Ultra-high-field (9.4 T) MRI Analysis of Contrast Agent Transport Across the Blood-Perilymph Barrier and Intrastrial Fluid-Blood Barrier in the Mouse Inner Ear.

Hypothesis: Effective paramagnetic contrast agent for the penetration of the perilymphatic spaces of the scala tympani, scala vestibuli, and scala media of the mouse inner ear can be determined using intravenous injection of various gadolinium (Gd) complexes and ultra-high-field magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) at 9.4 Tesla.

Background: A number of contrast agents have been explored in experimental high-field MRI to determine the most effective Gd complex for ideal signal-to-noise ratio and maximal visualization of the in vivo mammalian inner ear in analyzing the temporal and spatial parameters involved in drug penetration of the blood-perilymph barrier and intrastrial fluid-blood barrier in the mouse model using MRI.

Middle Ear Function and Pathophysiology in Andean Children Living at High Altitudes.

Counter, S. Allen, Leo H. Buchanan, Fernando Ortega, Anthony B.

Assessment of the Brainstem-Mediated Stapedius Muscle Reflex in Andean Children Living at High Altitudes.

Counter, S. Allen, Leo H. Buchanan, Fernando Ortega, Anthony B.

Experimental Fusion of Contrast Enhanced High-Field Magnetic Resonance Imaging and High-Resolution Micro-Computed Tomography in Imaging the Mouse Inner Ear.

Objective: Imaging cochlear, vestibular, and 8th cranial nerve abnormalities remains a challenge. In this study, the membranous and osseous labyrinths of the wild type mouse inner ear were examined using volumetric data from ultra high-field magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) with gadolinium contrast at 9.4 Tesla and high-resolution micro-computed tomography (µCT) to visualize the scalae and vestibular apparatus, and to establish imaging protocols and parameters for comparative analysis of the normal and mutant mouse inner ear.

Lead levels in the breast milk of nursing andean mothers living in a lead-contaminated environment.

Concentrations of lead (Pb) in breast milk (PbM) and blood (PbB) were measured in a current cohort of lactating mothers living in Andean communities where women of childbearing age engage in the occupational use of Pb, and compared to results obtained in earlier studies. Mean PbM concentration in the current group of breastfeeding mothers tested in 2012/2013 was 3.73 μg/L (SD: 7.