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Abstract #0504

Investigating Axonal Damage in Multiple Sclerosis by Diffusion Tensor Spectroscopy at 7T

Emily T. Wood1, 2, Itamar Ronen3, Aranee Techawiboonwong4, Craig K. Jones5, 6, Peter B. Barker, 56, Daniel Harrison7, Peter Calabresi7, Daniel S. Reich1, 6

1NINDS, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, United States; 2Dept of Neuroscience, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, United States; 3C.J. Gorter Center for High Field MRI, Dept of Radiology, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, Netherlands; 4Mahidol University, Nakhon Pathom, Thailand; 5F.M. Kirby Center for Functional Brain Imaging, Kennedy Krieger Institute, Baltimore, MD, United States; 6Dept of Radiology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, United States; 7Dept of Neurology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, United States

In this study, we compare the diffusion properties of N-acetylaspartate and water in the corpus callosum between multiple sclerosis patients and healthy controls at 7T. Diffusion tensor spectroscopy (DTS) combines features of both DTI and MRS, allowing measurement of the diffusion properties of intracellular metabolites. As such, it may be sensitive to disruption of tissue microstructure within neurons and might consequently serve as a useful marker of axonal integrity and reversible damage in MS. We find a negative correlation between NAA and water parallel diffusivity in normal appearing white matter suggesting that we are detecting axonopathy underlying inflammation and edema.

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Keywords

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