3D polarized light imaging scan of a mouse brain. The structural information...
3D polarized light imaging scan of a mouse brain. The structural information about the orientation of the nerve fibres from this image served as a comparison for the new neutron measurements.

Credit: Axer, Amunts et al. / INM-1, Forschungszentrum Jülich

News • Mental disorders

Imaging method maps alterations in brain

The brain is the centre of our nervous system - structural changes are often involved in neurological diseases and mental disorders. A team from Forschungszentrum Jülich has developed a neutron-based method to study brain slices and gain a better understanding of these types of diseases.

The brain can be divided into so-called gray matter and white matter. The white matter contains the axons that transmit stimuli. For faster stimulus transmission, the axons are wrapped in an insulating layer of myelin, in the same way as a cable is wrapped in rubber insulation to ensure that no electricity is lost along the way.                                                                                                

If the myelin sheath is damaged or degraded, this leads to impaired brain and body functions. In multiple sclerosis, for example, the insulating myelin layer is severely impaired. However, the exact causes of the disease are still unclear.

Researchers at the Jülich Institute of Neuroscience and Medicine and the Jülich Centre for Neutron Science have developed a new imaging method at the small-angle scattering facility KWS-1 at the MLZ to map the density, structure, and spatial orientation of nerve fibers and myelin.

Schematic diagram of the experimental setup at the small-angle scattering...
Schematic diagram of the experimental setup at the small-angle scattering instrument. The neutron beam hits a brain section ("sample"). A detector records the scattering.

Credit: Forschungszentrum Jülich

Method complements previous procedures

"For a long time now, it has been possible to determine the spatial orientation of nerve fibers in brain slices using light microscopy and polarization," explains Dr. Heinrich Frielinghaus from the JCNS, head of the KWS-1 group, "but the exact structure and orientation of the myelin on the molecular scale cannot be detected using light." With the help of neutrons, the researchers can now for the first time determine both structure and orientation, and correlate these with polarization measurements.

The special feature of this new method is that it allows scientists to image the axons bundled into nerve fibers at the same time as the insulating myelin sheath.

"With our neutron-based method, we can confirm the results of previous methods and provide additional information," says Frielinghaus.

Applications in medicine

"Since we work with brain slices, it is of course not a diagnostic procedure," explains Frielinghaus. With their new method, the researchers hope to better understand the causes of neurological diseases in the future by being able to visualize structural changes in the brain more completely.

The resolution of the new method is still in the millimeter range. However, Frielinghaus and his colleagues expect that measurements precise to the micrometer will be possible in the future. This will enable them to study even the smallest structures in biological tissues.

Source: Forschungszentrum Jülich 

25.02.2022

Read all latest stories

Related articles

Photo

News • Understanding the mechanisms

New ultrafast fMRI technique to improve brain stimulation

Researchers from Queensland have developed a new fMRI technique with vastly increased temporal resolutions, enabling them to capture the dynamics of brain activity at a sub-second level.

Photo

Article • Brain imaging

White matter hyperintensities: a valuable biomarker to assess mortality risk

White matter hyperintensities (WMH) on the brain seen on MRI represent a biomarker associated with a 50/50 risk of death within five years after a first incident acute ischemic stroke (AIS) or…

Photo

News • Neurological disease marker

Promising new radiotracer for demyelination

US researchers have developed a test to detect loss of myelin - a key contributor to many neurological diseases including multiple sclerosis, traumatic brain and spinal cord injuries, stroke, and…

Related products

Alphenix Biplane High Definition Detector

Bi-Plane

Canon · Alphenix Biplane High Definition Detector

Canon Medical Systems Europe B.V.
Magnetom Amira

1.5 Tesla

Siemens Healthineers · Magnetom Amira

Siemens Healthcare GmbH
Vitrea Advanced Visualization

Reading

Canon · Vitrea Advanced Visualization

Canon Medical Systems Europe B.V.
2-part PMMA CT-Phantom

Testing Devices

IBA Dosimetry · 2-part PMMA CT-Phantom

IBA Dosimetry GmbH
3-part PMMA CT-Phantom

Testing Devices

IBA Dosimetry · 3-part PMMA CT-Phantom

IBA Dosimetry GmbH
Subscribe to Newsletter