Abstract
BackgroundMagnetic resonance imaging is a noninvasive method of evaluating embryonic development. Diffusion tensor imaging (DTI), based on the directional diffusivity of water molecules, is an established method of evaluating tissue structure. Yet embryonic motion degrades the in vivo acquisition of long-duration DTI. We used a dual-cooling technique to avoid motion artifact and aimed to investigate whether DTI can be used to monitor chick embryonic skeletal muscle development in ovo, and to investigate the correlation between quantitative DTI parameters fractional anisotropy (FA) and fiber length and quantitative histologic parameters fiber area percentage (FiberArea%) and limb length.ResultsFrom 84 normally developing chick embryos, 5 were randomly chosen each day from incubation days 5 to 18 and scanned using 3.0 Tesla magnetic resonance imaging. A dual-cooling technique is used before and during imaging. Eggs were cracked for making histological specimen after imaging. 3 eggs were serially imaged from days 5 to 18. We show that skeletal muscle fibers can be tracked in hind limb in DTI beginning with incubation day 8. Our data shows a good positive correlation between quantitative DTI and histologic parameters (FA vs FiberArea%: r= 0.943, p<0.0001; Fiber_length vs Limb_length: r=0.974, p<0.0001). The result of tracked fibers in DTI during incubation corresponds to the development of chick embryonic skeletal muscle as reported in the literature.ConclusionDiffusion tensor imaging can provide a noninvasive means of evaluating skeletal muscle development in ovo.
Highlights
Magnetic resonance imaging is a noninvasive method of evaluating embryonic development
The purpose of this study is to show that Diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) can be used to monitor the development of skeletal muscle in chick embryonic hind limb using a dual-cooling technique, and investigate whether serial skeletal muscle tractography in DTI correlates with ex vivo histology from day 8 of incubation through hatching
Beginning with day 8, skeletal muscle fibers of the hind limb could be tracked with DTI and the fiber length derived
Summary
Magnetic resonance imaging is a noninvasive method of evaluating embryonic development. Diffusion tensor imaging (DTI), based on the directional diffusivity of water molecules, is an established method of evaluating tissue structure. We used a dual-cooling technique to avoid motion artifact and aimed to investigate whether DTI can be used to monitor chick embryonic skeletal muscle development in ovo, and to investigate the correlation between quantitative DTI parameters fractional anisotropy (FA) and fiber length and quantitative histologic parameters fiber area percentage (FiberArea%) and limb length. Diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) is a method of observing the displacement distribution of water molecules present within an imaging voxel, allowing evaluation of tissue structure at a scale below the spatial resolution of MRI [11]. The purpose of this study is to show that DTI can be used to monitor the development of skeletal muscle in chick embryonic hind limb using a dual-cooling technique, and investigate whether serial skeletal muscle tractography in DTI correlates with ex vivo histology from day 8 of incubation through hatching
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