Arterial Spin Labeling Imaging Research Articles

Arterial Spin Labeling in Migraine: A Review of Migraine Categories and Mimics

Migraine is a complex headache characterized by changes in functional connectivity and cerebral perfusion. The perfusion changes represent a valuable domain for targeted drug therapy. Arterial spin labeling is a noncontrast imaging technique of quantifying cerebral perfusion changes in the migraine setting. In this narrative review, we will discuss the pathophysiology of the different categories of migraine, as defined by the International Classification of Headache Disorders-3 and describe a category-based approach to delineating perfusion changes in migraine on arterial spin labeling images. We will also discuss the use of arterial spin labeling to differentiate migraine from stroke and/or seizures in the adult and pediatric populations. Our systematic approach will help improve the understanding of the complicated vascular changes that occur during migraines and identify potential areas of future research.

Effects of Post-Labeling Delay on Magnetic Resonance Evaluation of Brain Tumor Blood Flow Using Arterial Spin Labeling.

We investigated the effect of post-labeling delay (PLD) on the evaluation of brain tumor blood flow using arterial spin labeling (ASL) magnetic resonance (MR) imaging to assess the need for imaging with two PLDs. Retrospective analysis was conducted on 63 adult patients with brain tumors who underwent contrast-enhanced MR imaging including ASL imaging with PLDs of both 1525 and 2525 ms on a 1.5 T or 3 T MR unit. Blood flow was estimated in the tumors and normal-appearing brain parenchyma, and tumor blood flow was normalized by parenchymal flow. Estimates of tumor blood flow, parenchymal flow, and normalized tumor flow showed no statistically significant differences between PLDs of 1525 and 2525 ms. Close correlations between different PLDs were found, with the closest correlation for normalized tumor flow. These results were similarly observed for the 1.5 T and 3 T units. The blood flow estimates obtained using ASL MR imaging in patients with brain tumors were highly concordant between PLDs of 1525 and 2525 ms, irrespective of the magnetic field strength. It is indicated that imaging with a single, standard PLD is acceptable for ASL assessment of brain tumor perfusion and that additional imaging with a long PLD is not required.

Blood flow perfusion in visual pathway detected by arterial spin labeling magnetic resonance imaging for differential diagnosis of ocular ischemic syndrome.

Ocular ischemic syndrome (OIS), attributable to chronic hypoperfusion caused by marked carotid stenosis, is one of the important factors that cause ocular neurodegenerative diseases such as optic atrophy. The current study aimed to detect blood flow perfusion in a visual pathway by arterial spin labeling (ASL) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) for the differential diagnosis of OIS. This diagnostic, cross-sectional study at a single institution was performed to detect blood flow perfusion in a visual pathway based on 3D pseudocontinuous ASL (3D-pCASL) using 3.0T MRI. A total of 91 participants (91 eyes) consisting of 30 eyes with OIS and 61 eyes with noncarotid artery stenosis-related retinal vascular diseases (39 eyes with diabetic retinopathy and 22 eyes with high myopic retinopathy) were consecutively included. Blood flow perfusion values in visual pathways derived from regions of interest in ASL images, including the retinal-choroidal complex, the intraorbital segments of the optic nerve, the tractus optics, and the visual center, were obtained and compared with arm-retinal circulation time and retinal circulation time derived from fundus fluorescein angiography (FFA). Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analyses and the intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) were performed to evaluate the accuracy and consistency. Patients with OIS had the lowest blood flow perfusion values in the visual pathway (all p < 0.05). The relative intraorbital segments of optic nerve blood flow values at post-labeling delays (PLDs) of 1.5 s (area under the curve, AUC = 0.832) and the relative retinal-choroidal complex blood flow values at PLDs of 2.5 s (AUC = 0.805) were effective for the differential diagnosis of OIS. The ICC of the blood flow values derived from the retinal-choroidal complex and the intraorbital segments of the optic nerve between the two observers showed satisfactory concordance (all ICC > 0.932, p < 0.001). The adverse reaction rates of ASL and FFA were 2.20 and 3.30%, respectively. 3D-pCASL showed that the participants with OIS had lower blood flow perfusion values in the visual pathway, which presented satisfactory accuracy, reproducibility, and safety. It is a noninvasive and comprehensive differential diagnostic tool to assess blood flow perfusion in a visual pathway for the differential diagnosis of OIS.

Abstract TMP66: Correlation Of Cerebrovascular Reserve Assessed By Acetazolamide-stress Spect With Collaterals On Arterial Spin-labeling MRI In Patients With Carotid Occlusive Disease

Introduction: We investigated the relationship between the level of cerebral collateral circulation on arterial spin-labeling (ASL) magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and cerebrovascular reserve (CVR) on acetazolamide (ACZ)-stress single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) brain scans in internal carotid artery (ICA) stenosis. Methods: This study enrolled 129 patients with severe ICA stenosis (&gt;70%). Collateral circulation was assessed in pulsed ASL images based on the presence of arterial transit artifact (ATA) that late-arriving flow appears as serpiginous high ASL signal within cortical vessels. CVR based on rest-SPECT and ACZ-stress SPECT with Tc-99m-ECD was calculated. The ASL CBF maps were independently assessed by two neuroradiologists blinded to clinical information. The two neuroradiologists graded on two slices of ASL images corresponding to Alberta Stroke Program Early Computed Tomography Score (ASPECTS) location using a 4-point scale for ASL intensity. Results: With ACZ-stress SPECT, the 88/129 (68%) patients showed normal CVR and 41/129 (32%) patients showed decreased CVR. In 73/88 (82%) of the normal CVR group patients, ASL showed ATA in ipsilateral to the stenosis. In 19/41 (46%) of the decreased CVR group patients, ASL showed no evidence of ATA in ipsilateral to the stenosis. Significant positive relationship was observed between the normal CVR group and the ATA showing group in ICA stenosis patients (p = 0.001, chi-square test). The ASL-based ASPECTS scores of brain in the ipsilateral side was lower than the scores in the contralateral side to the ICA stenosis (p &lt; 0.0001, Wilcoxon signed rank test). The ASL-based ASPECTS scores of brain ipsilateral side to the ICA stenosis was lower in the reduced CVR group than normal CVR group (p = 0.005). Conclusion: This study demonstrated the statistically significant positive correlation between good collaterals on ASL MRI and intact CVR in patients with ICA stenosis.

Predicting a Favorable (mRS 0–2) or Unfavorable (mRS 3–6) Stroke Outcome by Arterial Spin Labeling and Amide Proton Transfer Imaging in Post-Thrombolysis Stroke Patients

(1) Background: The objective of this study was to determine whether arterial spin labeling (ASL), amide proton transfer (APT), or their combination could distinguish between patients with a low and high modified Rankin Scale (mRS) and forecast the effectiveness of the therapy; (2) Methods: Fifty-eight patients with subacute phase ischemic stroke were included in this study. Based on cerebral blood flow (CBF) and asymmetry magnetic transfer ratio (MTRasym) images, histogram analysis was performed on the ischemic area to acquire imaging biomarkers, and the contralateral area was used as a control. Imaging biomarkers were compared between the low (mRS 0-2) and high (mRS 3-6) mRS score groups using the Mann-Whitney U test. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis was used to evaluate the performance of the potential biomarkers in differentiating between the two groups; (3) Results: The rAPT 50th had an area under the ROC curve (AUC) of 0.728, with a sensitivity of 91.67% and a specificity of 61.76% for differentiating between patients with low and high mRS scores. Moreover, the AUC, sensitivity, and specificity of the rASL max were 0.926, 100%, and 82.4%, respectively. Combining the parameters with logistic regression could further improve the performance in predicting prognosis, leading to an AUC of 0.968, a sensitivity of 100%, and a specificity of 91.2%; (4) Conclusions: The combination of APT and ASL may be a potential imaging biomarker to reflect the effectiveness of thrombolytic therapy for stroke patients, assisting in guiding treatment approaches and identifying high-risk patients such as those with severe disability, paralysis, and cognitive impairment.

Reader Response: Prevalence and Significance of Impaired Microvascular Tissue Reperfusion Despite Macrovascular Angiographic Reperfusion (No-Reflow).

Ng et al.1 recently reported a 25% prevalence of hypoperfusion—a >15% reduction of cerebral blood flow (CBF) or cerebral blood volume (CBV) from the mirror region on CT perfusion imaging—within the 24-hour infarct window, despite complete anterior circulation recanalization (TICI 2c/3), which negatively affected functional outcome. These findings contrast with our earlier finding of 6% (2/33) hypoperfused infarcts, where the 24-hour arterial spin labeling (ASL)-CBF images were analyzed according to the Alberta Stroke Program Early CT Score (ASPECTS) template.2 We have reanalyzed our data set considering the entire middle cerebral arterial (MCA) territory, irrespective of ASPECTS. After excluding areas with confluent hemorrhagic transformation or parenchymal hematoma on the 24-hour MRI, consensus by 2 raters (kappa = 0.752) identified only 2 additional patients exhibiting patchy mild-to-moderate hypoperfusion with volumes too small to be reliably measured on ASL images, for a total prevalence of 4 of 33 patients (12%). After excluding patients with missing mRS (n = 2) or associated infarcts outside the MCA territory (n = 5), univariate analysis showed no significant association of “no-reflow” presence with a 3-month mRS of 0–1 or 0–2. A multivariate analysis was precluded by low occurrence of no-reflow. Taken together with this article and another recent report,3 the prevalence of no-reflow after recanalized MCA stroke appears to stand ∼15–20%, depending on the perfusion modality used, and often involves small areas. The true impact on clinical outcome remains unclear.3

Machine learning-based approach reveals essential features for simplified TSPO PET quantification in ischemic stroke patients

IntroductionNeuroinflammation evaluation after acute ischemic stroke is a promising option for selecting an appropriate post-stroke treatment strategy. To assess neuroinflammation in vivo, translocator protein PET (TSPO PET) can be used. However, the gold standard TSPO PET quantification method includes a 90 min scan and continuous arterial blood sampling, which is challenging to perform on a routine basis. In this work, we determine what information is required for a simplified quantification approach using a machine learning algorithm. Materials and MethodsWe analyzed data from 18 patients with ischemic stroke who received 0–90 min [18F]GE-180 PET as well as T1-weigted (T1w), FLAIR, and arterial spin labeling (ASL) MRI scans. During PET scans, five manual venous blood samples at 5, 15, 30, 60, and 85 min post injection (p.i.) were drawn, and plasma activity concentration was measured. Total distribution volume (VT) was calculated using Logan plot with the full dynamic PET and an image-derived input function (IDIF) from the carotid arteries. IDIF was scaled by a calibration factor derived from all the measured plasma activity concentrations. The calculated VT values were used for training a random forest regressor. As input features for the model, we used three late PET frames (60–70, 70–80, and 80–90 min p.i.), the ASL image reflecting perfusion, the voxel coordinates, the lesion mask, and the five plasma activity concentrations. The algorithm was validated with the leave-one-out approach. To estimate the impact of the individual features on the algorithm’s performance, we used Shapley Additive Explanations (SHAP). Having determined that the three late PET frames and the plasma activity concentrations were the most important features, we tested a simplified quantification approach consisting of dividing a late PET frame by a plasma activity concentration. All the combinations of frames/samples were compared by means of concordance correlation coefficient and Bland-Altman plots. ResultsWhen using all the input features, the algorithm predicted VT values with high accuracy (87.8 ± 8.3%) for both lesion and non-lesion voxels. The SHAP values demonstrated high impact of the late PET frames (60–70, 70–80, and 80–90 min p.i.) and plasma activity concentrations on the VT prediction, while the influence of the ASL-derived perfusion, voxel coordinates, and the lesion mask was low. Among all the combinations of the late PET frames and plasma activity concentrations, the 70–80 min p.i. frame divided by the 30 min p.i. plasma sample produced the closest VT estimate in the ischemic lesion. ConclusionReliable TSPO PET quantification is achievable by using a single late PET frame divided by a late blood sample activity concentration.

Arterial spin labeling and diffusion-weighted MR imaging: quantitative assessment of renal pathological injury in chronic kidney disease.

The aim of the study was to investigate the performance of arterial spin labeling (ASL), diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI), and clinical biomarkers in assessing renal pathological injury in CKD. Forty-five biopsy-proven CKD patients and 17 healthy volunteers underwent DWI and ASL examinations. Renal cortical blood flow (RBF) and apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) values were acquired. Correlations between RBF, ADC, serum creatinine (SCr), estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR), and pathological scores were assessed. The diagnostic efficacy of SCr, eGFR, RBF, and ADC in assessing renal pathological injury was assessed by ROC curve analysis. The cortical RBF, ADC, SCr, and eGFR were significantly correlated with the renal histology score (all p < 0.01). The AUC values of SCr, eGFR, RBF, and ADC were 0.705 (95% confidence interval (CI): 0.536-0.827), 0.718 (0.552-0.839), 0.823 (0.658-0.916), and 0.624 (0.451-0.786), respectively, in discriminating the minimal-mild renal pathological injury group (N = 30) from the control group (N = 17). The diagnostic ability of ASL was significantly higher than that of DWI (p = 0.049) and slightly but not significantly higher than that of eGFR and SCr (p = 0.151 and p = 0.129, respectively). When compared with that of eGFR, the sensitivity of ASL in detecting early renal injury increased from 50 to 70% (p = 0.014). However, in differentiating between the minimal-mild and moderate-severe renal injury groups (N = 15), there was no significant difference in diagnostic ability among the four parameters (all p > 0.05). ASL is practicable for noninvasive evaluation of renal pathology, especially for predicting early renal pathological injury in CKD patients.

Effects of alfaxalone, propofol and isoflurane on cerebral blood flow and cerebrovascular reactivity to carbon dioxide in dogs: A pilot study.

Propofol total intravenous anesthesia is a common choice to anesthetize patients with increased intracranial pressure, reducing cerebral blood flow while maintaining cerebrovascular reactivity to CO2. Propofol and alfaxalone are commonly used for total intravenous anesthesia in dogs, but the effects of alfaxalone on cerebral blood flow and cerebrovascular reactivity to CO2 are unknown. Our hypothesis was that alfaxalone would not be significantly different to propofol, while isoflurane would increase cerebral blood flow and decrease cerebrovascular reactivity to CO2. Six healthy hound dogs were evaluated in this randomized crossover trial. Dogs were anesthetized with 7.5mg/kg propofol, 3mg/kg alfaxalone or 8% sevoflurane, mechanically ventilated and maintained with propofol (400µg/kg/min), alfaxalone (150µg/kg/min) or 1.7% end-tidal isoflurane, respectively, with one week washout between treatments. Cerebral blood flow and cerebrovascular reactivity to CO2 during hypercapnic and hypocapnic challenges were measured using arterial spin labelling and blood oxygen level-dependent magnetic resonance imaging sequences, respectively. Median (interquartile range, IQR) normocapnic cerebral blood flow was significantly lower (P=0.016) with alfaxalone compared to isoflurane, in the whole brain 15.39mL/min/100g (14.90-19.90mL/min/100g) vs. 34.10mL/min/100g (33.35-43.17mL/min/100g), the grey matter 14.57mL/min/100g (13.66-18.72mL/min/100g) vs. 32.37mL/min/100g (31.03-42.99mL/min/100g), the caudal brain 15.47mL/min/100g (13.37-21.45mL/min/100g) vs. 36.85mL/min/100g (32.50-47.18mL/min/100g) and the temporal lobe grey matter 18.80mL/min/100g (15.89-20.84mL/min/100g) vs. 43.32 (36.07-43.58mL/min/100g). Median (IQR) hypocapnic cerebrovascular reactivity to CO2 was significantly higher (P=0.016) for alfaxalone compared to isoflurane 8.85%S/mm Hg (6.92-10.44%S/mm Hg) vs. 3.90%S/mm Hg (3.80-4.33%S/mm Hg). Alfaxalone maintained lower cerebral blood flow and higher hypocapnic cerebrovascular reactivity to CO2 than isoflurane.

Comparison between 1.5-Tesla pseudocontinuous and pulsed arterial spin labeling in visualizing peri-ictal hyperperfusion: A case report

Arterial spin labeling (ASL) imaging with multiple postlabeling delays (PLD) can demonstrate the hemodynamics of peri-ictal hyperperfusion. Labeling methods include pulsed ASL (PASL) and pseudocontinuous ASL (pCASL). Although PASL is more widely used in daily clinical practice, it has several disadvantages because of lower delivery of labeled magnetization. We compared pCASL and PASL images acquired after a 24-h interval, using a 1.5-Tesla machine, in a 62-year-old man with non-convulsive status epilepticus. The pCASL during electrographic status epilepticus clearly demonstrated that ASL signals in the grey matter of the right hemisphere, particularly in the posteromedial part of the right temporal lobe, increased at PLDs of 1.5 s and 1.75 s and were almost washed out at 2.0 s. Although PASL, which was obtained during the ictal-interictal continuum when there were no changes in ictal findings on diffusion-weighted images, showed a similar trend, the increased signals were less pronounced than those of pCASL, with more contamination of arte-rial transit artifact in the subarachnoid space. Although the electroencephalographic findings were not the same when both ASLs were performed, the present study confirms that PASL is somewhat inferior to pCASL in detecting peri-ictal hyperperfusion because of the greater effect of arterial transient artifacts.

Red cell exchange transfusions increase cerebral capillary transit times and may alter oxygen extraction in sickle cell disease.

Persons with sickle cell disease (SCD) suffer from chronic hemolytic anemia, reduced blood oxygen content, and lifelong risk of silent and overt stroke. Major conventional stroke risk factors are absent in most individuals with SCD, yet nearly 50% have evidence of brain infarcts by the age of 30 years, indicating alternative etiologies for ischemia. We investigated whether radiological evidence of accelerated blood water transit through capillaries, visible on arterial spin labeling (ASL) magnetic resonance imaging, reduces following transfusion-induced increases in hemoglobin and relates to oxygen extraction fraction (OEF). Neurological evaluation along with anatomical and hemodynamic imaging with cerebral blood flow (CBF)-weighted pseudocontinuous ASL and OEF imaging with T2 -relaxation-under-spin-tagging were applied in sequence before and after blood transfusion therapy (n = 32) and in a comparator cohort of nontransfused SCD participants on hydroxyurea therapy scanned at two time points to assess stability without interim intervention (n = 13). OEF was calculated separately using models derived from human hemoglobin-F, hemoglobin-A, and hemoglobin-S. Gray matter CBF and dural sinus signal, indicative of rapid blood transit, were evaluated at each time point and compared with OEF using paired statistical tests (significance: two-sided p < 0.05). No significant change in sinus signal was observed in nontransfused participants (p = 0.650), but a reduction was observed in transfused participants (p = 0.034), consistent with slower red cell transit following transfusion. The dural sinus signal intensity was inversely associated with OEF pretransfusion (p = 0.011), but not posttransfusion. Study findings suggest that transfusion-induced increases in total hemoglobin may lengthen blood transit times through cerebral capillaries and alter cerebral OEF in SCD.

Neurovascular coupling changes in patients with magnetic resonance imaging negative focal epilepsy

Brain neuron activity is closely related to cerebral blood flow (CBF) changes. Alterations in the regional homogeneity (ReHo) and CBF occur in patients with magnetic resonance imaging negative focal epilepsy (FEP-MRI−). However, the coupling alterations of ReHo and CBF in FEP-MRI− remain unclear. The study aims to explore neurovascular coupling alterations and their clinical implication in FEP-MRI−.We collected resting-state magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) data from 31 healthy controls (HCs) and 48 patients with FEP-MRI−,including three-dimensional (3D) T1-weighted imaging, 3D arterial spin labeling (ASL) imaging,and resting-state functional MRI (rs-fMRI). The CBF and ReHo values were calculated from the ASL and rs-fMRI data, respectively. The CBF/ReHo ratio per voxel and whole-brain CBF-ReHo coupling were compared between the two groups. Correlation analysis involved the CBF/ReHo ratio and clinical indicators in FEP-MRI−.Patients with FEP-MRI− showed significantly increased cross-subject CBF-ReHo and global cross-voxel CBF-ReHo coupling. The CBF/ReHo ratio was higher in the bilateral orbitofrontal gyrus, right parietal lobe, and right middle frontal gyrus of patients with FEP-MRI−. Nevertheless, this ratio was lower in the bilateral supplementary motor areas, the left middle and posterior cingulate gyrus, and the right central sulcus cover. The CBF/ReHo ratio was markedly correlated with cognitive function, memory, intelligence, and epilepsy duration in the above abnormal brain regions.CBF/ReHo ratio may be useful as an indicator of neuropathological mechanisms. These results support the hypothesis that CBF/ReHo ratio relates to the neuropathological mechanisms of FEP-MRI−. Furthermore, it offers new perspectives for studying the mechanisms of MRI-negative epilepsy.

Capability of arterial spin labeling and intravoxel incoherent motion diffusion-weighted imaging to detect early kidney injury in chronic kidney disease.

To prospectively investigate the capability of arterial spin labeling (ASL) and intravoxel incoherent motion diffusion-weighted imaging (IVIM-DWI) for the identification of early kidney injury in chronic kidney disease (CKD) patients with normal estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR). Fifty-four CKD patients confirmed by renal biopsy (normal eGFR group [eGFR ≥ 90 mL/min/1.73 m2]: n = 26; abnormal eGFR group [eGFR < 90 mL/min/1.73 m2]: n = 28) and 20 healthy volunteers (HV) were recruited. All subjects were examined by IVIM-DWI and ASL imaging. Renal blood flow (RBF) derived from ASL, true diffusion coefficient (D), pseudo-diffusion coefficient (D*), and perfusion fraction (f) derived from IVIM-DWI were measured from the renal cortex. One-way analysis of variance was used to compare MRI parameters among the three groups. The correlation between eGFR and MRI parameters was evaluated by Spearman correlation analysis. Diagnostic performances of MRI parameters for detecting kidney injury were assessed by receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves. The renal cortical D, D*, f, and RBF values showed statistically significant differences among the three groups. eGFR was positively correlated with MRI parameters (D: r = 0.299, D*: r = 0.569, f: r = 0.733, RBF: r = 0.586). The areas under the curve (AUCs) for discriminating CKD patients from HV were 0.725, 0.752, 0.947, and 0.884 by D, D*, f, and RBF, respectively. D, D*, f, RBF, and eGFR identified CKD patients with normal eGFR with AUCs of 0.735, 0.612, 0.917, 0.827, and 0.733, respectively, and AUC of f value was significantly larger than that of eGFR. IVIM-DWI and ASL were useful for detecting underlying pathologic injury in early CKD patients with normal eGFR. • The renal cortical f and RBF values in the control group were significantly higher than those in the normal eGFR group. • A negative correlation was observed between the renal cortical D, D*, f, and RBF values and SCr and 24 h-UPRO, while eGFR was significantly positively correlated with renal cortical D, D*, f, and RBF values. • The AUC of renal cortical f values was statistically larger than that of eGFR for the discrimination between the CKD with normal eGFR group and the control group.

Altered neurovascular coupling in children with idiopathic generalized epilepsy.

Alterations in neuronal activity and cerebral hemodynamics have been reported in idiopathic generalized epilepsy (IGE) patients, possibly resulting in neurovascular decoupling; however, no neuroimaging evidence confirmed this disruption. This study aimed to investigate the possible presence of neurovascular decoupling and its clinical implications in childhood IGE using resting-state fMRI and arterial spin labeling imaging. IGE patients and healthy participants underwent resting-state fMRI and arterial spin labeling imaging to calculate degree centrality (DC) and cerebral blood flow (CBF), respectively. Across-voxel CBF-DC correlations were analyzed to evaluate the neurovascular coupling within the whole gray matter, and the regional coupling of brain region was assessed with the CBF/DC ratio. The study included 26 children with IGE and 35 sex- and age-matched healthy controls (HCs). Compared with the HCs, the IGE group presented lower across-voxel CBF-DC correlations, higher CBF/DC ratio in the right posterior cingulate cortex/precuneus, middle frontal gyrus, and medial frontal gyrus (MFG), and lower ratio in the left inferior frontal gyrus. The increased CBF/DC ratio in the right MFG was correlated with lower performance intelligence quotient scores in the IGE group. Children with IGE present altered neurovascular coupling, associated with lower performance intelligence quotient scores. The study shed a new insight into the pathophysiology of epilepsy and provided potential imaging biomarkers of cognitive performances in children with IGE.

Sex Difference in General Cognition Associated with Coupling of Whole-brain Functional Connectivity Strength to Cerebral Blood Flow Changes During Alzheimer’s Disease Progression

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a progressive age-related neurodegenerative disorder that results in irreversible cognitive impairments. Nonetheless, there are numerous sex-dependent differences in clinical course. We examined potential contributions of neurovascular coupling deficits to sex differences in AD progression. T1-weighted three-dimensional structural magnetic resonance images, functional blood oxygen level dependent and arterial spin labeling images were acquired from 50 AD patients (28 females), 52 amnesic mild cognitive impairment patients (31 females), and 59 healthy controls (36 females). Short- and long-range functional connectivity strength (FCS) and cerebral blood flow (CBF) values were calculated for all participants. Then, the CBF/FCS coupling ratio, which represented the amount of blood supply per unit of connectivity strength, was calculated for each voxel. Two-way ANOVA was performed to identify group × sex interactions and main effects of group. Correlation analysis was used to assess associations between CBF/FCS ratios and Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE). There were significant group × sex interaction effects on short-range coupling ratios of right middle temporal gyrus, left angular gyrus, left inferior orbital frontal gyrus, and left superior frontal gyrus as well as on the long-range coupling ratios of right middle temporal gyrus, left precuneus, left posterior cingulate cortex, and left angular gyrus. There were significant negative correlations between MMSE scores and CBF/FCS ratios for all regions with significant group × sex interactions among female patients, while positive correlations were found among male patients. Our results demonstrate significant sex differences in neurovascular coupling mechanisms associated with cognitive function during the course of AD.

Choice of Inversion Time for Arterial Spin Labeling MRI in the U.S. POINTER Lifestyle Intervention Trial

AbstractBackgroundThe U.S. Study to Protect Brain Health Through Lifestyle Intervention to Reduce Risk (U.S. POINTER) is a 2‐year randomized controlled trial to evaluate the effect of lifestyle interventions in older adults (60‐79 years). The POINTER Imaging ancillary study is collecting Arterial Spin Labeling (ASL) MRI data to map cerebral blood flow (CBF) and evaluate the effect of interventions in the perfusion imaging biomarker. The optimization of timing parameters is essential for robust and efficient acquisition of ASL MRI.MethodA subset (n=83; F/M=51/32; age=69.0±5.5) of POINTER Imaging participants at two imaging sites underwent two ASL MRI scans during the same baseline session. Two 3D Pulsed ASL were obtained with TI1 of 790ms and TI2 values of 2000ms or 2750ms, which provide the delay times (between labeling and imaging) of 1210ms or 1960ms. ASL images were quantified into a physiological unit of CBF, ml/100g/min, using a single compartment kinetic model. CBF maps from two scans were normalized into a standard space and a voxel‐wise paired t‐test was performed after site variations were harmonized and covariates (age and sex) were adjusted. The age and sex effects in the difference of CBF values between two scans were also examined using linear regression. To control false positives, clusters smaller than 41ml were removed based on a simulation with α=0.05.ResultThe CBF values in ASL MRI rely on the timing of image acquisition: only a fraction of label bolus arrives in the tissue with a short delay while images suffer from low signal due to the magnetization decay with a long delay. Figure 1 shows the regions that require a long delay time (red) or a short delay (blue). The difference in CBF is proportional to arterial transit time (ATT) and the analysis shows females have shorter ATT mainly in the peri‐Sylvian region (Figure 2). No cluster survived correction in the analysis of the aging effect.ConclusionThe acquisition of two CBF maps not only offers optimization of acquisition timing but provides an additional perfusion parameter, arterial transit time, which may be a potential biomarker of cerebrovascular pathophysiology.

Renal Transplant Complications—A Pictorial Review

AbstractRenal transplantation is the most effective treatment for end-stage renal disease, with advanced immunosuppressive therapy and better surgical techniques resulting in better survival of the graft. Despite the advances, complications do occur in the postoperative period and timely diagnosis of the complications is vital for prompt management and salvage of the transplant. This pictorial essay aims to classify the complications of renal transplantation, describe the various imaging modalities used to detect complications, and provide a brief overview of the role of interventional radiology in their management. The complications can be broadly divided into perinephric fluid collections, vascular, collecting system, and parenchymal complications. Imaging including ultrasonography, computed tomography, magnetic resonance imaging, and newer methods like elastography, magnetic resonance imaging arterial spin labeling, diffusion-weighted imaging, diffusion kurtosis imaging, blood oxygenation-level dependent, and magnetic resonance elastography can be used in the diagnosis of these complications. Interventional radiology has advanced a lot in managing them; hence, interventional techniques can be the first choice of treatment in institutions where robust interventional radiology setup is available.

Regional cortical hypoperfusion and atrophy correlate with striatal dopaminergic loss in Parkinson's disease: a study using arterial spin labeling MR perfusion.

To investigate the relationship of the striatal dopamine transporter density to changes in the gray matter (GM) volume and cerebral perfusion in patients with Parkinson's disease (PD). We evaluated the regional cerebral blood flow (CBF) and GM volume, concurrently measured using arterial spin labeling and T1-weighted magnetic resonance imaging, respectively, as well as the striatal specific binding ratio (SBR) in 123I-N-ω-fluoropropyl-2β-carboxymethoxy-3β-(4-iodophenyl)nortropane (123I-FP-CIT) single-photon emission computed tomography in 30 non-demented patients with PD (15 men and 15 women; mean age, 67.2 ± 8.8years; mean Hoehn-Yahr stage, 2.2 ± 0.9). Voxel-wise regression analyses using statistical parametric mapping (SPM) were performed to explore the brain regions that showed correlations of the striatal SBR to the GM volume and CBF, respectively, with a height threshold of p < 0.0005 at the voxel level and p < 0.05 family-wise error-corrected at the cluster level. SPM analysis showed a significant positive correlation between the SBR and GM volume in the inferior frontal gyrus (IFG). Whereas, a positive correlation between the SBR and CBF was widely found in the frontotemporal and parietotemporal regions, including the IFG. Notably, the opercular part of the IFG showed significant correlations in both SPM analyses of the GM volume (r2 = 0.90, p < 0.0001) and CBF (r2 = 0.88, p < 0.0001). The voxel-wise analyses revealed the brain regions, mainly the IFG, that showed hypoperfusion and atrophy related to dopaminergic loss, which suggests that the progression of dopaminergic neurodegeneration leads to regional cortical dysfunction in PD.

Diffusion-weighted imaging hyperintensity of the striatum or “striatum sign’’ in convulsive status epilepticus

Prior studies have identified the important role of cerebral magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in providing information on ictal and peri-ictal phases in patients with epilepsy [1, 2]. The main MRI sequences used in diagnosing patients with epilepsy include arterial spin labeling (ASL) and diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) [2]. The diagnostic findings include hyperintense abnormalities on DWI and hyperperfusion on ASL observed in the focal cortex or the thalamus (otherwise called the “pulvinar sign”) or splenium in patients with focal status epilepticus (SE) or diffuse signal in the cortical areas and thalamus in patients with generalized convulsive SE [1].

Differentiation of true progression from treatment response in high-grade glioma treated with chemoradiation: a comparison study of 3D-APTW and 3D-PcASL imaging and DWI.

To assess and compare the diagnostic performance of 3D amide proton-transfer-weighted (3D-APTW) imaging, 3D pseudocontinuous arterial spin-labeling (3D-PcASL) imaging, and diffusion-weighted imaging in distinguishing true progression (TP) from treatment response (TR) in posttreatment malignant glioma patients. Forty-eight patients with suspected tumor recurrence were prospectively enrolled. Histological or longitudinal routine MRI follow-up over six months was assessed to confirm lesion type. The apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC), relative APTWmax (rAPTW), and relative CBFmax values (rCBF) were measured in lesions with enhancing regions on post-gadolinium T1 -weighted MRI. MRI parameters between the TP and TR groups were compared using Student's t tests. In addition, a receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was constructed, and the area under the ROC curve (AUC) was calculated to assess the differentiation diagnostic performance of each parameter. The TP group showed a significantly higher rAPTW and rCBF than the TR group; the AUCs of rAPTW and rCBF to distinguish between TP and TR were 0.911 (with sensitivity of 90.3% and specificity of 82.4%) and 0.852 (with sensitivity of 80.6% and specificity of 82.4%), respectively. By adding the rAPTW values to rCBF values, the diagnostic ability was improved from 0.852 to 0.951. ADC showed no significant differences between the TP and TR groups, with an AUC lower than 0.70. Both 3D-PcASL and 3D-APTW imaging could distinguish TP from TR, and 3D-APTW had a better diagnostic performance. Combining the rAPTW values and rCBF values achieved a better diagnostic performance.