Computational Flux Balance Analysis Predicts that Stimulation of Energy Metabolism in Astrocytes and their Metabolic Interactions with Neurons Depend on Uptake of K+ Rather than Glutamate.

Brain activity involves essential functional and metabolic interactions between neurons and astrocytes. The importance of astrocytic functions to neuronal signaling is supported by many experiments reporting high rates of energy consumption and oxidative metabolism in these glial cells. In the brain, almost all energy is consumed by the Na+/K+ ATPase, which hydrolyzes 1 ATP to move 3 Na+ outside and 2 K+ inside the cells. Astrocytes are commonly thought to be primarily involved in transmitter glutamate cycling, a mechanism that however only accounts for few % of brain energy utilization. In order to examine the participation of astrocytic energy metabolism in brain ion homeostasis, here we attempted to devise a simple stoichiometric relation linking glutamatergic neurotransmission to Na+ and K+ ionic currents. To this end, we took into account ion pumps and voltage/ligand-gated channels using the stoichiometry derived from available energy budget for neocortical signaling and incorporated this stoichiometric relation into a computational metabolic model of neuron-astrocyte interactions. We aimed at reproducing the experimental observations about rates of metabolic pathways obtained by 13C-NMR spectroscopy in rodent brain. When simulated data matched experiments as well as biophysical calculations, the stoichiometry for voltage/ligand-gated Na+ and K+ fluxes generated by neuronal activity was close to a 1:1 relationship, and specifically 63/58 Na+/K+ ions per glutamate released. We found that astrocytes are stimulated by the extracellular K+ exiting neurons in excess of the 3/2 Na+/K+ ratio underlying Na+/K+ ATPase-catalyzed reaction. Analysis of correlations between neuronal and astrocytic processes indicated that astrocytic K+ uptake, but not astrocytic Na+-coupled glutamate uptake, is instrumental for the establishment of neuron-astrocytic metabolic partnership. Our results emphasize the importance of K+ in stimulating the activation of astrocytes, which is relevant to the understanding of brain activity and energy metabolism at the cellular level.

Monoaminergic Control of Cellular Glucose Utilization by Glycogenolysis in Neocortex and Hippocampus.

Brainstem nuclei are the principal sites of monoamine (MA) innervation to major forebrain structures. In the cortical grey matter, increased secretion of MA neuromodulators occurs in response to a wealth of environmental and homeostatic challenges, whose onset is associated with rapid, preparatory changes in neural activity as well as with increases in energy metabolism. Blood-borne glucose is the main substrate for energy production in the brain. Once entered the tissue, interstitial glucose is equally accessible to neurons and astrocytes, the two cell types accounting for most of cellular volume and energy metabolism in neocortex and hippocampus. Astrocytes also store substantial amounts of glycogen, but non-stimulated glycogen turnover is very small. The rate of cellular glucose utilization in the brain is largely determined by hexokinase, which under basal conditions is more than 90 % inhibited by its product glucose-6-phosphate (Glc-6-P). During rapid increases in energy demand, glycogen is a primary candidate in modulating the intracellular level of Glc-6-P, which can occur only in astrocytes. Glycogenolysis can produce Glc-6-P at a rate higher than uptake and phosphorylation of glucose. MA neurotransmitter are released extrasinaptically by brainstem neurons projecting to neocortex and hippocampus, thus activating MA receptors located on both neuronal and astrocytic plasma membrane. Importantly, MAs are glycogenolytic agents and thus they are exquisitely suitable for regulation of astrocytic Glc-6-P concentration, upstream substrate flow through hexokinase and hence cellular glucose uptake. Conforming to such mechanism, Gerald A. Dienel and Nancy F. Cruz recently suggested that activation of noradrenergic locus coeruleus might reversibly block astrocytic glucose uptake by stimulating glycogenolysis in these cells, thereby anticipating the rise in glucose need by active neurons. In this paper, we further develop the idea that the whole monoaminergic system modulates both function and metabolism of forebrain regions in a manner mediated by glycogen mobilization in astrocytes.

Does abnormal glycogen structure contribute to increased susceptibility to seizures in epilepsy?

Epilepsy is a family of brain disorders with a largely unknown etiology and high percentage of pharmacoresistance. The clinical manifestations of epilepsy are seizures, which originate from aberrant neuronal synchronization and hyperexcitability. Reactive astrocytosis, a hallmark of the epileptic tissue, develops into loss-of-function of glutamine synthetase, impairment of glutamate-glutamine cycle and increase in extracellular and astrocytic glutamate concentration. Here, we argue that chronically elevated intracellular glutamate level in astrocytes is instrumental to alterations in the metabolism of glycogen and leads to the synthesis of polyglucosans. Unaccessibility of glycogen-degrading enzymes to these insoluble molecules compromises the glycogenolysis-dependent reuptake of extracellular K(+) by astrocytes, thereby leading to increased extracellular K(+) and associated membrane depolarization. Based on current knowledge, we propose that the deterioration in structural homogeneity of glycogen particles is relevant to disruption of brain K(+) homeostasis and increased susceptibility to seizures in epilepsy.

On the impact of physiological noise in spinal cord functional MRI.

Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) techniques are widely exploited for the study of brain activation. In recent years, similar approaches have been attempted for the study of spinal cord function; however, obtaining good functional images of spinal cord still represents a technical and scientific challenge. Some of the main limiting factors can be classified under the broad category of "physiological noise," and are related to 1) the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) flux in the subarachnoid space surrounding the spinal cord; 2) the cord motion itself; and 3) the small area of the cord, which makes it critical to have a high image resolution. In addition, the different magnetic susceptibility properties of tissues surrounding the spinal cord reduce the local homogeneity of the static magnetic field, causing image distortion, reduction of the effective resolution, and signal loss, all effects that are modulated by motion. For these reasons, a number of methods have been developed for the purpose of denoising spinal cord fMRI time series. In this work, after a short introduction on the relevant features of the spinal cord anatomy, we review the main sources of physiological noise in spinal cord fMRI and discuss the main approaches useful for its mitigation.

Glucose metabolism down-regulates the uptake of 6-(N-(7-nitrobenz-2-oxa-1,3-diazol-4-yl)amino)-2-deoxyglucose (6-NBDG) mediated by glucose transporter 1 isoform (GLUT1): theory and simulations using the symmetric four-state carrier model.

The non-metabolizable fluorescent glucose analogue 6-(N-(7-nitrobenz-2-oxa-1,3-diazol-4-yl)amino)-2-deoxyglucose (6-NBDG) is increasingly used to study cellular transport of glucose. Intracellular accumulation of exogenously applied 6-NBDG is assumed to reflect concurrent gradient-driven glucose uptake by glucose transporters (GLUTs). Here, theoretical considerations are provided that put this assumption into question. In particular, depending on the microscopic parameters of the carrier proteins, theory proves that changes in glucose transport can be accompanied by opposite changes in flow of 6-NBDG. Simulations were carried out applying the symmetric four-state carrier model on the GLUT1 isoform, which is the only isoform whose kinetic parameters are presently available. Results show that cellular 6-NBDG uptake decreases with increasing rate of glucose utilization under core-model conditions, supported by literature, namely where the transporter is assumed to work in regime of slow reorientation of the free-carrier compared with the ligand-carrier complex. To observe an increase of 6-NBDG uptake with increasing rate of glucose utilization, and thus interpret 6-NBDG increase as surrogate of glucose uptake, the transporter must be assumed to operate in regime of slow ligand-carrier binding, a condition that is currently not supported by literature. Our findings suggest that the interpretation of data obtained with NBDG derivatives is presently ambiguous and should be cautious because the underlying transport kinetics are not adequately established.

Why does the brain (not) have glycogen?

In the present paper we formulate the hypothesis that brain glycogen is a critical determinant in the modulation of carbohydrate supply at the cellular level. Specifically, we propose that mobilization of astrocytic glycogen after an increase in AMP levels during enhanced neuronal activity controls the concentration of glucose phosphates in astrocytes. This would result in modulation of glucose phosphorylation by hexokinase and upstream cell glucose uptake. This mechanism would favor glucose channeling to activated neurons, supplementing the already rich neuron-astrocyte metabolic and functional partnership with important implications for the energy compounds used to sustain neuronal activity. The hypothesis is based on recent modeling evidence suggesting that rapid glycogen breakdown can profoundly alter the short-term kinetics of glucose delivery to neurons and astrocytes. It is also based on review of the literature relevant to glycogen metabolism during physiological brain activity, with an emphasis on the metabolic pathways identifying both the origin and the fate of this glucose reserve.

Phase stability in fMRI time series: effect of noise regression, off-resonance correction and spatial filtering techniques.

Although the majority of fMRI studies exploit magnitude changes only, there is an increasing interest regarding the potential additive information conveyed by the phase signal. This integrated part of the complex number furnished by the MR scanners can also be used for exploring direct detection of neuronal activity and for thermography. Few studies have explicitly addressed the issue of the available signal stability in the context of phase time-series, and therefore we explored the spatial pattern of frequency specific phase fluctuations, and evaluated the effect of physiological noise components (heart beat and respiration) on the phase signal. Three categories of retrospective noise reduction techniques were explored and the temporal signal stability was evaluated in terms of a physiologic noise model, for seven fMRI measurement protocols in eight healthy subjects at 3T, for segmented CSF, gray and white matter voxels. We confirmed that for most processing methods, an efficient use of the phase information is hampered by the fact that noise from physiological and instrumental sources contributes significantly more to the phase than to the magnitude instability. Noise regression based on the phase evolution of the central k-space point, RETROICOR, or an orthonormalized combination of these were able to reduce their impact, but without bringing phase stability down to levels expected from the magnitude signal. Similar results were obtained after targeted removal of scan-to-scan variations in the bulk magnetic field by the dynamic off-resonance in k-space (DORK) method and by the temporal off-resonance alignment of single-echo time series technique (TOAST). We found that spatial high-pass filtering was necessary, and in vivo a Gaussian filter width of 20mm was sufficient to suppress physiological noise and bring the phase fluctuations to magnitude levels. Stronger filters brought the fluctuations down to levels dictated by thermal noise contributions, and for 62.5mm(3) voxels the phase stability was as low as 5 mrad (0.27°). In conditions of low SNR(o) and high temporal sampling rate (short TR); we achieved an upper bound for the phase instabilities at 0.0017 ppm, which is close to the dHb contribution to the GM/WM phase contrast.

The role of astrocytic glycogen in supporting the energetics of neuronal activity.

Energy homeostasis in the brain is maintained by oxidative metabolism of glucose, primarily to fulfil the energy demand associated with ionic movements in neurons and astrocytes. In this contribution we review the experimental evidence that grounds a specific role of glycogen metabolism in supporting the functional energetic needs of astrocytes during the removal of extracellular potassium. Based on theoretical considerations, we further discuss the hypothesis that the mobilization of glycogen in astrocytes serves the purpose to enhance the availability of glucose for neuronal glycolytic and oxidative metabolism at the onset of stimulation. Finally, we provide an evolutionary perspective for explaining the selection of glycogen as carbohydrate reserve in the energy-sensing machinery of cell metabolism.

Modeling the contribution of neuron-astrocyte cross talk to slow blood oxygenation level-dependent signal oscillations.

A consistent and prominent feature of brain functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) data is the presence of low-frequency (<0.1 Hz) fluctuations of the blood oxygenation level-dependent (BOLD) signal that are thought to reflect spontaneous neuronal activity. In this report we provide modeling evidence that cyclic physiological activation of astroglial cells produces similar BOLD oscillations through a mechanism mediated by intracellular Ca(2+) signaling. Specifically, neurotransmission induces pulses of Ca(2+) concentration in astrocytes, resulting in increased cerebral perfusion and neuroactive transmitter release by these cells (i.e., gliotransmission), which in turn stimulates neuronal activity. Noticeably, the level of neuron-astrocyte cross talk regulates the periodic behavior of the Ca(2+) wave-induced BOLD fluctuations. Our results suggest that the spontaneous ongoing activity of neuroglial networks is a potential source of the observed slow fMRI signal oscillations.

Metabolic correlatives of brain activity in a FOS epilepsy patient.

The correlation and the interactions between neuronal activity and underlying metabolic dynamics are still a matter of debate, especially in pathological conditions. This study reports findings obtained on a subject suffering from fixation-off sensitivity (FOS) epilepsy, exploited as a model system of triggerable anomalous electrical activity. Functional Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy was used to investigate the metabolic response to visual spike-inducing stimuli in a single voxel placed in the temporo-occipital lobe of a FOS epilepsy patient. MRS measurements were additionally performed on a control group of five healthy volunteers. The FOS patient also underwent an EEG session with the same stimulus paradigm. Uniquely in the FOS patient, glutamate and glutamine concentration increased during the first 10 min of stimulation and then returned to baseline. On the other hand, FOS-induced epileptic activity (spiking) endured throughout all the stimulation epoch. The observed metabolic dynamics may be likely linked to a complex interplay between alterations of the metabolic pathways of glutamate and modulation of the neuronal activity.

Smoothing that does not blur: effects of the anisotropic approach for evaluating diffusion tensor imaging data in the clinic.

PURPOSE: To compare the effects of anisotropic and Gaussian smoothing on the outcomes of diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) voxel-based (VB) analyses in the clinic, in terms of signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) enhancement and directional information and boundary structures preservation. MATERIALS AND METHODS: DTI data of 30 Alzheimer's disease (AD) patients and 30 matched control subjects were obtained at 3T. Fractional anisotropy (FA) maps with variable degrees and quality (Gaussian and anisotropic) of smoothing were created and compared with an unsmoothed dataset. The two smoothing approaches were evaluated in terms of SNR improvements, capability to separate differential effects between patients and controls by a standard VB analysis, and level of artifacts introduced by the preprocessing. RESULTS: Gaussian smoothing regionally biased the FA values and introduced a high variability of results in clinical analysis, greatly dependent on the kernel size. On the contrary, anisotropic smoothing proved itself capable of enhancing the SNR of images and maintaining boundary structures, with only moderate dependence of results on smoothing parameters. CONCLUSION: Our study suggests that anisotropic smoothing is more suitable in DTI studies; however, regardless of technique, a moderate level of smoothing seems to be preferable considering the artifacts introduced by this manipulation.

Diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging in patients with partial status epilepticus.

PURPOSE: Diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging (DWI) is used to detect changes in the distribution of water molecules in regions affected by various pathologies. Like other conditions, ictal epileptic activity, such as status epilepticus (SE), can cause regional vasogenic/cytotoxic edema that reflects hemodynamic and metabolic changes. This study describes the electroclinical and neuroimaging findings in 10 patients with partial SE whose DWI evaluation disclosed periictal changes related to sustained epileptic activity. PATIENTS AND METHODS: In this retrospective study we selected 10 patients with partial SE of different etiologies (six acute symptomatic SE; four with previous epilepsy and concomitant precipitating factors) who underwent video-EEG (electroencephalography) monitoring and a DWI study during the periictal phase. We analyzed ictal electroclinical features and DWI changes in the acute phase and during the follow-up period. RESULTS: DWI images revealed significant signal alterations in different brain regions depending on the location of ictal activity. DWI changes were highly concordant with the electroclinical findings in all 10 patients. As the SE resolved and the clinical conditions improved, DWI follow-up showed that the signal alterations gradually disappeared, thereby documenting their close relationship with ictal activity. CONCLUSIONS: This study confirms the usefulness of DWI imaging in clinical practice for a more accurate definition of the hemodynamic/metabolic changes occurring during sustained epileptic activity.

Drug resistant ADLTE and recurrent partial status epilepticus with dysphasic features in a family with a novel LGI1mutation: electroclinical, genetic, and EEG/fMRI findings.

PURPOSE: We characterized a family with autosomal dominant lateral temporal epilepsy (ADLTE) whose proband presented uncommon electroclinical findings such as drug-resistant seizures and recurrent episodes of status epilepticus with dysphasic features. METHODS: The electroclinical characteristics and LGI1 genotype were defined in the family. In the proband, the ictal pattern was documented during video-EEG monitoring and epileptic activity was mapped by EEG/fMRI. RESULTS: The affected members who were studied had drug-resistant seizures. In the proband, seizures with predominant dysphasic features often occurred as partial status epilepticus. The video-EEG-documented ictal activity and fMRI activation clearly indicated the elective involvement of the left posterior lateral temporal cortex. Sequencing of LGI1 exons revealed a heterozygous c.367G>A mutation in exon 4, resulting in a Glu123Lys substitution in the protein sequence. CONCLUSIONS: The uncommon clinical pattern (high seizure frequency, drug-resistance) highlights the variability of the ADLTE phenotype and extends our knowledge of the clinical spectrum associated with LGI1 mutations.

Characterization of the functional response in the human spinal cord: Impulse-response function and linearity.

Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) has emerged during the last decade as the main non-invasive technique for the investigation of human brain function. More recently, fMRI was also proposed for functional studies of the human spinal cord, but with controversial results. In fact, the functional contrast is not well-characterized, and even its origin has been challenged. In the present work, we characterized the temporal features of the functional signal evoked in the human spinal cord by a motor task, studied with an approach based on time-locked averaging of functional time series of different durations. Based on the results here reported, we defined an impulse-response function (irf) able to explain the functional response for motor tasks in the interval of 15-42 s of duration, thus suggesting the linearity of the phenomenon in this interval. Conversely, with stimulation durations ranging between 3 and 9 s, the functional signal was not detectable, and was under the level predicted by a linear behavior, suggesting deviation from linearity during short stimulations. The impulse-response function appeared slower than in the brain, peaking at about 9 s after its beginning. The observed contrast was generally larger than in the brain, on the order of about 5.4% of baseline signal at 1.5 T. The findings further suggested that the physiological origin of T(2) weighted functional imaging is similar in the spinal cord and in the brain.

L-DOPA preloading increases the uptake of borophenylalanine in C6 glioma rat model: a new strategy to improve BNCT efficacy.

PURPOSE: Boron neutron capture therapy (BNCT) is a radiotherapeutic modality based on (10)B(n,alpha)(7)Li reaction, for the treatment of malignant gliomas. One of the main limitations for BNCT effectiveness is the insufficient intake of (10)B nuclei in the tumor cells. This work was aimed at investigating the use of L-DOPA as a putative enhancer for (10)B-drug 4-dihydroxy-borylphenylalanine (BPA) uptake in the C6-glioma model. The investigation was first performed in vitro and then extended to the animal model. METHODS AND MATERIALS: BPA accumulation in C6-glioma cells was assessed using radiowave dielectric spectroscopy, with and without L-DOPA preloading. Two L-DOPA incubation times (2 and 4 hours) were investigated, and the corresponding effects on BPA accumulation were quantified. C6-glioma cells were also implanted in the brain of 32 rats, and tumor growth was monitored by magnetic resonance imaging. Rats were assigned to two experimental branches: (1) BPA administration; (2) BPA administration after pretreatment with L-DOPA. All animals were sacrificed, and assessments of BPA concentrations in tumor tissue, normal brain, and blood samples were performed using high-performance liquid chromatography. RESULTS: L-DOPA preloading induced a massive increase of BPA concentration in C6-glioma cells only after a 4-hour incubation. In the animal model, L-DOPA pretreatment produced a significantly higher accumulation of BPA in tumor tissue but not in normal brain and blood samples. CONCLUSIONS: This study suggests the potential use of L-DOPA as enhancer for BPA accumulation in malignant gliomas eligible for BNCT. L-DOPA preloading effect is discussed in terms of membrane transport mechanisms.

In vivo (19)F MRI and (19)F MRS of (19)F-labelled boronophenylalanine-fructose complex on a C6 rat glioma model to optimize boron neutron capture therapy (BNCT).

Boron neutron capture therapy (BNCT) is a promising binary modality used to treat malignant brain gliomas. To optimize BNCT effectiveness a non-invasive method is needed to monitor the spatial distribution of BNCT carriers in order to estimate the optimal timing for neutron irradiation. In this study, in vivo spatial distribution mapping and pharmacokinetics evaluation of the (19)F-labelled boronophenylalanine (BPA) were performed using (19)F magnetic resonance imaging ((19)F MRI) and (19)F magnetic resonance spectroscopy ((19)F MRS). Characteristic uptake of (19)F-BPA in C6 glioma showed a maximum at 2.5 h after compound infusion as confirmed by both (19)F images and (19)F spectra acquired on blood samples collected at different times after infusion. This study shows the ability of (19)F MRI to selectively map the bio-distribution of (19)F-BPA in a C6 rat glioma model, as well as providing a useful method to perform pharmacokinetics of BNCT carriers.

The effect of physiological noise in phase functional magnetic resonance imaging: from blood oxygen level-dependent effects to direct detection of neuronal currents.

Recently, the possibility to use both magnitude and phase image sets for the statistical evaluation of fMRI has been proposed, with the prospective of increasing both statistical power and the spatial specificity. In the present work, several issues that affect the spatial and temporal stability in fMRI phase time series in the presence of physiologic noise processes are reviewed, discussed and illustrated by experiments performed at 3 T. The observed phase value is a fingerprint of the underlying voxel averaged magnetic field variations. Those related to physiological processes can be considered static or dynamic in relation to the temporal scale of a 2D acquisition and will play out on different spatial scales as well: globally across the entire images slice, and locally depending on the constituents and their relative fractions inside the MRI voxel. The 'static' respiration-induced effects lead to magneto-mechanic scan-to-scan variations in the global magnetic field but may also contribute to local BOLD fluctuations due to respiration-related variations in arterial carbon dioxide. Likewise, the 'dynamic' cardiac-related effects will lead to global susceptibility effects caused by pulsatile motion of the brain as well as local blood pressure-related changes in BOLD and changes in blood flow velocity. Finally, subject motion may lead to variations in both local and global tissue susceptibility that will be especially pronounced close to air cavities. Since dissimilar manifestations of physiological processes can be expected in phase and in magnitude images, a direct relationship between phase and magnitude scan-to-scan fluctuations cannot be assumed a priori. Therefore three different models were defined for the phase stability, each dependent on the relation between phase and magnitude variations and the best will depend on the underlying noise processes. By experiments on healthy volunteers at rest, we showed that phase stability depends on the type of post-processing and can be improved by reducing the low-frequency respiration-induced mechano-magnetic effects. Although the manifestations of physiological noise were in general more pronounced in phase than in magnitude images, due to phase wraps and global Bo effects, we suggest that a phase stability similar to that found in magnitude could theoretically be achieved by adequate correction methods. Moreover, as suggested by our experimental data regarding BOLD-related phase effects, phase stability could even supersede magnitude stability in voxels covering dense microvascular networks with BOLD-related fluctuations as the dominant noise contributor. In the interest of the quality of both BOLD-based and nc-MRI methods, future studies are required to find alternative methods that can improve phase stability, designed to match the temporal and spatial scale of the underlying neuronal activity.

10B-editing 1H-detection and 19F MRI strategies to optimize boron neutron capture therapy.

Boron neutron capture therapy (BNCT) is a binary radiation therapy used to treat malignant brain tumours. It is based on the nuclear reaction (10B + n th --> [11B*] --> alpha + 7Li + 2.79 MeV) that occurs when 10B captures a thermal neutron to yield alpha particles and recoiling 7Li nuclei, both responsible of tumour cells destruction by short range and high ionization energy release. The clinical success of the therapy depends on the selective accumulation of the 10B carriers in the tumour and on the high thermal neutron capture cross-section of 10B. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) methods provide the possibility of monitoring, through 10B nuclei, the metabolic and physiological processes suitable to optimize the BNCT procedure. In this study, spatial distribution mapping of borocaptate (BSH) and 4-borono-phenylalanine (BPA), the two boron carriers used in clinical trials, has been obtained. The BSH map in excised rat brain and the 19F-BPA image in vivo rat brain, representative of BPA spatial distribution, were reported. The BSH image was obtained by means of double-resonance 10B-editing 1H-detection sequence, named M-Bend, exploiting the J-coupling interaction between 10B and 1H nuclei. Conversely, the BPA map was obtained by 19F-BPA using 19F-MRI. Both images were obtained at 7 T, in C6 glioma-bearing rat brain. Our results demonstrate the powerful of non conventional MRI techniques to optimize the BNCT procedure.

Influence of steady background gradients on the accuracy of molecular diffusion anisotropy measurements.

Spatial susceptibility variations of body components lead to local gradients of the static magnetic field. Effects of such background gradients on fractional diffusion anisotropy (FA) measurements on whole-body magnetic resonance units operating at 1.5, 3.0 and 7.0 T were analyzed theoretically and experimentally. Analytical expressions were derived for the cases of diffusion occurring in isotropic media and in tissues with cylindrical symmetry (e.g., white matter tracts or skeletal musculature). Typical magnitudes of background gradient strengths were estimated from in vivo and in vitro measurements with B0 field mapping sequences. Additionally, numerical simulations of magnetic field distributions and resulting field gradients were performed considering tissue-air interfaces in simplified geometrical arrangements. For media with isotropic diffusion, both measurements and analytical calculations showed increasing FA inaccuracy with stronger coupling between diffusion-encoding and background gradients. For cylindrical symmetry, FA values were estimated for a standard diffusion tensor imaging protocol in a realistic scenario. At 1 mm distance from a water-air interface, susceptibility-related background gradients amount to approximately 9 mT/m at 7 T and lead to a relative error of the measured FA of up to 48%. The error in the anisotropy assessment rises considerably with increasing field strength and must be taken into account especially for experimental and clinical studies on modern high-field systems.

Disruption of Semantic Network in Mild Alzheimer's Disease Revealed by Resting-State fMRI.

Subtle semantic deficits can be observed in Alzheimer's disease (AD) patients even in the early stages of the illness. In this work, we tested the hypothesis that the semantic control network is deregulated in mild AD patients. We assessed the integrity of the semantic control system using resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging in a cohort of patients with mild AD (n = 38; mean mini-mental state examination = 20.5) and in a group of age-matched healthy controls (n = 19). Voxel-wise analysis spatially constrained in the left fronto-temporal semantic control network identified two regions with altered functional connectivity (FC) in AD patients, specifically in the pars opercularis (POp, BA44) and in the posterior middle temporal gyrus (pMTG, BA21). Using whole-brain seed-based analysis, we demonstrated that these two regions have altered FC even beyond the semantic control network. In particular, the pMTG displayed a wide-distributed pattern of lower connectivity to several brain regions involved in language-semantic processing, along with a possibly compensatory higher connectivity to the Wernicke's area. We conclude that in mild AD brain regions belonging to the semantic control network are abnormally connected not only within the network, but also to other areas known to be critical for language processing.