White Matter Maps

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is essentially the study of water diffusion in living tissue. It’s commonly used in medical imaging to examine neurological disorders and tissue lesions, producing detailed images and brain maps. Water diffusion in the brain is anisotropic [has a preferred direction], so by studying water diffusion the fastest direction of travel can be mapped using coloured fibres to reveal the orientation of white matter bundles in the brain. Pictured are the MRI brain connectivity maps of 78 subjects, highlighting the neural connections at specific locations in the brain. While there are clear similarities between the subjects, slight differences help to shed light on our individualities. But the mechanisms behind water diffusion are still not fully understood. Researchers are currently working to gather mechanistic insight into the processes behind MRI in order to optimise the technique, providing higher resolution images, which could be used to study cell function.

Written by Helen Thomas

Helen Thomas

Writer

Currently at Warwick University, Helen is working towards a chemistry doctorate in nanomaterials. However her scientific interests remain broad, and she enjoys exploring these different areas as a writer for the University paper.

• Image courtesy of the NeuroSpin CONNECT/Archi team
• Copyright held by original authors
• Research published in PLOS Biology, July 2015