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Abstract #2355

Rapid Whole-Brain Myelin Water Mapping Using Multi-Component Gradient Echo Sampling of Spin Echoes (McGESSE)

Yann Gagnon1, 2, Neil Gelman1, 2, Rob Nicolson3, Jean Thberge1, 2

1Medical Biophysics, University of Western Ontario, London, Ontario, Canada; 2Imaging, Lawson Health Research Institute, London, Ontario, Canada; 3Psychiatry, University of Western Ontario, London, Ontario, Canada


The myelin water fraction describes the proportion of the multi-exponential T2 decay in white matter originating from water trapped within the bi-layers of the myelin sheath. The most established method used to obtain the MWF involves the acquisition of 32 or more spin echoes but the inability to perform a multi-slice acquisition and the high specific absorption rate of this method are drawbacks that have motivated the development of alternative techniques. In this work, we described the in-vivo implementation of a novel strategy for rapid whole brain MWF mapping, based on the multi-component gradient echo sampling of spin echoes (mcGESSE).