Fast T ₁ mapping MRI in preclinical and clinical settings using subspace-constrained joint-domain reconstructions.

Area of Science:

• Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI)
• Medical Physics
• Biomedical Engineering

Background:

• Accurate T1 mapping is crucial for various clinical and preclinical MRI applications.
• Existing T1 mapping methods can be time-consuming, limiting their clinical utility.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and validate fast T1 mapping techniques for both preclinical and clinical MRI scanners.
• To enhance the efficiency of T1 characterization using subspace-constrained reconstructions.

Main Methods:

• Exploration of two rapid T1 characterization sequences: interleaved spatiotemporal encoding with variable repetition times and inversion recovery gradient echo with random phase-encoding sampling.
• Application of subspace reconstruction for joint image reconstruction and T1 relaxation characterization from down-sampled data.
• Validation through in vivo scans on human brains and abdomens, and preclinical scans on animals with tumors and dynamic contrast-enhanced kidney imaging.

Main Results:

• Demonstrated efficiency of the proposed subspace-constrained reconstruction methods for fast T1 mapping.
• Confirmed compatibility with breath-holding techniques in human scans.
• Showcased applicability in preclinical settings, including abdominal tumors and dynamic contrast-enhanced kidney imaging.

Conclusions:

• The developed fast T1 mapping methods based on subspace-constrained reconstructions are efficient and versatile.
• These techniques are suitable for both clinical and preclinical MRI, offering improved T1 characterization capabilities.