What type of study is this?

This is a Quantitative Study study.

September 17, 2025

Quantifying unmyelinated axons from time-dependent radial kurtosis in brain white matter

Key Points

The study estimates the water fraction of unmyelinated axons using radial kurtosis, indicating significant implications for neurodegenerative disease analysis.
Monte Carlo simulations show good alignment of the derived equation with radial kurtosis values, confirming the method's accuracy for estimating unmyelinated axon water fraction.
The KÄrger model establishes a relationship between exchange time and water fractions, providing a theoretical basis for measuring unmyelinated axon characteristics.
Findings highlight how unmyelinated axon density may change across development and aging, emphasizing the importance of monitoring these changes in various conditions.

Abstract

Motivation: Unmyelinated axons have been largely overlooked in white matter modeling Goal (s): To demonstrate that unmyelinated axonal water fraction can be estimated from radial kurtosis K^ (t) measured at varying diffusion times. Approach: By means of the KÄrger model, we derived an equation that relates exchange time, myelinated and unmyelinated axonal water fractions with K^ (t) Results: Using Monte Carlo simulations, we demonstrate good agreement between our derived equation and K^ (t), and accurate estimation of the unmyelinated axon water fraction. Impact: Unmyelinated axon density changes in development, aging, and neurodegenerative diseases such as multiple sclerosis. Estimation of the unmyelinated axon fraction from time dependent kurtosis could lead to new biomarkers for diagnosis and prognosis, as well as to assess remyelination.

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