Diffusion MRI: from quantitative measurement to in-vivo neuroanatomy

Diffusion imaging is a non-invasive MR technique that is now being used in novel ways to study aspects of white matter anatomy that could never before be investigated in the living brain. The technique therefore has enormous potential for addressing novel research questions in both basic and clinical neuroscience. This book aims to cover the field of diffusion imaging from the fundamental theory to its most cutting-edge applications. It contains sufficient detail to be a reference book for medical physicists, but will also cover fundamental aspects of experimental design and example applications that will be of interest to clinical and basic neuroscientists. Importantly, the book presents diffusion imaging in the context of well-established, classical experimental techniques, so that readers will be able to assess the scope and limitations of the new imaging technology with respect to techniques available previously. Each section includes chapters on methodology (with the more advanced, mathematical material included in appendices for the interested reader), validation of the imaging technology, and application of diffusion imaging to the study of variation and development of normal brain anatomy, and disruption to the white matter in neurological disease or psychiatric disorder. The aim of the book is to become an essential reference text for scientists designing or interpreting diffusion MR experiments.

Section 1: Introduction to Diffusion MRI
Introduction Peter Basser, NIH, USA
Pulse sequences for diffusion MRI Jim Pipe, University of Michigan, USA
Simple modeling the diffusion signal Derek Jones, Cardiff, UK
Complex modeling of the diffusion signal Danny Alexander, London, UK

Section 2: Diffusion MRI for quantitative measurement
Histological techniques for quantitative measurement of white matter microstructure TBA
The biological basis of the diffusion signal Christian Beaulieu, University of Alberta, Canada
Measuring anatomically meaningful parameters from diffusion MRI Yaniv Assaf, University of Tel Aviv, Israel
Local measurement of diffusion MRI parameters Steven Smith, University of Oxford, UK
Diffusion MRI and histological measurement in MS TBA
White matter changes throughout the lifespan: development and ageing David Salat, Harvard, USA
Structure-function relationships in the healthy brain Heidi Johansen-Berg, Oxford, UK
White matter measurement in neuropsychiatry TBA

Section 3: Diffusion MRI for in-vivo neuroanatomy
Classical techniques for tract tracing Bob Morecraft, University of South Dakota, USA and Deepak Pandya, Boston, USA
Introduction to diffusion MRI tractography Susumu Mori, Johns Hopkins University, USA
Probabilistic approaches to diffusion tractography Tim Behrens and Saad Jbabdi University of Oxford, UK
Validation of tractography Geoff Parker, Manchester, UK
Connectivity fingerprinting of the cortex Tim Behrens and Heidi Johansen-Berg, Oxford, UK
Language pathways in the human brain Marco Catani, Institute of Psychiatry, London, UK
Tractography for surgical targeting Andreas Bartsch, University of Wurzburg, Germany
Inter-species comparison of white matter anatomy using diffusion tractography Matthew Rushworth, Oxford, UK

Researchers engaged in brain imaging, in Cognitive Neuroscience, Neuroscience, Radiology, Medical Physics and adjacent areas
Further reading material for Masters Courses in Neuroscience, Medical Physics which include a course in Brain Imaging, as well as Dedicated Masters courses in Brain Imaging (e.g., Rutgers, USA, UCLA, USA, Birmingham, UK)

"A thorough and exciting review of the diffusion MRI techniques that are going to rewrite our knowledge of the long tract anatomy of the human brain. Extremely well written and illustrated." - Michael S. Gazzaniga, Director, Sage Center for the Study of Mind, University of California, Santa Barbara, USA

"25 years after its debut, diffusion MRI today provides us with beautiful, marvelous images of connecting wires within the human brain, and this is achieved just by placing healthy subjects or patients in the middle of a strong magnet. How is this miracle possible? What could we expect from the knowledge of the brain connectome? This beautifully illustrated book addresses these questions with great clarity. The book is highly recommendable to all those who are interested in the links between brain structure and function." - Denis Le Bihan, Member of the Institut de France, Academy of Sciences, Director, NeuroSpin, CEA-Saclay Center, Gif-sur-Yvette, France

"Unbelievable as it may seem, we know almost nothing about the real connectivity of the human cerebral cortex. What we think we know is mostly inferred from results obtained in the monkey. This book provides an exciting exploration of diffusion tensor imaging, a method that can start to close this gap. The editors, who are themselves pioneers in this field, have assembled authoritative chapters on the promises that lie ahead and the challenges that will be encountered." - Marsel Mesulam, Ruth and Evelyn Dunbar Professor of Neurology, Psychiatry and Psychology, Director, The Cognitive Neurology and Alzheimer's Disease Center (CNADC), Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, USA

"Diffusion MRI has tremendous potential for elucidating brain structure and circuitry in health and disease, but the approach is fraught with methodological and interpretational challenges. This excellent and authoritative book edited by Johansen-Berg and Behrens is an invaluab