Brian J. Nieman1, 2, Brian B. Roman3, Kathleen J. Millen4, R Mark Henkelman1, 2
1Mouse Imaging Centre, Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON, Canada; 2Medical Biophysics, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada; 3Division of Biological Sciences, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, United States; 4Center for Integrative Brain Research, Seattle Children's Hospital, Seattle, WA, United States
The mammalian brain and skull develop concurrently. Large variations in one of these structures are frequently accompanied by morphological changes in the other. We use a combination of MRI and computed tomography for deformation-based analysis of the brain and skull in a mouse model of Dandy-Walker syndrome. We show that the deformations between the average and wildtype mice on the brain surface closely follow the deformations seen on the inside of the skull. This indicates a tight fit between brain and skull. These tools will be important for assessing alterations or disease where the concurrent development is interrupted.
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