Sbarbati A, Osculati F
Institute of Normal Human Morphology, Ancona, Italy.
Histol Histopathol. 1996 Jan;11(1):229-35.
The present work reviews the main applications of nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR)-technology and, in particular, of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to tissutal analysis. To date, MRI represents a precise and reliable tool to investigate morphology and functional modification of tissues in vivo, providing information consistent with histology. MRI has numerous advantages over conventional techniques: it is harmless to tissues; volume measurements in vivo could be useful for morphometric studies; the same tissue can be examined several times (e.g. at different ages); several organs can be examined at the same time; serial sections of relevant structures can be obtained in all planes, thereby allowing detailed reconstruction of the three-dimensional configuration of organs; motion within a tissue can be detected; and subsequent histological and ultrastructural studies of the tissue are possible. The main drawback (besides the cost of the basic instrumentation) is that resolution is relatively low in comparison with light microscopy. Finally, the analysis of the results is difficult, needing interdisciplinary competence, and MRI methods of tissutal analysis are not yet well standardized. Therefore, in our opinion, MRI is an interesting tool, complementary to other histological techniques, and it cannot be ignored by microscopists. However, in vivo MRI data must be evaluated with caution and histological controls are always required.
本研究综述了核磁共振（NMR）技术，尤其是磁共振成像（MRI）在组织分析中的主要应用。迄今为止，MRI是一种精确可靠的工具，可用于研究体内组织的形态和功能变化，提供与组织学相符的信息。与传统技术相比，MRI具有诸多优势：对组织无害；体内体积测量有助于形态计量学研究；同一组织可多次检查（如在不同年龄）；可同时检查多个器官；能在所有平面获取相关结构的连续切片，从而详细重建器官的三维结构；可检测组织内的运动；后续还能对该组织进行组织学和超微结构研究。主要缺点（除了基本仪器的成本）是与光学显微镜相比分辨率相对较低。最后，结果分析困难，需要跨学科能力，且组织分析的MRI方法尚未得到很好的标准化。因此，我们认为，MRI是一种有趣的工具，可作为其他组织学技术的补充，显微镜学家不能忽视它。然而，必须谨慎评估体内MRI数据，且始终需要组织学对照。
