Abstract #1131

Validating Myelin Water Imaging with Electron Microscopy in Rat Spinal Cord

Henry Szu-Meng Chen¹, Nathan Holmes², Wolfram Tetzlaff^2,3, and Piotr Kozlowski^4,5

¹Physics and Astronomy, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada, ²Zoology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada, ³ICORD, Vancouver, BC, Canada, ⁴UBC MRI Research Centre, Vancouver, BC, Canada, ⁵Radiology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada

Quantitative T2 based myelin water imaging measures myelin content by probing the properties of the water trapped in myelin and therefore depends on its morphology. We compared MR myelin water fraction (MWF) to electron microscopy derived myelin content using a rat injury model and found that MWF correlates strongly with the amount of myelin lipid bilayers in both intact myelin and myelin debris and that myelin debris appears to consist of areas of either normally spaced myelin or large vacuous spaces. No significant differences were found in myelin spacing among normal, 3 week, and 8 weeks post injury time points.

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