NMR Research Unit, Department of Neuroinflammation, Faculty of Brain Sciences, Queen Square MS Centre, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, University College London, London, UK.
Department of Radiologic Technology, Faculty of Associated Medical Sciences, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai, Thailand.
Sci Rep. 2023 Apr 21;13(1):6565. doi: 10.1038/s41598-023-33618-w.
Magnetic resonance neurography (MRN) has been used successfully over the years to investigate the peripheral nervous system (PNS) because it allows early detection and precise localisation of neural tissue damage. However, studies demonstrating the feasibility of combining MRN with multi-parametric quantitative magnetic resonance imaging (qMRI) methods, which provide more specific information related to nerve tissue composition and microstructural organisation, can be invaluable. The translation of emerging qMRI methods previously validated in the central nervous system to the PNS offers real potential to characterise in patients in vivo the underlying pathophysiological mechanisms involved in a plethora of conditions of the PNS. The aim of this study was to assess the feasibility of combining MRN with qMRI to measure diffusion, magnetisation transfer and relaxation properties of the healthy sciatic nerve in vivo using a unified signal readout protocol. The reproducibility of the multi-parametric qMRI protocol as well as normative qMRI measures in the healthy sciatic nerve are reported. The findings presented herein pave the way to the practical implementation of joint MRN-qMRI in future studies of pathological conditions affecting the PNS.
磁共振神经成像 (MRN) 多年来一直成功地用于外周神经系统 (PNS) 的研究，因为它可以早期检测和精确定位神经组织损伤。然而，研究表明，将 MRN 与多参数定量磁共振成像 (qMRI) 方法相结合具有可行性，后者可以提供与神经组织成分和微观结构组织相关的更具体信息。将已在中枢神经系统中验证的新兴 qMRI 方法转化为 PNS 具有很大的潜力，可以在体内对涉及 PNS 多种疾病的潜在病理生理机制进行特征描述。本研究旨在评估使用统一信号读出方案将 MRN 与 qMRI 相结合以测量健康坐骨神经的扩散、磁化转移和弛豫特性的可行性。报告了多参数 qMRI 方案的可重复性以及健康坐骨神经的规范 qMRI 测量值。本文的研究结果为未来研究影响 PNS 的病理状况时联合实施 MRN-qMRI 铺平了道路。
