Quantitative functional magnetic resonance imaging in humans: the methods to expand neuroscience in health and disease

by Prof. Richard Wise

Monday 15 Nov 2010, 16:00 → 18:00 Europe/Rome

Aula 6 (Dip. di Fisica - Edificio E. Fermi)

The majority of functional MRI (FMRI) studies on the human brain use blood oxygenation level dependent (BOLD) contrast arising from a combination of changes in brain metabolism, blood flow and blood volume. Therefore when we are trying to measure disease or drug effects on neural activity difficulties in interpretation of this BOLD signal can arise. My group in Cardiff is digging deeper into the physiological state of the brain using alternative image contrast based on purer physiological quantities such as blood flow. We are also using a multi-modal approach of combining MRI measures with electrophysiological techniques such as electroencephalography and magnetoencephalography. I will discuss our recent approaches to develop more quantitative MRI measurements of brain physiology and how they can be applied to study the action of drugs in the brain. Improved quantification in FMRI will allow it to be used to understand better disease and drug effects on the brain. The development of such tools will promote, in future, new neuroscientific questions to be asked of the human brain.