Academic Journal
An improved combination of T1-weighted and FLAIR contrasts for myelin water imaging.
| Τίτλος: | An improved combination of T1-weighted and FLAIR contrasts for myelin water imaging. |
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| Συγγραφείς: | Drenthen GS; Department of Radiology and Nuclear Medicine, Maastricht University Medical Center+, Maastricht, the Netherlands; Mental Health and Neuroscience (MHeNs) Research Institute, Maastricht University, Maastricht, the Netherlands. Electronic address: g.drenthen@maastrichtuniversity.nl., Backes WH; Department of Radiology and Nuclear Medicine, Maastricht University Medical Center+, Maastricht, the Netherlands; Mental Health and Neuroscience (MHeNs) Research Institute, Maastricht University, Maastricht, the Netherlands., Staals J; Department of Neurology, Maastricht University Medical Center+, Maastricht, the Netherlands; Cardiovascular Research Institute Maastricht (CARIM), Maastricht University, Maastricht, the Netherlands., van Dinther M; Department of Neurology, Maastricht University Medical Center+, Maastricht, the Netherlands; Cardiovascular Research Institute Maastricht (CARIM), Maastricht University, Maastricht, the Netherlands., Voorter PHM; Department of Radiology and Nuclear Medicine, Maastricht University Medical Center+, Maastricht, the Netherlands; Mental Health and Neuroscience (MHeNs) Research Institute, Maastricht University, Maastricht, the Netherlands., Lee J; Laboratory for Imaging Science and Technology, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Seoul National University, Seoul, South Korea., Köhler S; Mental Health and Neuroscience (MHeNs) Research Institute, Maastricht University, Maastricht, the Netherlands; Department of Psychiatry and Neuropsychology, Maastricht University, Maastricht, the Netherlands; Alzheimer Center Limburg, Maastricht University, Maastricht, the Netherlands., Jansen WJ; Mental Health and Neuroscience (MHeNs) Research Institute, Maastricht University, Maastricht, the Netherlands; Department of Psychiatry and Neuropsychology, Maastricht University, Maastricht, the Netherlands; Alzheimer Center Limburg, Maastricht University, Maastricht, the Netherlands., Jansen JFA; Department of Radiology and Nuclear Medicine, Maastricht University Medical Center+, Maastricht, the Netherlands; Mental Health and Neuroscience (MHeNs) Research Institute, Maastricht University, Maastricht, the Netherlands; Department of Electrical Engineering, Eindhoven University of Technology, Eindhoven, the Netherlands. |
| Πηγή: | NeuroImage [Neuroimage] 2026 Oct 01; Vol. 339, pp. 122182. Date of Electronic Publication: 2026 Aug 25. |
| Τύπος έκδοσης: | Journal Article |
| Γλώσσα: | English |
| Στοιχεία περιοδικού: | Publisher: Academic Press Country of Publication: United States NLM ID: 9215515 Publication Model: Print-Electronic Cited Medium: Internet ISSN: 1095-9572 (Electronic) Linking ISSN: 10538119 NLM ISO Abbreviation: Neuroimage Subsets: MEDLINE |
| Imprint Name(s): | Original Publication: Orlando, FL : Academic Press, c1992- |
| Ιατρικοί όροι (MeSH): | Magnetic Resonance Imaging*/methods , Magnetic Resonance Imaging*/standards , White Matter*/diagnostic imaging , Brain*/diagnostic imaging , Neuroimaging*/methods , Neuroimaging*/standards , Myelin Sheath*, Image Processing, Computer-Assisted/methods ; Humans ; Female ; Male ; Adult ; Middle Aged ; Aged ; Young Adult ; Adolescent |
| Περίληψη: | In vivo myelin imaging often requires long and dedicated MRI scanning techniques. Combining conventional T1-weighted and FLAIR images into the T1w/FLAIR-ratio has been proposed as a myelin-sensitive proxy, however its sensitivity is debated. In this study, we explore the sensitivity to the myelin content of an improved combination of T1w and FLAIR contrasts. A training dataset (N = 23) with reference standard myelin water fraction (MWF) values was used to fit both the T1w and FLAIR contrasts to the MWF using a second order polynomial surface fitting method. This combination was evaluated in an independent dataset (N = 30) with reference MWF values relative to the T1w/FLAIR-ratio by partial correlation analysis adjusting for age and sex. Moreover, the performance of the improved combination was demonstrated in a population-based dataset (N = 4652) by assessing its relation with age. The polynomial fit showed a 27% increase in correlation strength with the MWF compared to the standard T1w/FLAIR-ratio (r = .72 vs. r = .56, p < .01) in the white matter. In the external validation set the polynomial fit also increased the correlation strength compared to the T1w/FLAIR-ratio (r=.64 vs. r = .51, p = .07). Furthermore, in the large population-based dataset, the polynomial fit explained 9.5% more variance in a model with age and age squared, compared to the T1w/FLAIR ratio (R2 = .48 vs. R2 = .43, p < .001). A second-order polynomial combination of T1w and FLAIR images provides an empirically optimized marker with stronger associations with the reference MWF compared to the conventional T1w/FLAIR-ratio, without dedicated time-consuming imaging. (Copyright © 2026 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.) |
| Competing Interests: | Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper. |
| Contributed Indexing: | Keywords: Myelin-sensitive proxy; Polynomial fitting; T1/T2; T1w/FLAIR-ratio |
| Entry Date(s): | Date Created: 20260825 Date Completed: 20260911 Latest Revision: 20260911 |
| Update Code: | 20260912 |
| DOI: | 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2026.122182 |
| PMID: | 42641773 |
| Βάση Δεδομένων: | MEDLINE |
| ISSN: | 1095-9572 |
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| DOI: | 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2026.122182 |