Dittrich Eva, Kasprian Gregor, Prayer Daniela, Langs Georg
Computational Image Analysis and Radiology Laboratory, Department of Radiology, Medical Universityof Vienna, Vienna, Austria.
Top Magn Reson Imaging. 2011 Jun;22(3):107-11. doi: 10.1097/RMR.0b013e318267fe94.
Magnetic resonance imaging has become an important noninvasive technique to gain insight into fetal brain development. Its capabilities go beyond ultrasound when diagnosing high-risk pregnancies. To summarize observations across a population in magnetic resonance imaging studies, reference systems such as atlases that establish correspondences across a cohort are key. In this article, we review the evolution of atlas-building methods in light of their relevance, limitations, and benefits for the modeling of human brain development. Starting with single anatomical templates to which brain scans where mapped to such as Talairach and Montreal Neurological Institute space, we explore the uses of atlases as a means to establish correspondences across a cohort and as a model that captures the population characteristics of the cases the atlas is built from. We discuss methods that capture features of increasingly heterogeneous populations and approaches that are able to generalize with only minimal annotation. The main focus of this review are methods that explicitly model the variability in the population with regard to time, such as in the modeling of disease progression and brain development. We highlight the applicability and limitations of state-of-the art approaches, how insights from the study of disease progression are helpful in developmental studies, and point to the directions of future research that is still necessary.
磁共振成像已成为深入了解胎儿大脑发育的一项重要非侵入性技术。在诊断高危妊娠时，其功能超越了超声检查。为了总结磁共振成像研究中整个人群的观察结果，像图谱这样能在一组人群中建立对应关系的参考系统至关重要。在本文中，我们根据图谱构建方法在人类大脑发育建模中的相关性、局限性和益处，回顾其发展历程。从诸如Talairach和蒙特利尔神经学研究所空间等将脑部扫描映射到的单一解剖模板开始，我们探讨图谱作为在一组人群中建立对应关系的手段以及作为捕捉构建图谱所依据病例的人群特征的模型的用途。我们讨论了捕捉日益多样化人群特征的方法以及仅需最少注释就能进行推广的方法。本综述的主要重点是那些明确模拟人群随时间变化的方法，例如在疾病进展和大脑发育建模中。我们强调了当前先进方法的适用性和局限性、疾病进展研究中的见解如何有助于发育研究，并指出了仍有必要进行的未来研究方向。
