Ilgar Mamedov1, Joern Engelmann2, Gisela Hagberg1, Oxana Eschenko1, Nikos K. Logothetis1, 3
1Physiology of Cognitive Processes, Max Planck Institute for Biological Cybernetics, Tuebingen, BW, Germany; 2High Field Magnetic Resonance Center, Max Planck Institute for Biological Cybernetics; 3Imaging Science and Biomedical Engineering, University of Manchester, Manchester, United Kingdom
A Gd3+ based paramagnetic dextran conjugate has been developed, which enables the tracking of neuroanatomical connectivity in the brain by both MR and optical imaging. Cell studies demonstrated that the synthesized tracer was efficiently internalized into neuronal cells and transported toward the axons. Furthermore, our preliminary in vivo experiments revealed efficient transportation of the conjugate, thereby proving its applicability for neuroanatomical studies by T1-weighted MRI. Initial in vivo experiments in rodents demonstrated the significant potential of this method.
Keywords