The long-term goal of this research is to establish a robust and accurate MRI method for estimating absolute cerebral blood volume (CBV) and to use this technique for clinical studies of brain diseases, such as acute stroke and Alzheimer's Disease. For this project, the specific aims are: 1) To develop the pulse sequence and related algorithms that allow quantification of absolute CBV using pre- and post-contrast MR images; 2) To evaluate the effects of other confounding factors, to optimize the imaging protocol, and to validate the MRI results using PET CBV measurements. CBV, defined as ml of blood per 100 ml of brain tissue, is an important physiological marker in many neurovascular diseases. Furthermore, it is of critical value in the diagnosis and/or monitoring of treatment for many other brain diseases that are non-vascular in origin. Existing techniques for the measurement of CBV either suffer from limited spatial resolution (e.g. PET) or require additional knowledge about the arterial input function (e.g. dynamic susceptibility contrast MRI). In this project, a novel approach will be developed for the accurate measurement of absolute CBV using Vascular-Space-Occupancy (VASO) MRI, a blood-nulling pulse sequence, in combination with the T1 shortening effect of the contrast agent Gd-DTPA. Two VASO images are acquired before and after contrast agent injection, resulting in a difference image that can be used to determine CBV. The key novelty of the proposed approach is that the estimation of CBV does not require knowledge or assumptions about vascular morphology. This is expected to provide a more accurate estimation of CBV compared with existing methods. The imaging protocol will be optimized by investigating various confounding factors that may cause error in the CBV estimation, including contrast agent concentration, MR receiver coil sensitivity profile, transverse relaxation effect of the contrast agent, effect of water exchange in the capillary bed, and effect of leakage in the blood-brain-barrier. The MRI CBV results will be validated using PET CBV measurements. Relevance: Many diseases in the brain are related to the blood supply to the brain. Therefore, it is of substantial value for physicians to have knowledge about the amout of blood present in the brain, often referred to as cerebral blood volume (CBV). In this project, a new technique will be developed to measure CBV in human brain using MRI. ? ? ?

Agency
National Institute of Health (NIH)
Institute
National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS)
Type
Exploratory/Developmental Grants (R21)
Project #
1R21NS054916-01A1
Application #
7212490
Study Section
Special Emphasis Panel (ZRG1-SBIB-J (51))
Program Officer
Babcock, Debra J
Project Start
2007-02-15
Project End
2009-01-31
Budget Start
2007-02-15
Budget End
2008-01-31
Support Year
1
Fiscal Year
2007
Total Cost
$171,719
Indirect Cost
Name
University of Texas Sw Medical Center Dallas
Department
Radiation-Diagnostic/Oncology
Type
Schools of Medicine
DUNS #
800771545
City
Dallas
State
TX
Country
United States
Zip Code
75390
Uh, Jinsoo; Lin, Ai-Ling; Lee, Kihak et al. (2011) Validation of VASO cerebral blood volume measurement with positron emission tomography. Magn Reson Med 65:744-9
Petersen, Esben Thade; Mouridsen, Kim; Golay, Xavier et al. (2010) The QUASAR reproducibility study, Part II: Results from a multi-center Arterial Spin Labeling test-retest study. Neuroimage 49:104-13
Uh, Jinsoo; Lewis-Amezcua, Kelly; Martin-Cook, Kristin et al. (2010) Cerebral blood volume in Alzheimer's disease and correlation with tissue structural integrity. Neurobiol Aging 31:2038-46
Uh, Jinsoo; Yezhuvath, Uma; Cheng, Yamei et al. (2010) In vivo vascular hallmarks of diffuse leukoaraiosis. J Magn Reson Imaging 32:184-90
Lu, Hanzhang; Yezhuvath, Uma S; Xiao, Guanghua (2010) Improving fMRI sensitivity by normalization of basal physiologic state. Hum Brain Mapp 31:80-7
Aslan, Sina; Xu, Feng; Wang, Peiying L et al. (2010) Estimation of labeling efficiency in pseudocontinuous arterial spin labeling. Magn Reson Med 63:765-71
Xu, Feng; Ge, Yulin; Lu, Hanzhang (2009) Noninvasive quantification of whole-brain cerebral metabolic rate of oxygen (CMRO2) by MRI. Magn Reson Med 62:141-8
Yezhuvath, Uma S; Lewis-Amezcua, Kelly; Varghese, Rani et al. (2009) On the assessment of cerebrovascular reactivity using hypercapnia BOLD MRI. NMR Biomed 22:779-86
Uh, Jinsoo; Lewis-Amezcua, Kelly; Varghese, Rani et al. (2009) On the measurement of absolute cerebral blood volume (CBV) using vascular-space-occupancy (VASO) MRI. Magn Reson Med 61:659-67
Lu, Hanzhang; Zhao, Chenguang; Ge, Yulin et al. (2008) Baseline blood oxygenation modulates response amplitude: Physiologic basis for intersubject variations in functional MRI signals. Magn Reson Med 60:364-72

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