title: Spherical Deconvolution of Multichannel Diffusion MRI Data with Non-Gaussian Noise Models and Spatial Regularization.
abstract: Spherical deconvolution (SD) methods are widely used to estimate the intra-voxel white-matter fiber orientations from diffusion MRI data. However, while some of these methods assume a zero-mean Gaussian distribution for the underlying noise, its real distribution is known to be non-Gaussian and to depend on many factors such as the number of coils and the methodology used to combine multichannel MRI signals. Indeed, the two prevailing methods for multichannel signal combination lead to noise patterns better described by Rician and noncentral Chi distributions. Here we develop a Robust and Unbiased Model-BAsed Spherical Deconvolution (RUMBA-SD) technique, intended to deal with realistic MRI noise, based on a Richardson-Lucy (RL) algorithm adapted to Rician and noncentral Chi likelihood models. To quantify the benefits of using proper noise models, RUMBA-SD was compared with dRL-SD, a well-established method based on the RL algorithm for Gaussian noise. Another aim of the study was to quantify the impact of including a total variation (TV) spatial regularization term in the estimation framework. To do this, we developed TV spatially-regularized versions of both RUMBA-SD and dRL-SD algorithms. The evaluation was performed by comparing various quality metrics on 132 three-dimensional synthetic phantoms involving different inter-fiber angles and volume fractions, which were contaminated with noise mimicking patterns generated by data processing in multichannel scanners. The results demonstrate that the inclusion of proper likelihood models leads to an increased ability to resolve fiber crossings with smaller inter-fiber angles and to better detect non-dominant fibers. The inclusion of TV regularization dramatically improved the resolution power of both techniques. The above findings were also verified in human brain data.
authors.affiliation: FIDMAG Germanes Hospitalàries, C/ Dr. Antoni Pujadas, 38, 08830, Sant Boi de Llobregat, Barcelona, Spain; Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Salud Mental, CIBERSAM, C/Dr Esquerdo, 46, 28007, Madrid, Spain.
authors.forename: Erick J
authors.initials: EJ
authors.lastname: Canales-Rodríguez
authors.affiliation: Signal Processing Lab (LTS5), École polytechnique fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Lausanne, Switzerland; University Hospital Center (CHUV) and University of Lausanne (UNIL), Lausanne, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Alessandro
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Daducci
authors.affiliation: Centre for Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging of the Brain (FMRIB), University of Oxford, John Radcliffe Hospital, Oxford, OX39DU, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Stamatios N
authors.initials: SN
authors.lastname: Sotiropoulos
authors.affiliation: CNRS-IRISA (UMR 6074), Inria, VisAGeS Project-Team, INSERM, VisAGeS U746, Université de Rennes 1, Campus de Beaulieu, 35042, Rennes Cedex, France.
authors.forename: Emmanuel
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Caruyer
authors.affiliation: Laboratorio de Procesado de Imagen (LPI), ETSI Telecomunicación, Universidad de Valladolid, Valladolid, Spain.
authors.forename: Santiago
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Aja-Fernández
authors.affiliation: FIDMAG Germanes Hospitalàries, C/ Dr. Antoni Pujadas, 38, 08830, Sant Boi de Llobregat, Barcelona, Spain; Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Salud Mental, CIBERSAM, C/Dr Esquerdo, 46, 28007, Madrid, Spain; Department of Psychosis Studies, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience, King's College London, United Kingdom; Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden.
authors.forename: Joaquim
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Radua
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Ciencia de la Computación e Inteligencial Artificial, Universidad del País Vasco, Euskal Herriko Unibertsitatea, Spain.
authors.forename: Jesús M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Yurramendi Mendizabal
authors.affiliation: McConnell Brain Imaging Center, Montreal Neurological Institute, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
authors.forename: Yasser
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Iturria-Medina
authors.affiliation: The Neuroimaging Research Laboratory, Laboratoire de Recherche en Neuroimagerie: LREN, Department of Clinical Neurosciences, University Hospital Center (CHUV), Lausanne, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Lester
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Melie-García
authors.affiliation: Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Salud Mental, CIBERSAM, C/Dr Esquerdo, 46, 28007, Madrid, Spain; Departamento de Bioingeniería e Ingeniería Aeroespacial. Universidad Carlos III de Madrid, Madrid, Spain; Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria Gregorio Marañón, Madrid, Spain.
authors.forename: Yasser
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Alemán-Gómez
authors.affiliation: Signal Processing Lab (LTS5), École polytechnique fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Lausanne, Switzerland; University Hospital Center (CHUV) and University of Lausanne (UNIL), Lausanne, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Jean-Philippe
authors.initials: JP
authors.lastname: Thiran
authors.affiliation: FIDMAG Germanes Hospitalàries, C/ Dr. Antoni Pujadas, 38, 08830, Sant Boi de Llobregat, Barcelona, Spain; Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Salud Mental, CIBERSAM, C/Dr Esquerdo, 46, 28007, Madrid, Spain.
authors.forename: Salvador
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Sarró
authors.affiliation: FIDMAG Germanes Hospitalàries, C/ Dr. Antoni Pujadas, 38, 08830, Sant Boi de Llobregat, Barcelona, Spain; Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Salud Mental, CIBERSAM, C/Dr Esquerdo, 46, 28007, Madrid, Spain.
authors.forename: Edith
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Pomarol-Clotet
authors.affiliation: FIDMAG Germanes Hospitalàries, C/ Dr. Antoni Pujadas, 38, 08830, Sant Boi de Llobregat, Barcelona, Spain; Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Salud Mental, CIBERSAM, C/Dr Esquerdo, 46, 28007, Madrid, Spain.
authors.forename: Raymond
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Salvador
mesh_terms: D000465:Algorithms; D038524:Diffusion Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D006801:Humans; D007091:Image Processing, Computer-Assisted / Q000379:methods*; D021621:Imaging, Three-Dimensional; D008962:Models, Theoretical; D016011:Normal Distribution; D019047:Phantoms, Imaging; D059629:Signal-To-Noise Ratio; D062206:Spatial Analysis; D066127:White Matter / Q000166:cytology