Novel magnetic resonance imaging approaches for monitoring neuroinflammation
Jason
Millward1, 2*,
Matthias
Taupitz3,
Joerg
Schnorr3,
Susanne
Wagner3,
Friedemann
Paul2, 4,
Jens
Wuerfel4, 5,
Kerstin
Riek3,
Jürgen
Braun3,
Ingolf
Sack3 and
Carmen
Infante Duarte1, 2
-
1
Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Institute for Medical Immunology, Germany
-
2
Charité-Universtitätsmedizin Berlin, Experimental and Clinical Research Center, Germany
-
3
Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Department of Radiology, Germany
-
4
Charité-Universtitätsmedizin Berlin, NeuroCure Clinical Research Center, Germany
-
5
University Medicine Göttingen, Institute of Neuroradiology,, Germany
Neuroinflammation during multiple sclerosis involves immune cell infiltration and disruption of the blood-brain barrier (BBB) which can be visualized by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), in patients and in the animal model experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE). However, discrepancies between conventional MRI results and clinical signs underscore the need for new MRI methods to better monitor CNS inflammation. Here we have employed two novel MRI approaches to investigate neuroinflammation in vivo. Cerebral magnetic resonance elastography (MRE) measures the viscoelastic properties of brain tissues in vivo. To investigate the relationship between inflammation and brain viscoelasticity, we applied MRE to the EAE model. At peak disease we detected a significant decrease in both the storage modulus and the loss modulus, indicating that the elasticity and viscosity of the brain are reduced during acute inflammation. Interestingly, these parameters normalized at a later time point corresponding to the clinical recovery phase. On the other hand, using very small superparamagnetic iron oxide particles (VSOP), we were able to demonstrate in vivo that alterations at the choroid plexus represent a very early feature in CNS inflammation. After inducing EAE and administering VSOP prior to the onset of clinical signs, VSOP accumulated preferentially in the choroid plexus and spinal cord meninges, in the absence of overt inflammation. Moreover, we observed VSOP in lesions with a perivascular accumulation of immune cells but a preserved glia limitans, in endothelial structures, co-localized with phagocytes, and diffusely disseminated in the parenchyma, suggesting multiple entry mechanisms of VSOP into the CNS. Thus these two novel MR-based approaches emerge as effective tools yielding new insights into the mechanisms of neuroinflammatory disease.
Keywords:
Multiple Sclerosis,
Experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis,
Magnetic Resonance Imaging,
magnetic resonance elastography,
Iron oxide nanoparticles,
Brain,
neuroimmunology,
Animal Models
Conference:
15th International Congress of Immunology (ICI), Milan, Italy, 22 Aug - 27 Aug, 2013.
Presentation Type:
Abstract
Topic:
Immune-mediated disease pathogenesis
Citation:
Millward
J,
Taupitz
M,
Schnorr
J,
Wagner
S,
Paul
F,
Wuerfel
J,
Riek
K,
Braun
J,
Sack
I and
Infante Duarte
C
(2013). Novel magnetic resonance imaging approaches for monitoring neuroinflammation.
Front. Immunol.
Conference Abstract:
15th International Congress of Immunology (ICI).
doi: 10.3389/conf.fimmu.2013.02.00651
Copyright:
The abstracts in this collection have not been subject to any Frontiers peer review or checks, and are not endorsed by Frontiers.
They are made available through the Frontiers publishing platform as a service to conference organizers and presenters.
The copyright in the individual abstracts is owned by the author of each abstract or his/her employer unless otherwise stated.
Each abstract, as well as the collection of abstracts, are published under a Creative Commons CC-BY 4.0 (attribution) licence (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) and may thus be reproduced, translated, adapted and be the subject of derivative works provided the authors and Frontiers are attributed.
For Frontiers’ terms and conditions please see https://www.frontiersin.org/legal/terms-and-conditions.
Received:
12 Jun 2013;
Published Online:
22 Aug 2013.
*
Correspondence:
Dr. Jason Millward, Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Institute for Medical Immunology, Berlin, 13353, Germany, jason.millward@charite.de