MR microscopy of chick embryo vasculature.
Six-day-old chick embryos were examined with magnetic resonance microscopy after vascular perfusion fixation and perfusion with gadolinium-doped gelatin to high-light the developing vascular anatomy. Gadolinium gelatin, with its short T1, provided a source of signal contrast within the vessels. The entire embryo was embedded in gelatin to minimize susceptibility artifacts that are prevalent at the high field strength (7.0 T) used. A series of single-section spin-echo images were acquired with various TRs to determine the optimal imaging sequence for a three-dimensional (3D) acquisition. The combination of gadolinium gelatin in the vascular spaces, gelatin embedding of the specimen, and optimal acquisition parameters yielded a 3D stack of high-resolution images that was readily reconstructed and rendered to effectively demonstrate the developing thoracic vessels in the embryo.
Smith
B R
BR
Department of Radiology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC 27710.
Effmann
E L
EL
Johnson
G A
GA
D000818:Animals; D001808:Blood Vessels / Q000196:embryology*; D002642:Chick Embryo; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging / Q000379:methods*