iRadiology最新文献

Pyrophosphate (PPi) anions are crucial in numerous biological and ecological processes involved in energy conversion, enzymatic reactions, and metabolic regulation along with adenosine. They are also significant biological markers for various processes related to diseases. Fluorescent PPi sensors would enable visual and/or biological detection in convenient settings. However, the current availability of commercial sensors has been limited to costly enzymes that are not compatible for imaging. Sensor development has also encountered challenges such as poor selectivity and stability and limited practical applications. In this review, we analyze the situation of PPi sensing via commercial kits and focus on sensors that use metal complexes. We address their designs, sensing mechanisms, selectivities, and detection limits. Finally, we discuss limitations and perspectives for PPi detection and imaging.

Motor neuron diseases (MNDs), such as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), are a group of devastating and progressive neurodegenerative disorders that affect the upper and lower motor neurons (UMN and LMN) [1]. Other forms of MND include primary lateral sclerosis (PLS), progressive muscular atrophy, progressive bulbar palsy, spinal muscular atrophy, and frontotemporal dementia-MND [2]. Early and accurate diagnosis is critical; yet the diagnosis and prognosis of MNDs are challenging due to the complexity and heterogeneity of these diseases. Therefore, there is a need for sensitive, suggestive, and reliable biomarkers to detect and monitor the progression of neurodegeneration and neuroinflammation in MNDs [1].

The motor band sign (MBS), described as a curvilinear “band” of hypointensity in the precentral gyrus (and primary motor cortex [M1 area]) in susceptibility-weighted images generated from gradient-echo pulse sequences (GRE/SWI) or the GRE-T2*-weighted image, is considered a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) biomarker of UMN involvement in MNDs, such as ALS and PLS (Figure 1) [1, 3]. The sensitivity of SWI is particularly high when it comes to detecting deoxygenated blood and mineral deposits within the brain [4]. The MBS has also been observed in other neurodegenerative movement disorders [1, 5, 6], such as Parkinson's disease [5-7], Alzhimer's disease [5-8], and Huntington's disease [9].

The exact cause of MBS is not yet fully comprehended, but it is widely believed to result from an accumulation of iron in the motor cortex due to the degeneration of microglia [1]. The suspected basis is increased cortical iron deposition and microglial activity in UMN regions as supported by neuroimaging and neuropathological studies [10].

Mohammadi and Ghaderi (2023) provide a comprehensive review of the literature for the growing body of evidence supporting the utility of MRI for detecting characteristic changes in MNDs with a focus on the MBS [1]. The study found that the presence of MBS, observed as a hypointensity area along the precentral gyri, is linked to the severity of UMN impairment in patients with MNDs. The study highlighted a strong association between MBS and the severity of UMN impairment [1]. This builds on previous work demonstrating the specificity of MBS for ALS and PLS compared to healthy controls [3].

Quantitative MRI techniques like quantitative susceptibility mapping (QSM) allow sensitive quantification of iron deposition and have shown promise for accurately detecting MBS in MNDs [1]. Compared to conventional MRI techniques, such as T2-weighted (T2-w), T2*-w, and R2* relaxation, susceptibility imaging including QSM and SWI offers superior sensitivity to iron accumulation in the motor cortex [4]. As ment

Concomitant fields are the unwanted transverse components that arise when spatial encoding gradients are applied in MRI. We measured the changing gradient magnetic field at multiple locations inside the scanner and examined the internal distribution and linearity of the three vector components of the field. Our results illustrate some not-so-obvious spatial characteristics of the gradient field, which can seem unintuitive at first glance, but are quite reasonable when considering electromagnetic theory and MRI-scanner physics constraints.

Atherosclerosis is a major cause of mortality and morbidity, and rupture can lead to myocardial infarction and stroke. The vulnerability assessment of atherosclerosis plaques is important for providing medical treatment. Identifying vulnerable plaques requires noninvasive, high-resolution imaging techniques for capturing and locating high-risk markers. Photoacoustic imaging (PAI) is a hybrid and novel imaging modality that uses nonionizing excitation and has substantial promise for vulnerability assessment of atherosclerosis. The current review examined current applications of multimodal PAI for identification of atherosclerosis plaques. Furthermore, we discuss the challenges and limitations in the implementation this method and future research directions to overcome these difficulties. First, we discuss two aspects of vulnerable plaque characterization: large necrotic cores and thin degraded cap component identification. Then, we then discuss applications of high-risk plaque characterization, including intraplaque hemorrhage and heme degradation markers detection. We hope that this review will shed light on the potential application of optical imaging techniques in atherosclerosis identification and facilitate further studies that will ultimately lead to the broader application of multimodal PAI in clinical practice.

A 36-year-old woman with papillary thyroid cancer was diagnosed with a right ovarian mass ultrasonographically 2 years earlier. The mass increased in size gradually, and serum thyroglobulin (Tg) levels increased simultaneously to 1002.36 ng/mL; cancer antigen 125 levels remained normal. Preoperative ultrasonography demonstrated a right ovarian mass (6.3 × 5.2 × 3.8 cm) (Figure 1a, Video S1) consisting of homogeneous solid components and multiple follicles (Figure 1b). The mass exhibited high vascularity on color Doppler (Figure 1c). These features highly suggested struma ovarii (SO) and were consistent with magnetic resonance imaging findings. Single-port laparoscopic right adnexectomy was performed, with ascites seen in the pouch of Douglas (Figure 1d). The right ovary was fully occupied by a tumor (Figure 1e) containing grayish-brown gelatinous material (Figure 1f). Pathological examination confirmed SO. The serum Tg level decreased to normal 2 months after laparoscopy, which suggested SO as an extraglandular source of Tg.

Na Su: Data curation (lead); writing – original draft (equal). Fei Ji: Conceptualization (equal); writing – original draft (equal). Yang Cao: Conceptualization (equal); supervision (equal). Dan Wang: Supervision (equal). Meng Yang: Writing – review & editing (lead).

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

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Marchiafava–Bignami disease (MBD) is an uncommon alcoholism-related neuropsychiatric disorder, featured with symmetrical demyelination of part or whole corpus callosum (CC). Previous studies reported follow-up neuroimaging changes with necrosis, cystic degeneration, and atrophy of the CC after the diagnosis of MBD, but it is unclear whether the white matter is damaged before MBD. We report a case of alcoholic MBD whose magnetic resonance imaging revealed structural lesions in the white matter before the typical demyelination of CC during MBD, which support the prior hypothesis that chronic hazardous drinking may initially lead to microstructure abnormalities of the white matter and CC through some possible mechanisms, then microstructure lesions in the CC, and white matter deterioration into extensive demyelination, that is MBD. In future clinical practice, when patients with chronic alcoholism seek treatment for neuropsychiatric disorders, they may need to undergo repeated MRI scans to reveal progressive neuroimaging features before and after MBD.

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a chronic and progressive neurodegenerative disorder with long preclinical and prodromal phases in older people. Molecular imaging is a promising approach for noninvasive in vivo identification and tracking pathophysiological changes. In particular, nuclear neuroimaging in AD has extended beyond traditional evaluation of brain perfusion and glucose metabolism, and has achieved substantial progress over the past 2 decades. To gain a comprehensive understanding of nuclear neuroimaging with different targets in the brain, this review provides an overview of the literature on the current status and recent progress of the development of radioligands for definitive and differential diagnosis of AD.

Looking back on the development of radiomics in osteosarcoma over recent years, in addition to distinguishing osteosarcoma from other malignant bone tumors (mainly Ewing's sarcoma), more research directions are using radiomics to evaluate and predict the efficacy and survival of patients undergoing neoadjuvant chemotherapy. Among the three commonly used examination methods of X-ray, CT, and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), more and more studies have been conducted on MRI-based radiomics, which fully reflects the advantages of MRI's high soft tissue contrast, multi-sequence imaging, and most of the studies used a combination of imaging features and clinical features to make predictions. Some articles also considered relevant laboratory examination results and more and more studies are performing external verification. The field is now gradually developing toward multidimensional data and multicenter cooperation and data sharing.