Technical Program

Paper Detail

Paper:	TH-PM-PS1.6
Session:	MRI Reconstruction and Analysis
Time:	Thursday, April 6, 15:20 - 16:40
Presentation:	Poster
Title:	Enhanced Detection of Paramagnetic Contrast Agents in Magnetic Resonance Images Via Phase Image Cross-Correlation Analysis
Authors:	Parker Mills; Carnegie Mellon Biological Sciences & Pittsburgh NMR Center for Biomedical Research
	Eric Ahrens; Carnegie Mellon Biological Sciences & Pittsburgh NMR Center for Biomedical Research
Abstract:	Metal-ion based MRI contrast agents can be used to non-invasively track cells, target specific molecules, and watch gene expression in vivo. It is often difficult to detect and interpret the subtle image contrast produced by these agents if the biodistribution is not known a priori. Sensitive post-processing methods can help identify localized accumulations of contrast agent. Here we use image cross-correlation on MRI phase images to highlight the characteristic magnetic susceptibility pattern created by paramagnetic agents. We show this method is effective in highlighting localized paramagnetic deposits in images with a low signal-to-noise ratio (< 4). The method requires no extra scan time, and can be applied to previously acquired data.

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