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Cardiac MR (CMR) is of proven clinical value but also an area of vigorous ongoing research since image quality is not always exclusively defined by signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) and contrast-to-noise ratio (CNR). Recent developments of CMR at 7.0 T have been driven by pioneering explorations into novel multichannel transmit and receive coil array technology to tackle the challenges B1+-field inhomogeneities, to offset specific-absorption rate (SAR) constraints and to reduce banding artifacts in SSFP imaging. For this study, recognition of the benefits and performance of local surface Tx/Rx-array structures recently established at 7.0 T inspired migration to 3.0 T, where RF inhomogeneities and SAR limitations encountered in routine clinical CMR, though somewhat reduced versus the 7.0 T situation, remain significant. For all these reasons, this study was designed to build and examine the feasibility of a local four channel Tx/Rx cardiac coil array for anatomical and functional cardiac imaging at 3.0 T. For comparison, a homebuilt 4 channel Rx cardiac coil array exhibiting the same geometry as the Tx/Rx coil and a Rx surface coil array were used.
In current clinical cardiovascular MR (CMR) practice cardiac motion is commonly dealt with using ECG based synchronization. However, ECG is corrupted by magneto-hydrodynamic (MHD) effects in magnetic fields. This leads to artifacts in the ECG trace and evokes severe T-wave elevations, which might be misinterpreted as R-waves resulting in erroneous triggering. At (ultra)high field strengths, the propensity of ECG recordings to MHD effects is further pronounced. Pulse oximetry (POX) being inherently sensitive to blood oxygenation provides an alternative approach for cardiac gating. However, due to the travel time of the blood the peak of maximum oxygenation and hence the trigger is delayed by approx. 300 ms with respect to the ECG's R-wave. Also the peak of maximum oxygenation shows a jitter of up to 65 ms. Alternative triggering approaches include acoustic cardiac triggering (ACT). In current clinical practice cardiac gating / triggering commonly relies on using single physiological signals only. Realizing this limitation this study proposes a combined triggering approach which exploits multiple physiological signals including ECG, POX or ACT to track cardiac activity. The feasibility of the coupled approach is examined for LV function assessment at 7.0 T. For this purpose, breath-held 2D-CINE imaging in conjunction with cardiac synchronization was performed paralleled by real time logging of physiological waveforms to track (mis)synchronization between the cardiac cycle and data acquisition. Combinations of the ECG, POX and ACT signals were evaluated and processed in real time to facilitate reliable trigger information.
The assessment of the right ventricle (RV) is a challenge in today's cardiology, but of growing clinical impact regarding patient prognosis in different cardiac diseases. The detection and differentiation of small wall motion abnormalities may help to enhance the differentiation of cardiomyopathies including Arrhythmogenic Rightventricular Cardiomyopathy. Cardiovascular magnetic resonance (CMR) at 1.5T is the accepted gold standard for RV quantification. The higher spatial resolution achievable at ultrahigh field strength (UHF) offers the potential to gain new insights into the structure and function of the RV. To approach this goal accurate RV chamber quantification at 7T has to be proven. Consequently this study examines the feasibility of assessment of RV dimensions and function at 7T using improved spatial resolution enabled by the intrinsic sensitivity gain of UHF CMR. For this purpose, a dedicated 16 channel TX/RX RF coil array is used together with 2D CINE fast gradient echo (FGRE) imaging. For comparison RV chamber quantification is conducted at 1.5T using a SSFP based state of the art clinical protocol.
Cardiac MR (CMR) at ultrahigh (≥7.0 T) fields is regarded as one of the most challenging MRI applications. At 7.0 T image quality is not always exclusively defined by signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) and contrast-to-noise ratio (CNR). Detrimental effects bear the potential to spoil the signal-to-noise (SNR) and contrast-to-noise (CNR) benefits of cardiac MR (CMR) at 7.0 T. B₁⁺-inhomogeneities and signal voids represent the main challenges. Various pioneering coil concepts have been proposed to tackle these issues, enabling cardiac MRI at 7.0 T. This includes a trend towards an ever larger number of transmit and receive channels. This approach affords multi-dimensional B₁⁺ modulations to improve B₁⁺ shimming performance and to enhance RF efficiency. Also, parallel imaging benefits from a high number of receive channels enabling two-dimensional acceleration. Realizing the limitations of existing coil designs tailored for UHF CMR and recognizing the opportunities of a many element TX/RX channel architecture this work proposes a modular, two dimensional 32-channel transmit and receive array using loop elements and examines its efficacy for enhanced B¹+ homogeneity and improved parallel imaging performance.
A magnetic resonance tomography (MRT) apparatus (1) for the examination of a body (14) comprises parameter acquisition devices (13) for the acquisition of cardiovascular parameters of the body (14) and a control device (15) in communication with the parameter acquisition devices (13) for synchronizing the imaging, wherein the control device (15) is adapted to analyse the data of at least two parameter acquisition devices (13) and to output a control signal based on the analysis.
Purpose:
To investigate the feasibility of using magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) effects for synchronization of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) with the cardiac cycle.
Materials and Methods:
The MHD effect was scrutinized using a pulsatile flow phantom at B0 = 7.0 T. MHD effects were examined in vivo in healthy volunteers (n = 10) for B0 ranging from 0.05–7.0 T. Noncontrast-enhanced MR angiography (MRA) of the carotids was performed using a gated steady-state free-precession (SSFP) imaging technique in conjunction with electrocardiogram (ECG) and MHD synchronization.
Results:
The MHD potential correlates with flow velocities derived from phase contrast MRI. MHD voltages depend on the orientation between B0 and the flow of a conductive fluid. An increase in the interelectrode spacing along the flow increases the MHD potential. In vivo measurement of the MHD effect provides peak voltages of 1.5 mV for surface areas close to the common carotid artery at B0 = 7.0 T. Synchronization of MRI with the cardiac cycle using MHD triggering is feasible. MHD triggered MRA of the carotids at 3.0 T showed an overall image quality and richness of anatomic detail, which is comparable to ECG-triggered MRAs.
Conclusion:
This feasibility study demonstrates the use of MHD effects for synchronization of MR acquisitions with the cardiac cycle. J. Magn. Reson. Imaging 2012;36:364–372. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Spontaneous language has rarely been subjected to neuroimaging studies. This study therefore introduces a newly developed method for the analysis of linguistic phenomena observed in continuous language production during fMRI.
Most neuroimaging studies investigating language have so far focussed on single word or — to a smaller extent — sentence processing, mostly due to methodological considerations. Natural language production, however, is far more than the mere combination of words to larger units. Therefore, the present study aimed at relating brain activation to linguistic phenomena like word-finding difficulties or syntactic completeness in a continuous language fMRI paradigm. A picture description task with special constraints was used to provoke hesitation phenomena and speech errors. The transcribed speech sample was segmented into events of one second and each event was assigned to one category of a complex schema especially developed for this purpose. The main results were: conceptual planning engages bilateral activation of the precuneus. Successful lexical retrieval is accompanied – particularly in comparison to unsolved word-finding difficulties – by the left middle and superior temporal gyrus. Syntactic completeness is reflected in activation of the left inferior frontal gyrus (IFG) (area 44). In sum, the method has proven to be useful for investigating the neural correlates of lexical and syntactic phenomena in an overt picture description task. This opens up new prospects for the analysis of spontaneous language production during fMRI.
Im vom BMELV/FNR geförderten SynRg-Projekt wurde unter anderem Rapsschrot untersucht, um Polyphenole zu isolieren und aufzureinigen. Diese sollen anschließend als Basisbausteine für Polymere dienen und ihnen neuartige Eigenschaften verleihen. Derzeit wird an der Polyphenolextraktion gearbeitet, da bei organischen oder wässrigen Extraktionsprozessen überwiegend Sinapin, ein Cholinester der Sinapinsäure, vorliegt und dieses nicht für die Polymerbildung eingesetzt werden kann. Für die im Fokus stehende Sinapinsäure wird deshalb eine simultane Extraktion und enzymatische oder chemische Hydrolyse von Sinapin zu Sinapinsäure durchgeführt. Durch die Hydrolyse konnte die Sinapinsäureausbeute bereits um den Faktor 6,2 auf 15,8 mg g⁻¹ gegenüber einer reinwässrigen Extraktion gesteigert werden. Für die Aufreinigung des an Sinapinsäure reichen Extrakts erfolgt anschließend ein adsorptiver Aufarbeitungsschritt, bei dem Zeolithe zum Einsatz kommen. Mit diesem Material ist es möglich, die Sinapinsäure quantitativ zu adsorbieren und später mit 70 %igem Ethanol bei 60 °C zu desorbieren. Bei den Adsorbern handelt es sich um b-Zeolithe von der Süd-Chemie AG.
Die fermentative Verwertung von Rohglycerin setzt je nach Herstellungsmethode und Produktionsorganismus eine Vorbehandlung des Glycerins zur Entfernung von Produktinhibitoren voraus. Durch den Einsatz von Hydrotalcit-Adsorbern können die im Rohglycerin enthaltenen Fettsäuren entfernt werden. Durch diese einfache Aufarbeitungsmethode ist ein mit reinem Glycerin vergleichbarer Umsatz von stark mit Fettsäuren verunreinigtem Rohglycerin zu 1,3-Propandiol (PDO) möglich. Die durch den Hydrotalcit gebundenen Fettsäuren lassen sich mit einem Ethanol-Wasser-Gemisch eluieren. Somit kann der Adsorber regeneriert und die Fettsäuren wieder der Wertschöpfungskette zugeführt werden. Im Fed-Batch-Experiment kann mit C. diolis eine PDO-Konzentration von über 50 g L⁻¹ unter Verwendung des aufgereinigten Rohglycerins erzielt werden. In der industriellen Produktion wird PDO momentan destillativ aufgearbeitet. Ein adsorptives Aufarbeitungsverfahren kann den Energiebedarf des Herstellungsprozesses drastisch senken. Auf der Suche nach einem geeigneten Material wurde ein Adsorberscreening in Bezug auf die Bindungseigenschaften durchgeführt. Mit einem b-Zeolith der Firma Süd ChemieAG konnte bisher die höchste Beladung im Modellsystem von 120 mg PDO/gAdsorber erreicht werden.
Der Erhalt möglichst hoher Zuckerkonzentrationen für nachfolgende Fermentationen und eine Steigerung der Produktivität sind Ziele der Hydrolyse bei hohen Feststoffkonzentrationen im Rahmen des Projekts „Lignocellulose Bioraffinerie“. Verwendet wird durch ein Organosolv-Verfahren aufgeschlossenes Buchenholz. Die Hydrolyse des Faserstoffes erfolgt mithilfe von CTec2-Enzymen (Fa. Novozymes). Zurzeit können unter Einsatz eines neuen Feststoffreaktors Cellulosefasern in einer Konzentration bis 400 g L⁻¹ enzymatisch hydrolysiert werden. Dabei werden Ausbeuten (g Glucose/g Cellulose im Faserstoff) bis 0,86 g g⁻¹ und Glucosekonzentrationenvon 120 g L⁻¹ erreicht. Ein Nachteil ist jedoch die hierbei auftretende Abnahme der Hydrolyseausbeuten. Zahlreiche Limitierungen bezüglich der Hydrolysierbarkeit von Lignocellulose werden zurzeit diskutiert und publiziert. Ziel der Untersuchungen ist die Identifizierung hydrolysehemmender Substanzen sowie die Erhöhung der Ausbeute an Zuckermonomeren durch den Einsatz lignolytischer Enzyme. Hierbei wird eine HPLC-MS-Methode zur Charakterisierung hemmender Substanzen eingesetzt, um potenzielle Inhibitoren zu erfassen.