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Published July 21, 1998 | Published
Journal Article Open

A model for MRI contrast enhancement using T_1 agents

Abstract

Contrast in MRI relies on differences in the local environment of water and is often enhanced by using contrast agents. We present a simple model for evaluating the minimal contrast agent concentration required to produce "satisfactory" contrast enhancement in magnetic resonance images. Previous strategies have been based largely on empirical results for specific systems. The present tissue contrast model (TCM) can be applied to "conventional," targeted, or biochemically responsive agents. The model results are formulated so that only a small number of parameters are required to analyze a given scenario. The TCM is a particularly useful tool in the development of new classes of magnetic resonance contrast media. These agents will have the ability to target specific cells or tissue, and perhaps be able to report on their physiological status. As an example of the applicability of the TCM, we test it against in vivo magnetic resonance microscopy results in frog embryos that have focal cell populations labeled with contrast agent by using calibrated single-cell microinjection techniques.

Additional Information

© 1998 National Academy of Sciences. Communicated by Marcus E. Raichle, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO (received for review August 1, 1997) Accepted May 6, 1998. We thank P. T. Narasimhan, David Laidlaw, Rex Moats, and Thomas Meade for helpful discussions. E.T.A. acknowledges support from the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke Grant F32 NS10384. This work was supported in part by the Human Brain Project funded jointly by the National Institute on Drug Abuse, the National Institute of Mental Health, and the National Science Foundation. The publication costs of this article were defrayed in part by page charge payment. This article must therefore be hereby marked ''advertisement'' in accordance with 18 U.S.C. §1734 solely to indicate this fact.

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