Development and Evaluation of ASL Imaging Protocol and Methods for Studies of Ischemic Events in the Swine Brain

Motivation: To facilitate research studies benefiting from longitudinal measures of perfusion in the swine brain. Goal(s): Implement a perfusion study protocol and evaluate the reproducibility and feasibility of SMS/MB-EPI pseudo-continuous arterial spin labeling (PCASL) in a swine model. Approach: In vivo perfusion studies were performed at 3T to assess the reproducibility and the feasibility of PCASL imaging. Additional acquisitions included high resolution anatomic imaging and T1 mapping to facilitate segmentation and registration. Results: Our results suggest that PCASL imaging is a promising approach to assess brain perfusion changes in the study of ischemic events in the swine model. Impact: Development of non-contrast enhanced arterial spin labeling methods for swine brain perfusion imaging will provide pre-clinical researchers a valuable tool to assess and monitor brain perfusion changes following injury or interventions.