# Addressing biological barriers in in vivo human brain MRI acquisitions

> **NIH NIH P41** · MASSACHUSETTS GENERAL HOSPITAL · 2020 · $262,080

## Abstract

TRD3 Addressing biological barriers in in vivo human brain MRI acquisitions
Abstract
In this project, we propose a program of bioengineering development to improve human
functional and anatomical MRI at its acquisition stage. We aim to bridge the macro and micro
scales of brain architecture by improving the spatio-temporal resolution of fMRI down to its
biological limits. The barriers we face in acquisition encoding and then again in the ability of MRI
to perform anatomical imaging at the meso scale (500 um or less) and finally the spatial fidelity
of fMRI maps themselves are primarily biological. Firstly, we impact MRI encoding broadly by
focusing on methods to address the Peripheral Nerve Stimulation (PNS) barrier in application of
fast gradient coils. We will improve gradient coil technology through utilizing a detailed peripheral
nerve stimulation model to predict nerve stimulation and optimize reduction strategies. In Aim 2
we address the confounds of respiratory and patient motion in anatomical imaging through
motion robust image reconstruction of anatomical MR images using a data-consistency driven
approach. We jointly estimate biological nuisance modulations from respiration and patient
motion within the multi-channel kspace data. Successful joint estimate of the image and the
nuisance variables within a comprehensive forward model effectively removes these confounds
from the image yielding a motion and respiratory robust acquisition. Finally, in aim 3 we develop
methods to address spatial resolution limits imposed on fMRI by large vasculature by predicting
and removing them from the activation maps on the flattened cortical surface by models
incorporating prior knowledge from high resolution vascular maps. Overall, our tools will broadly
advance the study of human brain circuits at the mesoscopic scale while retaining the whole-
brain and non-invasive features of MRI.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10038181
- **Project number:** 1P41EB030006-01
- **Recipient organization:** MASSACHUSETTS GENERAL HOSPITAL
- **Principal Investigator:** Lawrence L Wald
- **Activity code:** P41 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $262,080
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2020-08-01 → 2025-04-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10038181

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10038181, Addressing biological barriers in in vivo human brain MRI acquisitions (1P41EB030006-01). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-24 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10038181. Licensed CC0.

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