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Abstract #2125

Seed-Based Functional Connectivity Analysis of the Emotional Circuitry: Improving the Signal of Vulnerable Regions with Spin-Echo EPI

Roberto Goya-Maldonado1, Brice Fernandez, 12, Victor Spoormaker1, Michael Czisch1

1MPI of Psychiatry, Munich, BY, Germany; 2GE Healthcare, Global Applied Science Laboratory, Munich, Germany


Functional connectivity (fc) analysis allows monitoring specific regional brain changes in activation along time. The susceptibility artifacts commonly present during the acquisition of fMRI with GRE-EPI can drastically limit the investigation of the emotional circuitry. We tested the applicability of SE-EPI for fc analysis at 3T. The seeds placed in the emotional circuitry presented robust and anatomically reliable connectivity patterns in the differential contrast SE>GRE. This suggests a potential benefit to be further explored in functional studies addressing the affective system.