Department of Translational Research and New Technologies in Medicine and Surgery, University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy.
Neurology Unit, Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, University of Pisa, Via Roma 67, 56126, Pisa, Italy.
Curr Neurol Neurosci Rep. 2018 Apr 20;18(6):31. doi: 10.1007/s11910-018-0841-7.
With a high signal-to-noise ratio, unparalleled spatial resolution, and improved contrasts, ultra-high field MR (≥ 7 T) has great potential in depicting the normal radiological anatomy of smaller structures in the brain and can also provide more information about morphological, quantitative, and metabolic changes associated with a wide range of brain disorders. By focusing attention on specific brain regions believed to be associated with early pathological change, or by more closely inspecting recognized foci of brain pathology, ultra-high field MR can improve the accuracy and sensitivity of neuroimaging. This article reviews recent studies at ultra-high field about Alzheimer's disease (AD), Parkinson's disease (PD), and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS).
The research on AD has mainly focused on detecting the thinning of hippocampal layers and the susceptibility effect supposed to be related to beta-amyloid deposition. In patients with PD, atypical parkinsonisms and subjects at risk of developing motor symptoms of Parkinson's disease, the main aim was to detect changes in the substantia nigra, probably related to increased iron deposition. In patients with ALS, both brain and spinal cord were investigated, with the aim of finding changes in the primary motor cortex and corticospinal tract which reflect neurodegeneration and neuroinflammation. Ultra-high field MR was shown to be useful for detecting subtle brain changes in patients with AD, and possible new diagnostic biomarkers in patients with PD and ALS were discovered. The ability of 7 T MR to provide prognostic biomarkers in subjects at risk for developing synucleinopathies is currently under evaluation.
超高场磁共振（≥7T）具有高信噪比、无与伦比的空间分辨率和改善的对比度，在描绘大脑较小结构的正常放射学解剖结构方面具有很大的潜力，并且还可以提供更多与广泛的脑疾病相关的形态、定量和代谢变化的信息。通过关注被认为与早期病理变化相关的特定脑区，或更仔细地检查已识别的脑病理学焦点，超高场磁共振可以提高神经影像学的准确性和敏感性。本文综述了超高场磁共振在阿尔茨海默病（AD）、帕金森病（PD）和肌萎缩侧索硬化症（ALS）方面的最新研究进展。
AD 的研究主要集中在检测海马层变薄和可能与β-淀粉样蛋白沉积相关的易感性效应。在 PD 患者、具有非典型帕金森病和发展为帕金森病运动症状风险的受试者中，主要目的是检测黑质的变化，这可能与铁沉积增加有关。在 ALS 患者中，对大脑和脊髓进行了研究，目的是发现反映神经退行性变和神经炎症的初级运动皮层和皮质脊髓束的变化。超高场磁共振被证明可用于检测 AD 患者的细微脑变化，并发现 PD 和 ALS 患者的可能新的诊断生物标志物。目前正在评估 7T MR 提供发生突触核蛋白病风险人群的预后生物标志物的能力。
