Assessment of functional development in normal infant brain using arterial spin labeled perfusion MRI

TY - JOUR

T1 - Assessment of functional development in normal infant brain using arterial spin labeled perfusion MRI

AU - Wang, Ze

AU - Fernández-Seara, María

AU - Alsop, David C.

AU - Liu, Wen Ching

AU - Flax, Judy F.

AU - Benasich, April A.

AU - Detre, John A.

N1 - Funding Information: This work was supported by the Santa Fe Institute Consortium, R01-HD29419 and NIH grants: RR002305 and R03DA023496.

PY - 2008/2/1

Y1 - 2008/2/1

N2 - Arterial spin labeled (ASL) perfusion MRI provides a noninvasive approach for longitudinal imaging of regional brain function in infants. In the present study, continuous ASL (CASL) perfusion MRI was carried out in normally developing 7- and 13-month-old infants while asleep without sedation. The 13-month infant group showed an increase (P < 0.05) of relative CBF in frontal regions as compared to the 7-month group using a region of interest based analysis. Using a machine-learning algorithm to automatically classify the relative CBF maps of the two infant groups, a significant (P < 0.05, permutation testing) regional CBF increase was found in the hippocampi, anterior cingulate, amygdalae, occipital lobes, and auditory cortex in the 13-month-old infants. These results are consistent with current understanding of infant brain development and demonstrate the feasibility of using perfusion MRI to noninvasively monitor developing brain function.

AB - Arterial spin labeled (ASL) perfusion MRI provides a noninvasive approach for longitudinal imaging of regional brain function in infants. In the present study, continuous ASL (CASL) perfusion MRI was carried out in normally developing 7- and 13-month-old infants while asleep without sedation. The 13-month infant group showed an increase (P < 0.05) of relative CBF in frontal regions as compared to the 7-month group using a region of interest based analysis. Using a machine-learning algorithm to automatically classify the relative CBF maps of the two infant groups, a significant (P < 0.05, permutation testing) regional CBF increase was found in the hippocampi, anterior cingulate, amygdalae, occipital lobes, and auditory cortex in the 13-month-old infants. These results are consistent with current understanding of infant brain development and demonstrate the feasibility of using perfusion MRI to noninvasively monitor developing brain function.

KW - ASL perfusion MRI

KW - Brain development

KW - Infants

KW - SVM

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U2 - 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2007.09.045

DO - 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2007.09.045

M3 - Article

C2 - 17988892

SN - 1053-8119

VL - 39

SP - 973

EP - 978

JO - Neuroimage

JF - Neuroimage

IS - 3

ER -