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Liu H, Autry AW, Larson PEZ, Xu D, Li Y. Atlas-Based Adaptive Hadamard-Encoded MR Spectroscopic Imaging at 3T. Tomography 2023; 9:1592-1602. [PMID: 37736980 PMCID: PMC10514830 DOI: 10.3390/tomography9050127] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/27/2023] [Revised: 08/17/2023] [Accepted: 08/22/2023] [Indexed: 09/23/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND This study aimed to develop a time-efficient method of acquiring simultaneous, dual-slice MR spectroscopic imaging (MRSI) for the evaluation of brain metabolism. METHODS Adaptive Hadamard-encoded pulses were developed and integrated with atlas-based automatic prescription. The excitation profiles were evaluated via simulation, phantom and volunteer experiments. The feasibility of γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA)-edited dual-slice MRSI was also assessed. RESULTS The signal between slices in the dual-band MRSI was less than 1% of the slice profiles. Data from a homemade phantom containing separate, interfacing compartments of creatine and acetate solutions demonstrated ~0.4% acetate signal contamination relative to the amplitude in the excited creatine compartment. The normalized signal-to-noise ratios from atlas-based acquisitions in volunteers were found to be comparable between dual-slice, Hadamard-encoded MRSI and 3D acquisitions. The mean and standard deviation of the coefficients of variation for NAA/Cho from the repeated volunteer scans were 8.2% ± 0.8% and 10.1% ± 3.7% in the top and bottom slices, respectively. GABA-edited, dual-slice MRSI demonstrated simultaneous detection of signals from GABA and coedited macromolecules (GABA+) from both superior grey and deep grey regions of volunteers. CONCLUSION This study demonstrated a fully automated dual-slice MRSI acquisition using atlas-based automatic prescription and adaptive Hadamard-encoded pulses.
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Affiliation(s)
- Huawei Liu
- Department of Radiology and Biomedical Imaging, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA 94107, USA (A.W.A.); (P.E.Z.L.); (D.X.)
| | - Adam W. Autry
- Department of Radiology and Biomedical Imaging, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA 94107, USA (A.W.A.); (P.E.Z.L.); (D.X.)
| | - Peder E. Z. Larson
- Department of Radiology and Biomedical Imaging, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA 94107, USA (A.W.A.); (P.E.Z.L.); (D.X.)
- UC Berkeley-UCSF Graduate Program in Bioengineering, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA 94107, USA
| | - Duan Xu
- Department of Radiology and Biomedical Imaging, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA 94107, USA (A.W.A.); (P.E.Z.L.); (D.X.)
- UC Berkeley-UCSF Graduate Program in Bioengineering, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA 94107, USA
| | - Yan Li
- Department of Radiology and Biomedical Imaging, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA 94107, USA (A.W.A.); (P.E.Z.L.); (D.X.)
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Finkelman T, Furman-Haran E, Paz R, Tal A. Quantifying the excitatory-inhibitory balance: A comparison of SemiLASER and MEGA-SemiLASER for simultaneously measuring GABA and glutamate at 7T. Neuroimage 2021; 247:118810. [PMID: 34906716 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2021.118810] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/07/2021] [Revised: 12/08/2021] [Accepted: 12/10/2021] [Indexed: 10/19/2022] Open
Abstract
The importance of the excitatory-inhibitory (E/I) balance in a wide range of cognitive and behavioral processes has prompted a commensurate interest in methods for reliably quantifying it. Proton Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy (1H-MRS) remains the only method capable of safely and non-invasively measuring the concentrations of the brain's major excitatory (glutamate) and inhibitory (γ-aminobutyric-acid, GABA) neurotransmitters in-vivo. MRS relies on spectral Mescher-Garwood (MEGA) editing techniques at 3T to distinguish GABA from its overlapping resonances. However, with the increased spectral resolution at ultrahigh field strengths of 7T and above, non-edited spectroscopic techniques become potential viable alternatives to MEGA based approaches, and also address some of their shortcomings, such as signal loss, sensitivity to transmitter inhomogeneities and temporal resolution. We present a comprehensive comparison of both edited and non-edited strategies at 7T for simultaneously quantifying glutamate and GABA from the dorsal anterior cingulate cortex (dACC), and evaluate their reproducibility and relative bias. The combined root-mean-square test-retest reproducibility of Glu and GABA (CVE/I) was as low as 13.3% for unedited MRS at TE=80 ms using SemiLASER localization, while edited MRS at TE=80 ms yielded CVE/I=20% and 21% for asymmetric and symmetric MEGA editing, respectively. An unedited SemiLASER acquisition using a shorter echo time of TE=42 ms yielded CVE/I as low as 24.9%. Our results show that non-edited sequences at an echo time of 80 ms provide better reproducibility than either edited sequences at the same TE, or non-edited sequences at a shorter TE of 42 ms. This is supported by numerical simulations and is driven in part by a pseudo-singlet appearance of the GABA multiplets at TE=80 ms, and the excellent spectral resolution at 7T. Our results uphold a transition to non-edited MRS for monitoring the E/I balance at ultrahigh fields, and stress the importance of using a properly-optimized echo time.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tal Finkelman
- Department of Neurobiology, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel; Department of Chemical and Biological Physics, Weizmann Institute of Science, 234 Herzel St., Rehovot 7610001, Israel
| | - Edna Furman-Haran
- Life Sciences Core Facilities, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel
| | - Rony Paz
- Department of Neurobiology, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel
| | - Assaf Tal
- Department of Chemical and Biological Physics, Weizmann Institute of Science, 234 Herzel St., Rehovot 7610001, Israel.
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Younis S, Hougaard A, Christensen CE, Vestergaard MB, Petersen ET, Boer VO, Paulson OB, Ashina M, Marsman A, Larsson HBW. Feasibility of Glutamate and GABA Detection in Pons and Thalamus at 3T and 7T by Proton Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy. Front Neurosci 2020; 14:559314. [PMID: 33192247 PMCID: PMC7645149 DOI: 10.3389/fnins.2020.559314] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/05/2020] [Accepted: 09/09/2020] [Indexed: 01/03/2023] Open
Abstract
Glutamate detection in pons and thalamus using proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy (1H-MRS) after an intervention is of interest for studying various brain disorders. However, 1H-MRS in these brain regions is challenging and time-consuming, especially in longitudinal study designs. 1H-MRS of more cortical structures at the ultrahigh magnetic field strength of 7T yields an improved spectral output, including separation of the glutamate signal from the glutamine signal, in a shorter and more feasible scan time, as compared to conventional clinical field strengths. For this purpose, we compared the feasibility of 1H-MRS at 3T and 7T in pons and thalamus by applying a longitudinal study design of repeated measures on same day and three separate days at both field strength in five healthy participants. Total 1H-MRS acquisition time was reduced by a factor 3.75 for pons and by a factor 3 for thalamus at 7T as compared to 3T. We found higher spectral signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) (p < 0.001), lower linewidth (p = 0.001) and lower Cramér-Rao lower bounds (CRLB) (p < 0.001) for the combined glutamate and glutamine signal (Glx) in thalamus at 7T as compared to 3T. In pons, CRLB of Glx and SNR were lower at 7T (p = 0.002 and p = 0.006), with no differences in linewidth compared to 3T. Mean within-subject variability of Glx concentration estimates was lower at 7T compared to 3T for both pons and thalamus. At 7T, it was possible to assess glutamate and γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA) simultaneously in pons and thalamus. In conclusion, 1H-MRS at 7T resulted in improved spectral quality while allowing shorter scan times than at 3T as well as estimation of the pure glutamate signal in pons and thalamus. This opens up the opportunity for multimodal study designs and multiregional subcortical 1H-MRS research. Glutamate and GABA measurement at 7T in pons and thalamus is advantageous for future investigations of excitatory-inhibitory mechanisms in brain disorders.
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Affiliation(s)
- Samaira Younis
- Danish Headache Center, Department of Neurology, Rigshospitalet Glostrup, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Glostrup, Denmark
| | - Anders Hougaard
- Danish Headache Center, Department of Neurology, Rigshospitalet Glostrup, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Glostrup, Denmark
| | - Casper E. Christensen
- Danish Headache Center, Department of Neurology, Rigshospitalet Glostrup, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Glostrup, Denmark
| | - Mark B. Vestergaard
- Functional Imaging Unit, Department of Clinical Physiology, Nuclear Medicine and PET, Rigshospitalet Glostrup, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Glostrup, Denmark
| | - Esben T. Petersen
- Danish Research Centre for Magnetic Resonance, Centre for Functional and Diagnostic Imaging and Research, Copenhagen University Hospital Hvidovre, Hvidovre, Denmark
- Center for Magnetic Resonance, Department of Health Technology, Technical University of Denmark, Kongens Lyngby, Denmark
| | - Vincent O. Boer
- Danish Research Centre for Magnetic Resonance, Centre for Functional and Diagnostic Imaging and Research, Copenhagen University Hospital Hvidovre, Hvidovre, Denmark
| | - Olaf B. Paulson
- Neurobiology Research Unit, Department of Neurology, Rigshospitalet, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Messoud Ashina
- Danish Headache Center, Department of Neurology, Rigshospitalet Glostrup, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Glostrup, Denmark
| | - Anouk Marsman
- Danish Research Centre for Magnetic Resonance, Centre for Functional and Diagnostic Imaging and Research, Copenhagen University Hospital Hvidovre, Hvidovre, Denmark
| | - Henrik B. W. Larsson
- Functional Imaging Unit, Department of Clinical Physiology, Nuclear Medicine and PET, Rigshospitalet Glostrup, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Glostrup, Denmark
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Dehghani M, Do KQ, Magistretti P, Xin L. Lactate measurement by neurochemical profiling in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex at 7T: accuracy, precision, and relaxation times. Magn Reson Med 2019; 83:1895-1908. [PMID: 31729080 DOI: 10.1002/mrm.28066] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/10/2019] [Revised: 09/17/2019] [Accepted: 10/14/2019] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
Abstract
PURPOSE This assesses the potential of measuring lactate in the human brain using three non-editing MRS methods at 7T and compares the accuracy and precision of the methods. METHODS 1 H MRS data were measured in the right dorsolateral prefrontal cortex using a semi-adiabatic spin-echo full-intensity acquired localized sequence with three different protocols: (I) TE = 16 ms, (II) TE = 110 ms, and (III) TE = 16 ms, TI = 300 ms. T1 and T2 relaxation times of lactate were also measured. Simulated spectra were generated for three protocols with known concentrations, using a range of spectral linewidths and SNRs to assess the effect of data quality on the measurement precision and accuracy. RESULTS Lactate was quantified in all three protocols with mean Cramér-Rao lower bound of 8% (I), 13% (II), and 7% (III). The T1 and T2 relaxation times of lactate were 1.9 ± 0.2 s and 94 ± 13 ms, respectively. Simulations predicted a spectral linewidth-associated underestimation of lactate measurement. Simulations, phantom and in vivo results showed that protocol II was most affected by this underestimation. In addition, the estimation error was insensitive to a broad range of spectral linewidth with protocol I. Within-session coefficient of variances of lactate were 6.1 ± 7.9% (I), 22.3 ± 12.3% (II), and 5.1 ± 5.4% (III), respectively. CONCLUSION We conclude that protocols I and III have the potential to measure lactate at 7T with good reproducibility, whereas the measurement accuracy and precision depend on spectral linewidth and SNR, respectively. Moreover, simulation is valuable for the optimization of measurement protocols in future study design and the correction for measurement bias.
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Affiliation(s)
- Masoumeh Dehghani
- Center for Psychiatric Neuroscience (CNP), Department of Psychiatry, Lausanne University Hospital-CHUV, Prilly-Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Kim Q Do
- Center for Psychiatric Neuroscience (CNP), Department of Psychiatry, Lausanne University Hospital-CHUV, Prilly-Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Pierre Magistretti
- Center for Psychiatric Neuroscience (CNP), Department of Psychiatry, Lausanne University Hospital-CHUV, Prilly-Lausanne, Switzerland.,BESE Division, King Abdullah University of Science and Technology, Thuwal, Saudi Arabia.,Brain Mind Institute, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Lijing Xin
- Animal Imaging and Technology Core (AIT), Center for Biomedical Imaging (CIBM), Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland
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