Purpose:To determine the accuracy of single-kidney glomerular filtration rate (GFR) determination using contrastenhanced dynamic magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and the Rutland-Patlak plot technique. Materials and Methods:Twenty-eight adult patients were included. As reference method, the GFR was measured by plasma clearance using a small bolus injection of iopromide. A three-dimensional gradient-echo (GRE) sequence with a flip angle of 50°was used for MRI; this showed a good linear relationship between gadolinium (Gd)-DTPA concentration and signal change when measured up to a Gd-DTPA concentration of 10 mmol/liter. A slab containing both kidneys and the abdominal aorta was measured 30 times in approximately 3.5 minutes. During this measurement, 15 mL of Gd-DTPA, 0.5 mol/liter diluted to a volume of 60 mL, was injected over 60 seconds. A Rutland-Patlak plot was calculated from the signal changes in the aorta and the renal parenchyma. Single-kidney GFR was calculated for different time windows from the Rutland-Patlak plot slope. Results:The best correlation compared to the reference method was found with the GFR calculated from the slope of the Rutland-Patlak plot 40 -110 seconds postaortic rise. Pearson's correlation coefficient was r ϭ 0.86, SD was 14.8 mL/minute. In many of the patients, a decrease of the renal signal was observed in the excretory phase, which was probably caused by very high Gd-DTPA concentrations in the collecting tubules. Conclusion:Single-kidney GFR can be calculated from dynamic contrast-enhanced MRI. We found a promising correlation of global GFR calculated by MRI compared to the reference method. In any future study, the amount of Gd-DTPA should by reduced to avoid artificial signal drop in the excretory phase induced by the T2* effect.
Owing to the rapid development of scanner technology, thoracic computed tomography (CT) offers new possibilities but also faces enormous challenges with respect to the quality of computer-assisted diagnosis and therapy planning. In the framework of the Virtual Institute for Computer Assistance in Clinical Radiology cooperative research project, a prototypical software application was developed to assist the radiologist in functional analysis of thoracic CT data. By identifying the anatomic compartments of the lungs, the software application enables assessment of established functional CT parameters for each individual lung, pulmonary lobe, and pulmonary segment. Such region-based assessment allows a more localized diagnosis of lung diseases such as emphysema and more accurate estimation of regional lung function from CT data. With close cooperation between computer scientists and radiologists, the software application was tested and optimized to achieve a high degree of usability. Several clinical studies were carried out, the results of which indicated that the software application improves quantification in diagnosis, therapy planning, and therapy monitoring with respect to accuracy and time required.
Objective-We hypothesized that apolipoprotein E (apoE)Ϫ/Ϫ /low-density lipoprotein (LDL) Ϫ/Ϫ double knockout mice might develop vasa vasorum (VV) in association with advanced lesion formation. Methods and Results-Aortas from apoEϪ/Ϫ /LDL Ϫ/Ϫ mice aged 16, 18, 20, or 80 weeks were infused in situ with Microfil, harvested, and scanned with micro-computed tomography (CT). We characterized plaque volume and CT "density" as well as VV luminal volume along the aorta using Analyze 6.0 software. Results were complemented by a detailed histological plaque classification according to American Heart Association guidelines. From 16 to 80 weeks, plaque volume and VV opacified lumen volume increased with age (PϽ0.001). The 3-dimensional micro-CT images of arterial and venous VV trees allowed perfusion territories to be delineated. The spatial location and magnitude of VV density and adventitial inflammation were strongly correlated in advanced atherosclerotic lesions (rϭ0.91) and identified as an independent correlate to advanced lesions. At age 80 weeks, VV luminal volume was increased 20-fold compared with animals at age 16 weeks (PϽ0.001). Micro-CT showed that adventitial VV communicate with intraplaque microvessels. Conclusion-Our
We determined the optimum gadolinium (Gd)-DTPA dose and time window for calculating the glomerular filtration rate (GFR) using contrast-enhanced (CE) dynamic MRI and the Patlak plot technique. Twelve adult volunteers with healthy kidneys were included in the study. As a reference method the GFR was measured by iopromide plasma clearance. A three-dimensional gradient-echo (GRE) sequence with a flip angle of 50°was used for MRI. Signal was measured using a body surface coil with four elements. Each volunteer was examined on four days using 2 mL, 4 mL, 8 mL, or 16 mL of Gd-DTPA 0.5 mmol/mL dissolved with sodium chloride (NaCl) 0.9% to a total of 60 mL. The injection rate was 1 mL/second. A Patlak plot was calculated from the kidney and aorta signals. The mean reference GFR was 133 mL/min (min-max, 116 -153 mL/min). The best correlation of GFR calculated from MRI data compared to the reference method was found in a time window 30 -90 seconds after aortic signal rise using 16 mL Gd-DTPA. Pearson's correlation coefficient was r ϭ 0.83, and the standard deviation (SD) from the line of regression was 10.5 mL/minute. We found a significantly lower average GFR(MR) using 16 mL Gd-DTPA compared to 4 mL and 2 mL in the late time window 60 -120 seconds post aortic rise. A dose of 16 mL Gd-DTPA was optimal for measuring GFR using dynamic MRI and the Patlak plot technique. The slope should be measured in a time window of 30 -90 seconds post aortic rise.
Quantitative evaluation of lung tumor angiogenesis using immunohistochemical techniques has been limited by difficulties in generating reproducible data. To analyze intrapulmonary tumor angiogenesis, we used high-resolution micro-computed tomography (micro-CT) of lung tumors of mice inoculated with mouse Lewis lung carcinoma (LLC1) or human adenocarcinoma (A549) cell lines. The lung vasculature was filled with the radiopaque silicone rubber, Microfil, through the jugular vein (in vivo application) or pulmonary artery (ex vivo application). In addition, human adenocarcinoma lung tumor-bearing mice treated site-specifically with humanized monoclonal antibody (bevacizumab) against vascular endothelial growth factor. Quantitative analysis of lung tumor microvessels imaged with micro-CT showed that more vessels (mainly small, <0.02 mm(2)) were filled using the in vivo (5.4%) compared with the ex vivo (2.1%) method. Furthermore, bevacizumab-treated lung tumor-bearing mice showed significantly reduced lung tumor volume and lung tumor angiogenesis compared with untreated mice as assessed by micro-CT. Interestingly, microvascularization of mainly the smaller vessels (<0.02 mm(2)) was reduced after bevacizumab treatment. This observation with micro-CT was nicely correlated with immunohistochemical measurement of microvessels. Therefore, micro-CT is a novel method for investigating lung tumor angiogenesis, and this might be considered as an additional complementary tool for precise quantification of angiogenesis.
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