical model. Considering the constraints on the frame, the analytical solution was found to agree with experimental data. The experimental data indicate that it is necessary to design robust sequences compensating B0 or B1lock spatial inhomogeneity to improve measurements. Therefore, experimenters should consider the dynamics of magnetization with RF pulses to rewind the spin phase for accurate measurements.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Hiroyuki Ueda
- Department of Electrical Engineering, Graduate School of Engineering, Kyoto University, Kyoto-daigaku-Katsura, Nishikyo-ku, Kyoto 615-8510, Japan.
| | - Hiroaki Seki
- Department of Electrical Engineering, Graduate School of Engineering, Kyoto University, Kyoto-daigaku-Katsura, Nishikyo-ku, Kyoto 615-8510, Japan
| | - Yosuke Ito
- Department of Electrical Engineering, Graduate School of Engineering, Kyoto University, Kyoto-daigaku-Katsura, Nishikyo-ku, Kyoto 615-8510, Japan
| | - Takenori Oida
- Department of Electrical Engineering, Graduate School of Engineering, Kyoto University, Kyoto-daigaku-Katsura, Nishikyo-ku, Kyoto 615-8510, Japan
| | - Yo Taniguchi
- Research & Development Group, Hitachi, Ltd., Japan
| | - Testsuo Kobayashi
- Department of Electrical Engineering, Graduate School of Engineering, Kyoto University, Kyoto-daigaku-Katsura, Nishikyo-ku, Kyoto 615-8510, Japan
| |
Collapse
|