RT Journal Article SR Electronic T1 Application of q-Space Diffusion MRI for the Visualization of White Matter JF The Journal of Neuroscience JO J. Neurosci. FD Society for Neuroscience SP 2796 OP 2808 DO 10.1523/JNEUROSCI.1770-15.2016 VO 36 IS 9 A1 Kanehiro Fujiyoshi A1 Keigo Hikishima A1 Jin Nakahara A1 Osahiko Tsuji A1 Junichi Hata A1 Tsunehiko Konomi A1 Toshihiro Nagai A1 Shinsuke Shibata A1 Shinjiro Kaneko A1 Akio Iwanami A1 Suketaka Momoshima A1 Shinichi Takahashi A1 Masahiro Jinzaki A1 Norihiro Suzuki A1 Yoshiaki Toyama A1 Masaya Nakamura A1 Hideyuki Okano YR 2016 UL http://www.jneurosci.org/content/36/9/2796.abstract AB White matter abnormalities in the CNS have been reported recently in various neurological and psychiatric disorders. Quantitation of non-Gaussianity for water diffusion by q-space diffusional MRI (QSI) renders biological diffusion barriers such as myelin sheaths; however, the time-consuming nature of this method hinders its clinical application. In the current study, we aimed to refine QSI protocols to enable their clinical application and to visualize myelin signals in a clinical setting. For this purpose, animal studies were first performed to optimize the acquisition protocol of a non-Gaussian QSI metric. The heat map of standardized kurtosis values derived from optimal QSI (myelin map) was then created. Histological validation of the myelin map was performed in myelin-deficient mice and in a nonhuman primate by monitoring its variation during demyelination and remyelination after chemical spinal cord injury. The results demonstrated that it was sensitive enough to depict dysmyelination, demyelination, and remyelination in animal models. Finally, its utility in clinical practice was assessed by a pilot clinical study in a selected group of patients with multiple sclerosis (MS). The human myelin map could be obtained within 10 min with a 3 T MR scanner. Use of the myelin map was practical for visualizing white matter and it sensitively detected reappearance of myelin signals after demyelination, possibly reflecting remyelination in MS patients. Our results together suggest that the myelin map, a kurtosis-related heat map obtainable with time-saving QSI, may be a novel and clinically useful means of visualizing myelin in the human CNS.SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT Myelin abnormalities in the CNS have been gaining increasing attention in various neurological and psychiatric diseases. However, appropriate methods with which to monitor CNS myelin in daily clinical practice have been lacking. In the current study, we introduced a novel MRI modality that produces the “myelin map.” The myelin map accurately depicted myelin status in mice and nonhuman primates and in a pilot clinical study of multiple sclerosis patients, suggesting that it is useful in detecting possibly remyelinated lesions. A myelin map of the human brain could be obtained in <10 min using a 3 T scanner and it therefore promises to be a powerful tool for researchers and clinicians examining myelin-related diseases.