CESTsimu: An open-source GUI for spectral and spatial CEST simulation

The aim of this study was to create a user-friendly CEST simulation tool with a GUI for both spectral (1D Z-spectra) and spatial (2D phantom) CEST experiments, making the CEST simulation easier to perform.

CESTsimu was developed using MATLAB App Designer. It consists of three modules: Saturation Settings, Exchange Settings, and Phantom Settings. CESTsimu can not only import/export files in the defined format but can also import files generated by other existing simulation platforms (e.g. pulseq-CEST).

The 1D Z-spectrum simulation results demonstrated the effectiveness of CESTsimu in simulating Z-spectra under various saturation ( $$ and $$ ) and exchange settings (concentration and exchange rate). The 2D simulation results showed that CESTsimu can generate an arbitrary number of phantoms with different shapes under different noise conditions. Notably, CESTsimu could also simulate $$ and $$ inhomogeneity in 2D patterns that mimicked practical conditions. Moreover, the accuracy of CESTsimu was validated by simulating 8 cases in the BMsim challenge.

We developed a user-friendly CESTsimu GUI for intuitively simulating CEST experiments under diverse saturation and exchange settings in 1D and 2D conditions. CESTsimu has the potential to facilitate the broad utilization of CEST MRI among a wide range of users.