Diffusion kurtosis imaging: An efficient tool for evaluating age-related changes in rat brains

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Biomedical Imaging
• Gerontology

Background:

• Aging is associated with structural and functional brain changes.
• Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) techniques are crucial for in vivo brain studies.
• Diffusion Kurtosis Imaging (DKI) offers advanced insights into tissue microstructure.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate age-related changes in rat brains using Diffusion Kurtosis Imaging (DKI).
• To assess the utility of DKI parameters in characterizing brain aging.
• To investigate laterality and regional differences in age-related brain alterations.

Main Methods:

• Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats underwent conventional MRI and DKI.
• Measured diffusion values included mean kurtosis (MK) and kurtosis (K⊥).
• Analyzed MK and K⊥ data across different age groups, brain regions, and hemispheres.

Main Results:

• No significant laterality was observed for MK or K⊥ in the cerebral cortex (CT), external capsule (EC), or caudate putamen (CPu).
• Significant age-related changes in MK and K⊥ were detected in both hemispheres across all studied brain regions.
• MK and K⊥ values exhibited a parabolic relationship with age in all analyzed brain regions.

Conclusions:

• DKI effectively detects age-related changes in the rat brain.
• No hemispheric laterality was found for DKI parameters in the studied regions.
• DKI is a promising tool for investigating brain aging processes in rodent models.