Monitoring acute inflammatory processes in mouse muscle by MR imaging and spectroscopy: a comparison with pathological results.
We have studied an animal model of acute local inflammation in muscle induced by Aspergillus fumigatus by using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS). We have compared our data to those found using histopathology and segmentation maps obtained by the mathematical processing of three-dimensional T2-weighted MRI data via a neural network. The MRI patterns agreed satisfactorily with the clinical and biological evidence of the phases of acute local infection and its evolution towards chronicity. The MRS results show a statistically significant increase in inorganic phosphate and a significant decrease in phosphocreatine levels in the inflamed region. Image segmentation made with a self-organizing, neural-network map yielded a set of ordered representatives that remained constant for all animals during the inflammatory process, allowing a non-invasive, three-dimensional identification and quantification of the inflamed infected regions by MRI.
Ruiz-Cabello
Jesús
J
Unidad de RMN and Departamento de Química-Física II, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Paseo Juan XXIII, 1, 28040, Spain. ruizcabe@farm.uc.es
Regadera
Javier
J
Santisteban
Carmen
C
Graña
Manuel
M
Pérez de Alejo
Rigoberto
R
Echave
Imanol
I
Avilés
Pablo
P
Rodriguez
Ignacio
I
Santos
Inmaculada
I
Gargallo
Domingo
D
Cortijo
Manuel
M
D000208:Acute Disease; D000818:Animals; D001232:Aspergillus fumigatus / Q000472:pathogenicity; D018450:Disease Progression; D007090:Image Interpretation, Computer-Assisted / Q000379:methods*; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging / Q000379:methods*; D009682:Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy / Q000379:methods*; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D009181:Mycoses / Q000145:classification / Q000382:microbiology / Q000473:pathology*; D009220:Myositis / Q000145:classification / Q000382:microbiology / Q000473:pathology*; D009415:Nerve Net; D010758:Phosphorus; D013848:Thigh / Q000382:microbiology / Q000473:pathology
D010758:Phosphorus