Related Experiment Video
Updated: Mar 14, 2026
Standardized Data Acquisition for Neuromelanin-Sensitive Magnetic Resonance Imaging of the Substantia Nigra
Published on: September 8, 2021
Reproducibility of locus coeruleus and substantia nigra imaging with neuromelanin sensitive MRI
Jason Langley1,2, Daniel E Huddleston3, Christine J Liu4
1Wallace H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology and Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA.
Objectives:
The purpose of this study was to assess the reproducibility of substantia nigra pars compacta (SNpc) and locus coeruleus (LC) delineation and measurement with neuromelanin-sensitive MRI.
Materials And Methods:
Eleven subjects underwent two neuromelanin-sensitive MRI scans. SNpc and LC volumes were extracted for each scan. Reproducibility of volume and magnetization transfer contrast measurements in SNpc and LC was assessed using intraclass correlation coefficients (ICC) and dice similarity coefficients (DSC).
Results:
SNpc and LC volume measurements showed excellent reproducibility (SNpc-ICC: 0.94, p < 0.001; LC-ICC: 0.96, p < 0.001). SNpc and LC were accurately delineated between scans (SNpc-DSC: 0.80 ± 0.03; LC-DSC: 0.63 ± 0.07).
Conclusion:
Neuromelanin-sensitive MRI can consistently delineate SNpc and LC.
