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Cited by 840Advanced Neuroimaging Techniques and ApplicationsFunctional Brain Connectivity StudiesAdvanced MRI Techniques and Applications

Tract profiles of white matter properties: automating fiber-tract quantification

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Yeatman, Jason D., Dougherty, Robert F., Myall, Nathaniel J., Wandell, Brian A., Feldman, Heidi M.·2012·PLoS ONE
DOI 10.1371/journal.pone.0049790PMC PMC3498174
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Abstract

Tractography based on diffusion weighted imaging (DWI) data is a method for identifying the major white matter fascicles (tracts) in the living human brain. The health of these tracts is an important factor underlying many cognitive and neurological disorders. In vivo, tissue properties may vary systematically along each tract for several reasons: different populations of axons enter and exit the tract, and disease can strike at local positions within the tract. Hence quantifying and understanding diffusion measures along each fiber tract (Tract Profile) may reveal new insights into white matter development, function, and disease that are not obvious from mean measures of that tract. We demonstrate several novel findings related to Tract Profiles in the brains of typically developing children and children at risk for white matter injury secondary to preterm birth. First, fractional anisotropy (FA) values vary substantially within a tract but the Tract FA Profile is consistent across subjects. Thus, Tract Profiles contain far more information than mean diffusion measures. Second, developmental changes in FA occur at specific positions within the Tract Profile, rather than along the entire tract. Third, Tract Profiles can be used to compare white matter properties of individual patients to standardized Tract Profiles of a healthy population to elucidate unique features of that patient's clinical condition. Fourth, Tract Profiles can be used to evaluate the association between white matter properties and behavioral outcomes. Specifically, in the preterm group reading ability is positively correlated with FA measured at specific locations on the left arcuate and left superior longitudinal fasciculus and the magnitude of the correlation varies significantly along the Tract Profiles. We introduce open source software for automated fiber-tract quantification (AFQ) that measures Tract Profiles of MRI parameters for 18 white matter tracts. With further validation, AFQ Tract Profiles have potential for informing clinical management and decision-making.

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  • The longitudinal relaxation rate (R1), a measure sensitive to myelin, has been used along fiber tracts.

    “For example, researchers have used the longitudinal relaxation rate (R1), a measure sensitive to myelin, along the fiber tracts (Boshkovski et al., 2020a; Yeatman et al., 2012).”

    From Quantitative mapping of the brain’s structural connectivity using diffusion MRI tractography: A review (2022) · cites this paper as Yeatman et al., 2012

    The Methods section describes measuring fractional anisotropy (FA) at locations along fiber tracts, and the Discussion reports tract profiles of FA. The cited paper therefore supports the along-tract approach, but the passages do not establish that it used longitudinal relaxation rate (R1) or describe R1 as sensitive to myelin. (LLM, conf=0.88)

    Experimental — accuracy not yet measured

  • Most often, data are averaged across corresponding points along each streamline in the pathway, so data can be analyzed versus streamline arc length or other parameterization.

    “Most often, data are averaged across corresponding points along each streamline in the pathway, such that data can be analyzed (e.g., an along-tract or along-pathway plot) versus streamline arc length or other parameterization (Colby et al., 2012b; Corouge et al., 2006; Yeatman et al., 2012).”

    From Quantitative mapping of the brain’s structural connectivity using diffusion MRI tractography: A review (2022) · cites this paper as Yeatman et al., 2012

  • One popular approach is to average data across corresponding points along each streamline and leverage a prototype, core, or mean streamline to enable statistical analysis comparing subjects or groups.

    “One popular approach is to average data across corresponding points along each streamline in the pathway and leverage a prototype, core, or mean streamline to enable statistical analysis comparing subjects or groups (Colby et al., 2012b; Wang et al., 2016; Yeatman et al., 2012).”

    From Quantitative mapping of the brain’s structural connectivity using diffusion MRI tractography: A review (2022) · cites this paper as Yeatman et al., 2012

  • Many methods perform along-tract analysis to investigate the distribution of microstructural measures along the fiber pathway.

    “Instead of using a single scalar value to summarize the entire pathway, many methods perform along-tract analysis to investigate the distribution of the microstructural measures along the fiber pathway (variously called “tractometry,” “profilometry,” and “tract-based morphometry”) (Bells et al., 2011b; O’Donnell et al., 2009; Yeatman et al., 2012).”

    From Quantitative mapping of the brain’s structural connectivity using diffusion MRI tractography: A review (2022) · cites this paper as Yeatman et al., 2012

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Cited by

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Authors
Yeatman, J. D., Dougherty, R. F., Myall, N. J., Wandell, B. A., & Feldman, H. M.
Affiliations
  • Stanford University (US)
  • Stanford Medicine (US)
Corresponding author
Yeatman, Jason D.
ORCID
Venue
PLoS ONE
Publisher
Public Library of Science (PLoS)
Published
2012-11-14
Volume
7
Issue
11
Pages
e49790
ISSN
1932-6203 (ISSN-L)
DOI
10.1371/journal.pone.0049790
PMC
PMC3498174
OpenAlex
W2170480020
Cited by
840
References
2
Citations by year
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FWCI
15.46
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Licence
Locations
  • PLoS ONE (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • RePEc: Research Papers in Economics (submittedVersion)
  • ResearchWorks at the University of Washington (University of Washington) (submittedVersion, cc-by)
  • DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) (submittedVersion, cc-by-sa)
Funders
  • National Science Foundation
  • National Institutes of Health (UL1TR001085, RO1-HD46500)
  • National Eye Institute (R01 EY15000, R01EY015000)
  • National Center for Research Resources (RR025744, UL1RR025744)
  • National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences
  • Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (R01HD046500, R01HD069162, R01 HD46500)
Topics
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Radiology, Nuclear Medicine and Imaging › Advanced Neuroimaging Techniques and Applications
  • Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Functional Brain Connectivity Studies
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Radiology, Nuclear Medicine and Imaging › Advanced MRI Techniques and Applications
Keywords
white matter tracts, fractional anisotropy, diffusion-weighted imaging, preterm birth, white matter injury, white matter development, children, reading skills, arcuate fasciculus, superior longitudinal fasciculus, white matter disease
MeSH terms
Adolescent, Brain, Child, Developmental Disabilities, Child, Preschool, Dyslexia, Female, Humans, Infant, Infant, Newborn, Infant, Premature, Male, Nerve Fibers, Neural Pathways, Spinal Cord, Diffusion Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Functional Neuroimaging

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