In vivo cortical microstructure mapping using high-gradient diffusion MRI accounting for intercompartmental water exchange effects
In recent years, mapping tissue microstructure in the cortex using high gradient diffusion MRI has received growing attention. The Soma And Neurite Density Imaging (SANDI) explicitly models the soma compartment in the cortex assuming impermeable membranes. As such, it does not account for diffusion...
Saved in:
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Elsevier
2025-07-01
|
| Series: | NeuroImage |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1053811925002617 |
| Tags: |
Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
|
| _version_ | 1850269822535860224 |
|---|---|
| author | Tanxin Dong Hong-Hsi Lee Han Zang Hansol Lee Qiyuan Tian Liang Wan Qiuyun Fan SusieY. Huang |
| author_facet | Tanxin Dong Hong-Hsi Lee Han Zang Hansol Lee Qiyuan Tian Liang Wan Qiuyun Fan SusieY. Huang |
| author_sort | Tanxin Dong |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | In recent years, mapping tissue microstructure in the cortex using high gradient diffusion MRI has received growing attention. The Soma And Neurite Density Imaging (SANDI) explicitly models the soma compartment in the cortex assuming impermeable membranes. As such, it does not account for diffusion time dependence due to water exchange in the estimated microstructural properties, as neurites in gray matter are much less myelinated than in white matter.In this work, we performed a systematic evaluation of an extended SANDI model for in vivo human cortical microstructural mapping that accounts for water exchange effects between the neurite and extracellular compartments using the anisotropic Kärger model. We refer to this model as in vivo SANDIX, adapting the nomenclature from previous publications. As in the original SANDI model, the soma compartment is modeled as an impermeable sphere due to the much smaller surface-to-volume ratio compared to the neurite compartment. A Monte Carlo simulation study was performed to examine the sensitivity of the in vivo SANDIX model to sphere radii, compartment fractions, and water exchange times. The simulation results indicate that the proposed in vivo SANDIX framework can account for the water exchange effect and provide measures of intra-soma and intra-neurite signal fractions without spurious time-dependence in estimated parameters, whereas the measured water exchange times need to be interpreted with caution. The model was then applied to in vivo diffusion MRI data acquired in 13 healthy adults on the 3-Tesla Connectome MRI scanner equipped with 300 mT/m gradients. The in vivo results exhibited patterns that were consistent with corresponding anatomical characteristics in both cortex and white matter. In particular, the estimated water exchange times in gray and white matter were distinct and differentiated between the two tissue types.Our results show the SANDIX approach applied to high-gradient diffusion MRI data achieves cortical microstructure mapping of the in vivo human brain with the evaluation of water exchange effects. This approach potentially provides a more appropriate description of in vivo cortical microstructure for improving data interpretation in future neurobiological studies. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-f047a2ec788d4ecfa10fcabface80d4f |
| institution | OA Journals |
| issn | 1095-9572 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-07-01 |
| publisher | Elsevier |
| record_format | Article |
| series | NeuroImage |
| spelling | doaj-art-f047a2ec788d4ecfa10fcabface80d4f2025-08-20T01:52:55ZengElsevierNeuroImage1095-95722025-07-0131412125810.1016/j.neuroimage.2025.121258In vivo cortical microstructure mapping using high-gradient diffusion MRI accounting for intercompartmental water exchange effectsTanxin Dong0Hong-Hsi Lee1Han Zang2Hansol Lee3Qiyuan Tian4Liang Wan5Qiuyun Fan6SusieY. Huang7Academy of Medical Engineering and Translational Medicine, Tianjin University, Tianjin, China; Tianjin Key Laboratory of Brain Science and Neuroengineering, Tianjin, China; Haihe Laboratory of Brain-Computer Interaction and Human-Machine Interaction, Tianjin, ChinaDepartment of Radiology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Charlestown, MA, USA; Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USAAcademy of Medical Engineering and Translational Medicine, Tianjin University, Tianjin, China; Tianjin Key Laboratory of Brain Science and Neuroengineering, Tianjin, China; Haihe Laboratory of Brain-Computer Interaction and Human-Machine Interaction, Tianjin, ChinaDepartment of Radiology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Charlestown, MA, USA; Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USASchool of Biomedical Engineering, Tsinghua University, Beijing, ChinaAcademy of Medical Engineering and Translational Medicine, Tianjin University, Tianjin, ChinaAcademy of Medical Engineering and Translational Medicine, Tianjin University, Tianjin, China; Tianjin Key Laboratory of Brain Science and Neuroengineering, Tianjin, China; Haihe Laboratory of Brain-Computer Interaction and Human-Machine Interaction, Tianjin, China; Corresponding author at: Academy of Medical Engineering and Translational Medicine, Tianjin University, 92 Weijin Road, Nankai District, Tianjin 300072, China.Department of Radiology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Charlestown, MA, USA; Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA; Harvard-MIT Division of Health Sciences and Technology, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USAIn recent years, mapping tissue microstructure in the cortex using high gradient diffusion MRI has received growing attention. The Soma And Neurite Density Imaging (SANDI) explicitly models the soma compartment in the cortex assuming impermeable membranes. As such, it does not account for diffusion time dependence due to water exchange in the estimated microstructural properties, as neurites in gray matter are much less myelinated than in white matter.In this work, we performed a systematic evaluation of an extended SANDI model for in vivo human cortical microstructural mapping that accounts for water exchange effects between the neurite and extracellular compartments using the anisotropic Kärger model. We refer to this model as in vivo SANDIX, adapting the nomenclature from previous publications. As in the original SANDI model, the soma compartment is modeled as an impermeable sphere due to the much smaller surface-to-volume ratio compared to the neurite compartment. A Monte Carlo simulation study was performed to examine the sensitivity of the in vivo SANDIX model to sphere radii, compartment fractions, and water exchange times. The simulation results indicate that the proposed in vivo SANDIX framework can account for the water exchange effect and provide measures of intra-soma and intra-neurite signal fractions without spurious time-dependence in estimated parameters, whereas the measured water exchange times need to be interpreted with caution. The model was then applied to in vivo diffusion MRI data acquired in 13 healthy adults on the 3-Tesla Connectome MRI scanner equipped with 300 mT/m gradients. The in vivo results exhibited patterns that were consistent with corresponding anatomical characteristics in both cortex and white matter. In particular, the estimated water exchange times in gray and white matter were distinct and differentiated between the two tissue types.Our results show the SANDIX approach applied to high-gradient diffusion MRI data achieves cortical microstructure mapping of the in vivo human brain with the evaluation of water exchange effects. This approach potentially provides a more appropriate description of in vivo cortical microstructure for improving data interpretation in future neurobiological studies.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1053811925002617Diffusion MRIMicrostructureCortexWater exchangeKärger modelConnectome |
| spellingShingle | Tanxin Dong Hong-Hsi Lee Han Zang Hansol Lee Qiyuan Tian Liang Wan Qiuyun Fan SusieY. Huang In vivo cortical microstructure mapping using high-gradient diffusion MRI accounting for intercompartmental water exchange effects NeuroImage Diffusion MRI Microstructure Cortex Water exchange Kärger model Connectome |
| title | In vivo cortical microstructure mapping using high-gradient diffusion MRI accounting for intercompartmental water exchange effects |
| title_full | In vivo cortical microstructure mapping using high-gradient diffusion MRI accounting for intercompartmental water exchange effects |
| title_fullStr | In vivo cortical microstructure mapping using high-gradient diffusion MRI accounting for intercompartmental water exchange effects |
| title_full_unstemmed | In vivo cortical microstructure mapping using high-gradient diffusion MRI accounting for intercompartmental water exchange effects |
| title_short | In vivo cortical microstructure mapping using high-gradient diffusion MRI accounting for intercompartmental water exchange effects |
| title_sort | in vivo cortical microstructure mapping using high gradient diffusion mri accounting for intercompartmental water exchange effects |
| topic | Diffusion MRI Microstructure Cortex Water exchange Kärger model Connectome |
| url | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1053811925002617 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT tanxindong invivocorticalmicrostructuremappingusinghighgradientdiffusionmriaccountingforintercompartmentalwaterexchangeeffects AT honghsilee invivocorticalmicrostructuremappingusinghighgradientdiffusionmriaccountingforintercompartmentalwaterexchangeeffects AT hanzang invivocorticalmicrostructuremappingusinghighgradientdiffusionmriaccountingforintercompartmentalwaterexchangeeffects AT hansollee invivocorticalmicrostructuremappingusinghighgradientdiffusionmriaccountingforintercompartmentalwaterexchangeeffects AT qiyuantian invivocorticalmicrostructuremappingusinghighgradientdiffusionmriaccountingforintercompartmentalwaterexchangeeffects AT liangwan invivocorticalmicrostructuremappingusinghighgradientdiffusionmriaccountingforintercompartmentalwaterexchangeeffects AT qiuyunfan invivocorticalmicrostructuremappingusinghighgradientdiffusionmriaccountingforintercompartmentalwaterexchangeeffects AT susieyhuang invivocorticalmicrostructuremappingusinghighgradientdiffusionmriaccountingforintercompartmentalwaterexchangeeffects |