title: Advances in MRI-based computational neuroanatomy: from morphometry to in-vivo histology.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Current computational neuroanatomy based on MRI focuses on morphological measures of the brain. We present recent methodological developments in quantitative MRI (qMRI) that provide standardized measures of the brain, which go beyond morphology. We show how biophysical modelling of qMRI data can provide quantitative histological measures of brain tissue, leading to the emerging field of in-vivo histology using MRI (hMRI).
  
  
  RESULTS
  qMRI has greatly improved the sensitivity and specificity of computational neuroanatomy studies. qMRI metrics can also be used as direct indicators of the mechanisms driving observed morphological findings. For hMRI, biophysical models of the MRI signal are being developed to directly access histological information such as cortical myelination, axonal diameters or axonal g-ratio in white matter. Emerging results indicate promising prospects for the combined study of brain microstructure and function.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Non-invasive brain tissue characterization using qMRI or hMRI has significant implications for both research and clinics. Both approaches improve comparability across sites and time points, facilitating multicentre/longitudinal studies and standardized diagnostics. hMRI is expected to shed new light on the relationship between brain microstructure, function and behaviour, both in health and disease, and become an indispensable addition to computational neuroanatomy.
authors.affiliation: aWellcome Trust Centre for Neuroimaging, UCL Institute of Neurology, University College London, London, UK bDepartment of Neurophysics, Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Leipzig cDepartment of Systems Neuroscience, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany dLREN, Department of Clinical Neurosciences, CHUV, University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Nikolaus
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Weiskopf
authors.forename: Siawoosh
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Mohammadi
authors.forename: Antoine
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Lutti
authors.forename: Martina F
authors.initials: MF
authors.lastname: Callaghan
mesh_terms: D001921:Brain / Q000033:anatomy & histology*; D001931:Brain Mapping / Q000379:methods*; D056324:Diffusion Tensor Imaging; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging / Q000379:methods*; D059906:Neuroimaging / Q000379:methods*; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity