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MR elastography frequency–dependent and independent parameters demonstrate accelerated decrease of brain stiffness in elder subjects

  • Magnetic Resonance
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Abstract

Objectives

To analyze the mechanical properties in different regions of the brain in healthy adults in a wide age range: 26 to 76 years old.

Methods

We used a multifrequency magnetic resonance elastography (MRE) protocol to analyze the effect of age on frequency-dependent (storage and loss moduli, G′ and G″, respectively) and frequency-independent parameters (μ1, μ2, and η, as determined by a standard linear solid model) of the cerebral parenchyma, cortical gray matter (GM), white matter (WM), and subcortical GM structures of 46 healthy male and female subjects. The multifrequency behavior of the brain and frequency-independent parameters were analyzed across different age groups.

Results

The annual change rate ranged from − 0.32 to − 0.36% for G′ and − 0.43 to − 0.55% for G″ for the cerebral parenchyma, cortical GM, and WM. For the subcortical GM, changes in G′ ranged from − 0.18 to − 0.23%, and G″ changed − 0.43%. Interestingly, males exhibited decreased elasticity, while females exhibited decreased viscosity with respect to age in some regions of subcortical GM. Significantly decreased values were also found in subjects over 60 years old.

Conclusion

Values of G′ and G″ at 60 Hz and the frequency-independent μ2 of the caudate, putamen, and thalamus may serve as parameters that characterize the aging effect on the brain. The decrease in brain stiffness accelerates in elderly subjects.

Key Points

• We used a multifrequency MRE protocol to assess changes in the mechanical properties of the brain with age.

• Frequency-dependent (storage moduli G′ and loss moduli G″) and frequency-independent (μ1, μ2, and η) parameters can bequantitatively measured by our protocol.

• The decreased value of viscoelastic properties due to aging varies in different regions of subcortical GM in males and females, and the decrease in brain stiffness is accelerated in elderly subjects over 60 years old.

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Abbreviations

AAL:

Automated anatomical labeling

ANOVA :

Analysis of variance

CSF:

Cerebrospinal fluid

CT:

Computed tomography

G′:

Storage moduli

G″:

Loss moduli

GE:

General Electric

GM:

Gray matter

LSD:

Least significant difference

MEG:

Motion encoding gradient

MNI:

Montreal Neurological Institute

MRE:

Magnetic resonance elastography

MRI:

Magnetic resonance imaging

ROI :

Region of interest

SD:

Standard deviation

SEM:

Standard error of the mean

WM:

White matter

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Acknowledgments

We thank Richard L. Ehman from the Mayo Clinic Rochester for providing the MRE activation device. We acknowledge Karla Epperson, Kevin Epperson, and Anne M. Sawyer from the Richard M. Lucas Center, Stanford University for their support during the experiments.

Funding

This work was supported by Grant No. 61801311 from the National Natural Science Foundation of China, Grant No. 7182044 from Beijing Natural Science Foundation, No. PX2018001 from Beijing Hospitals Authority, QML20180103 from Beijing Hospitals Authority Youth Programme, No. YYZZ2017B01 from Beijing Friendship Hospital, Capital Medical University, and No. 2019 M660717 from China Postdoctoral Science Foundation.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Radiology, Beijing Friendship Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, 100050, China

    Han Lv & Zhenchang Wang

  2. Department of Radiology, Stanford University, 300 Pasteur Drive, Room S047, Stanford, CA, 94305-5105, USA

    Han Lv, Fabiola Marcuz, Kim Butts Pauly & Max Wintermark

  3. Department of Mechanical Engineering, Stevens Institute of Technology, Hoboken, NJ, 07030, USA

    Mehmet Kurt & Efe Ozkaya

  4. National Clinical Research Center for Digestive Diseases, Beijing Friendship Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, 100050, China

    Na Zeng

  5. Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, V6S0K4, Canada

    Lyndia Wu

  6. Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, 85721, USA

    Kaveh Laksari

  7. Department of Bioengineering, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, 94305, USA

    David B. Camarillo

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  1. Han Lv
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  2. Mehmet Kurt
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Correspondence to Max Wintermark.

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The scientific guarantor of this publication is Max Wintermark.

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The authors of this manuscript declare no relationships with any companies whose products or services may be related to the subject matter of the article.

Statistics and biometry

One of the authors has significant statistical expertise.

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Written informed consent was obtained from all subjects (patients) in this study.

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Lv, H., Kurt, M., Zeng, N. et al. MR elastography frequency–dependent and independent parameters demonstrate accelerated decrease of brain stiffness in elder subjects. Eur Radiol 30, 6614–6623 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00330-020-07054-7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00330-020-07054-7

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