title: If the skull fits: magnetic resonance imaging and microcomputed tomography for combined analysis of brain and skull phenotypes in the mouse.
abstract: The mammalian brain and skull develop concurrently in a coordinated manner, consistently producing a brain and skull that fit tightly together. It is common that abnormalities in one are associated with related abnormalities in the other. However, this is not always the case. A complete characterization of the relationship between brain and skull phenotypes is necessary to understand the mechanisms that cause them to be coordinated or divergent and to provide perspective on the potential diagnostic or prognostic significance of brain and skull phenotypes. We demonstrate the combined use of magnetic resonance imaging and microcomputed tomography for analysis of brain and skull phenotypes in the mouse. Co-registration of brain and skull images allows comparison of the relationship between phenotypes in the brain and those in the skull. We observe a close fit between the brain and skull of two genetic mouse models that both show abnormal brain and skull phenotypes. Application of these three-dimensional image analyses in a broader range of mouse mutants will provide a map of the relationships between brain and skull phenotypes generally and allow characterization of patterns of similarities and differences.
authors.affiliation: Mouse Imaging Centre, Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, Ontario, Canada. bjnieman@phenogenomics.ca
authors.forename: Brian J
authors.initials: BJ
authors.lastname: Nieman
authors.forename: Marissa C
authors.initials: MC
authors.lastname: Blank
authors.forename: Brian B
authors.initials: BB
authors.lastname: Roman
authors.forename: R Mark
authors.initials: RM
authors.lastname: Henkelman
authors.forename: Kathleen J
authors.initials: KJ
authors.lastname: Millen
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001921:Brain / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology*; D019465:Craniofacial Abnormalities / Q000235:genetics*; D003616:Dandy-Walker Syndrome; D005124:Eye Abnormalities / Q000235:genetics*; D005260:Female; D005532:Foot Deformities, Congenital / Q000235:genetics*; D021621:Imaging, Three-Dimensional; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging / Q000379:methods*; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D008809:Mice, Inbred C3H; D008810:Mice, Inbred C57BL; D010641:Phenotype; D012886:Skull / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000473:pathology*; D013576:Syndactyly / Q000235:genetics*; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed / Q000379:methods*; D014071:Tooth Abnormalities / Q000235:genetics*