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Abstract #3985

Numerical Simulations of Xenon Diffusive Exchange in Human Lung Tissue and Capillaries using Geometrical Models Based on Histology Sections

Neil James Stewart 1 , Juan Parra-Robles 1 , and Jim Michael Wild 1

1 Academic Unit of Radiology, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, South Yorkshire, United Kingdom

Finite-element simulations of xenon diffusive exchange NMR in the lungs were performed using: realistic 2D geometries derived from human lung histology; and 3D uniform cylindrical capillary models. Simulated 129 Xe MR signal dynamics from the cylinder models agreed well with previous 129 Xe chemical shift saturation recovery (CSSR) MR data. The non-uniform distribution of tissue thicknesses in the histology sections considerably altered the shape of the predicted 129 Xe signal dynamics. Artificial thickening of alveolar septa caused increased diffusion-limitation of gas-exchange as expected from MR measurements. These findings have implications for future design of 129 Xe MR experiments and modelling of lung microstructure.

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