More Than the Sum of Its Parts: Disrupted Core Periphery of Multiplex Brain Networks in Multiple Sclerosis.

Disruptions to brain networks, measured using structural (sMRI), diffusion (dMRI), or functional (fMRI) MRI, have been shown in people with multiple sclerosis (PwMS), highlighting the relevance of regions in the core of the connectome but yielding mixed results depending on the studied connectivity domain. Using a multilayer network approach, we integrated these three modalities to portray an enriched representation of the brain's core-periphery organization and explore its alterations in PwMS. In this retrospective cross-sectional study, we selected PwMS and healthy controls with complete multimodal brain MRI acquisitions from 13 European centers within the MAGNIMS network.

Disentangling Neurodegeneration From Aging in Multiple Sclerosis Using Deep Learning: The Brain-Predicted Disease Duration Gap.

Background And Objectives: Disentangling brain aging from disease-related neurodegeneration in patients with multiple sclerosis (PwMS) is increasingly topical. The brain-age paradigm offers a window into this problem but may miss disease-specific effects. In this study, we investigated whether a disease-specific model might complement the brain-age gap (BAG) by capturing aspects unique to MS.

ASCHOPLEX: A generalizable approach for the automatic segmentation of choroid plexus.

Background: The Choroid Plexus (ChP) plays a vital role in brain homeostasis, serving as part of the Blood-Cerebrospinal Fluid Barrier, contributing to brain clearance pathways and being the main source of cerebrospinal fluid. Since the involvement of ChP in neurological and psychiatric disorders is not entirely established and currently under investigation, accurate and reproducible segmentation of this brain structure on large cohorts remains challenging. This paper presents ASCHOPLEX, a deep-learning tool for the automated segmentation of human ChP from structural MRI data that integrates existing software architectures like 3D UNet, UNETR, and DynUNet to deliver accurate ChP volume estimates.

Repeat it without me: Crowdsourcing the T mapping common ground via the ISMRM reproducibility challenge.

Purpose: T mapping is a widely used quantitative MRI technique, but its tissue-specific values remain inconsistent across protocols, sites, and vendors. The ISMRM Reproducible Research and Quantitative MR study groups jointly launched a challenge to assess the reproducibility of a well-established inversion-recovery T mapping technique, using acquisition details from a seminal T mapping paper on a standardized phantom and in human brains.

Methods: The challenge used the acquisition protocol from Barral et al.

Choroid plexus volume in multiple sclerosis can be estimated on structural MRI avoiding contrast injection.

We compared choroid plexus (ChP) manual segmentation on non-contrast-enhanced (non-CE) sequences and reference standard CE T1- weighted (T1w) sequences in 61 multiple sclerosis patients prospectively included. ChP was separately segmented on T1w, T2-weighted (T2w) fluid-attenuated inversion-recovery (FLAIR), and CE-T1w sequences. Inter-rater variability assessed on 10 subjects showed high reproducibility between sequences measured by intraclass correlation coefficient (T1w 0.

Ocrelizumab reduces cortical and deep grey matter loss compared to the S1P-receptor modulator in multiple sclerosis.

Introduction: Ocrelizumab (OCR) and Fingolimod (FGL) are two high-efficacy treatments in multiple sclerosis which, besides their strong anti-inflammatory activity, may limit neurodegeneration.

Aim: To compare the effect of OCR and FGL on clinical and MRI endpoints.

Methods: 95 relapsing-remitting patients (57 OCR, 38 FGL) clinically followed for 36 months underwent a 3-Tesla MRI at baseline and after 24 months.

A common low dimensional structure of cognitive impairment in stroke and brain tumors.

Introduction: Neuropsychological studies infer brain-behavior relationships from focal lesions like stroke and tumors. However, these pathologies impair brain function through different mechanisms even when they occur at the same brain's location. The aim of this study was to compare the profile of cognitive impairment in patients with brain tumors vs.

ASL-BIDS, the brain imaging data structure extension for arterial spin labeling.

Arterial spin labeling (ASL) is a non-invasive MRI technique that allows for quantitative measurement of cerebral perfusion. Incomplete or inaccurate reporting of acquisition parameters complicates quantification, analysis, and sharing of ASL data, particularly for studies across multiple sites, platforms, and ASL methods. There is a strong need for standardization of ASL data storage, including acquisition metadata.

Smartphone-based photogrammetry provides improved localization and registration of scalp-mounted neuroimaging sensors.

Functional near infrared spectroscopy and electroencephalography are non-invasive techniques that rely on sensors placed over the scalp. The spatial localization of the measured brain activity requires the precise individuation of sensor positions and, when individual anatomical information is not available, the accurate registration of these sensor positions to a head atlas. Both these issues could be successfully addressed using a photogrammetry-based method.

CSF TNF and osteopontin levels correlate with the response to dimethyl fumarate in early multiple sclerosis.

Background: Disease activity in the first years after a diagnosis of relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS) is a negative prognostic factor for long-term disability. Markers of both clinical and radiological responses to disease-modifying therapies (DMTs) are advocated.

Objective: The objective of this study is to estimate the value of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) inflammatory markers at the time of diagnosis in predicting the disease activity in treatment-naïve multiple sclerosis (MS) patients exposed to dimethyl fumarate (DMF).

Assessment of structural disconnections in gliomas: comparison of indirect and direct approaches.

Gliomas are amongst the most common primary brain tumours in adults and are often associated with poor prognosis. Understanding the extent of white matter (WM) which is affected outside the tumoral lesion may be of paramount importance to explain cognitive deficits and the clinical progression of the disease. To this end, we explored both direct (i.

Widespread cortical functional disconnection in gliomas: an individual network mapping approach.

Assessment of impaired/preserved cortical regions in brain tumours is typically performed via intraoperative direct brain stimulation of eloquent areas or task-based functional MRI. One main limitation is that they overlook distal brain regions or networks that could be functionally impaired by the tumour. This study aims (i) to investigate the impact of brain tumours on the cortical synchronization of brain networks measured with resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (resting-state networks) both near the lesion and remotely and (ii) to test whether potential changes in resting-state networks correlate with cognitive status.

Diffusion-based microstructure models in brain tumours: Fitting in presence of a model-microstructure mismatch.

Diffusion-based biophysical models have been used in several recent works to study the microenvironment of brain tumours. While the pathophysiological interpretation of the parameters of these models remains unclear, their use as signal representations may yield useful biomarkers for monitoring the treatment and the progression of this complex and heterogeneous disease. Up to now, however, no study was devoted to assessing the mathematical stability of these approaches in cancerous brain regions.

A low-dimensional structure of neurological impairment in stroke.

Neurological deficits following stroke are traditionally described as syndromes related to damage of a specific area or vascular territory. Recent studies indicate that, at the population level, post-stroke neurological impairments cluster in three sets of correlated deficits across different behavioural domains. To examine the reproducibility and specificity of this structure, we prospectively studied first-time stroke patients ( = 237) using a bedside, clinically applicable, neuropsychological assessment and compared the behavioural and anatomical results with those obtained from a different prospective cohort studied with an extensive neuropsychological battery.

The Prognostic Value of White-Matter Selective Double Inversion Recovery MRI Sequence in Multiple Sclerosis: An Exploratory Study.

Using a white-matter selective double inversion recovery sequence (WM-DIR) that suppresses both grey matter (GM) and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) signals, some white matter (WM) lesions appear surrounded by a dark rim. These dark rim lesions (DRLs) seem to be specific for multiple sclerosis (MS). They could be of great usefulness in clinical practice, proving to increase the MRI diagnostic criteria specificity.

The Use of the Central Vein Sign in the Diagnosis of Multiple Sclerosis: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis.

: The central vein sign (CVS) is a radiological feature proposed as a multiple sclerosis (MS) imaging biomarker able to accurately differentiate MS from other white matter diseases of the central nervous system. In this work, we evaluated the pooled proportion of the CVS in brain MS lesions and to estimate the diagnostic performance of CVS to perform a diagnosis of MS and propose an optimal cut-off value. : A systematic search was performed on publicly available databases (PUBMED/MEDLINE and Web of Science) up to 24 August 2020.

A wide field-of-view, modular, high-density diffuse optical tomography system for minimally constrained three-dimensional functional neuroimaging.

The ability to produce high-quality images of human brain function in any environment and during unconstrained movement of the subject has long been a goal of neuroimaging research. Diffuse optical tomography, which uses the intensity of back-scattered near-infrared light from multiple source-detector pairs to image changes in haemoglobin concentrations in the brain, is uniquely placed to achieve this goal. Here, we describe a new generation of modular, fibre-less, high-density diffuse optical tomography technology that provides exceptional sensitivity, a large dynamic range, a field-of-view sufficient to cover approximately one-third of the adult scalp, and also incorporates dedicated motion sensing into each module.

The CSF Profile Linked to Cortical Damage Predicts Multiple Sclerosis Activity.

Objective: Intrathecal inflammation correlates with the grey matter damage since the early stages of multiple sclerosis (MS), but whether the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) profile can help to identify patients at risk of disease activity is still unclear.

Methods: We evaluated the association between CSF levels of 18 cytokines, previously found to be associated to grey matter damage, and the disease activity, among 99 patients with relapsing-remitting MS, who underwent blinded clinical and 3 T magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) evaluations for 4 years. Groups with evidence of disease activity (EDA) or no evidence of disease activity (NEDA; occurrence of relapses, new white matter lesions, and Expanded Disability Status Scale [EDSS] change) were identified.

Executive functioning affects verbal learning process in multiple sclerosis patients: Behavioural and imaging results.

Verbal learning and memory deficits are among the most frequent in people with multiple sclerosis (pwMS) and have been shown to be affected by deficits in other cognitive domains, such as information processing speed and executive functioning (EF). In the present study, we aimed to further investigate the differential impact that EF may exert on verbal learning and memory on both behavioural and neural levels. Seventy pwMS were assessed with a comprehensive battery of neuropsychological tests, including tests of verbal memory (Selective Reminding Test; SRT) and EF (Stroop test; Phonemic and Alternate Verbal Fluency; Modified Five-Point Test).

Iron homeostasis, complement, and coagulation cascade as CSF signature of cortical lesions in early multiple sclerosis.

Objective: Intrathecal inflammation, compartmentalized in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and in meningeal infiltrates, has fundamental role in inflammation, demyelination, and neuronal injury in cerebral cortex in multiple sclerosis (MS). Since the exact link between intrathecal inflammation and mechanisms of cortical pathology remains unknown, we aimed to investigate a detailed proteomic CSF profiling which is able to reflect cortical damage in early MS.

Methods: We combined new proteomic method, TRIDENT, CSF analysis, and advanced 3T magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), in 64 MS patients at the time of diagnosis and 26 controls with other neurological disorders.