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Updated: Dec 28, 2025
Diffusion Tensor Magnetic Resonance Imaging in the Analysis of Neurodegenerative Diseases
Published on: July 28, 2013
Brain Myelin Water Fraction and Diffusion Tensor Imaging Atlases for 9-10 Year-Old Children
Sarah R Morris1,2,3, Richard Davis Holmes3, Adam V Dvorak1,2
1Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada.
Insights
This study created myelin water imaging (MWI) and diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) atlases for 9-10-year-old children. These resources offer normative data for pediatric brain development and disorder research.
Area of Science:
- Neuroimaging
- Pediatric Neuroscience
- Brain Development
Background:
- Myelin water imaging (MWI) and diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) are crucial for assessing brain microstructure in children.
- Existing pediatric DTI atlases are available, but there is a lack of MWI atlases for the 9-10-year-old age group.
- Age-specific normative data are essential for studying pediatric brain pathologies due to ongoing myelination and structural development.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop normative myelin water fraction (MWF) and DTI atlases for healthy children aged 9-10 years.
- To provide a valuable resource for pediatric neuroimaging studies investigating brain development and disorders.
- To facilitate the comparison of pediatric brain data with age-specific healthy controls.
Main Methods:
- Acquisition of 3D-T1, DTI, and MWI scans from 20 healthy children (mean age 9.6 years).
- Creation of quantitative MWF and DTI atlases using ANTs and FSL registration.
- Region of interest (ROI) analysis to compare pediatric MWF with adult values and correlate MWF with DTI metrics.
Main Results:
- Adults exhibited significantly higher MWF than the pediatric cohort in most white matter regions.
- Pediatric MWF showed a significant correlation with mean diffusivity.
- No significant correlation was found between pediatric MWF and axial diffusivity, radial diffusivity, or fractional anisotropy.
Conclusions:
- The developed normative MWF and DTI metrics for 9-10-year-old children serve as a vital resource for pathological comparisons.
- These age-specific atlases are readily available for use in pediatric neuroimaging research.
- The created atlases can be accessed at: https://sourceforge.net/projects/pediatric-mri-myelin-diffusion/.
Background And Purpose:
Myelin water imaging (MWI) and diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) provide information about myelin and axon-related brain microstructure, which can be useful for investigating normal brain development and many childhood brain disorders. While pediatric DTI atlases exist, there are no pediatric MWI atlases available for the 9-10 years old age group. As myelination and structural development occurs throughout childhood and adolescence, studies of pediatric brain pathologies must use age-specific MWI and DTI healthy control data. We created atlases of myelin water fraction (MWF) and DTI metrics for healthy children aged 9-10 years for use as normative data in pediatric neuroimaging studies.
Methods:
3D-T1 , DTI, and MWI scans were acquired from 20 healthy children (mean age: 9.6 years, range: 9.2-10.3 years, 4 females). ANTs and FSL registration were used to create quantitative MWF and DTI atlases. Region of interest (ROI) analysis in nine white matter regions was used to compare pediatric MWF with adult MWF values from a recent study and to investigate the correlation between pediatric MWF and DTI metrics.
Results:
Adults had significantly higher MWF than the pediatric cohort in seven of the nine white matter ROIs, but not in the genu of the corpus callosum or the cingulum. In the pediatric data, MWF correlated significantly with mean diffusivity, but not with axial diffusivity, radial diffusivity, or fractional anisotropy.
Conclusions:
Normative MWF and DTI metrics from a group of 9-10 year old healthy children provide a resource for comparison to pathologies. The age-specific atlases are ready for use in pediatric neuroimaging research and can be accessed: https://sourceforge.net/projects/pediatric-mri-myelin-diffusion/.
