Comparison of the Location and Extent of BOLD Activation in High Spatial Resolution SE and GE FMRI of the Motor Cortex at 7T

Jack Harmer¹, Rosa Maria Sanchez-Panchuelo¹, Richard W. Bowtell¹, Susan T. Francis¹

Gradient-echo (GE) and spin-echo (SE) EPI based fMRI is used to compare SE and GE BOLD responses at high field strength (7T) and resolution (1.5mm isotropic) using a motor paradigm. We investigate CNR, fractional signal change as a function of echo time, spatial specificity of SE BOLD and the localisation of GE and SE activation in relation to underlying venous blood vessels. Robust activation was detected using both SE and GE EPI. A higher proportion of GE activation was found to occur in voxels classified as having a high venous contribution than in SE data.