Cutting-edge MRI techniques for studying communication within the brain

Innovative magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) techniques that can measure changes in the microstructure of the brain’s white matter that could affect brain function and the ability of different regions of the brain to communicate have been presented in an article in the journal Brain Connectivity. Andrew Alexander and colleagues from University of Wisconsin, Madison, describe three quantitative MRI (qMRI) techniques that are enabling the characterization of the microstructural properties of white matter: diffusion MRI, magnetization transfer imaging, and relaxometry. These approaches can be used to study and compare the properties of brain tissue across populations and to shed light on mechanisms underlying aging, disease, and gender differences in brain function.