Abstract: Brain tissue and cerebral spinal fluid (CSF) move in response to changes in blood pressure/flow over the cardiac cycle.  This is referred to as Neural Dynamics.   Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) can be used to study CSF flow pulsations using phase contrast magnetic resonance (PCMR).  We have recently developed an MRI method to measure motion of the brain parenchyma using displacement encoding with simulated echoes (DENSE).  We applied PCMR and DENSE to look at coupling of CSF flow and brain motion in the setting of Chiari Malformation, a disease where the cerebellar tonsils drop below the foramen magnum.  MRI scans were performed in a series on 100+ Chiari Malformation patients where ~half underwent treatment by posterior fossa decompression surgery.  We examined changes in neural dynamics (CSF flow and brain motion) between healthy subjects and Chiari Malformation patients, and in Chiari Malformation patients before and after surgery.  The goal of the project is to: 1) understand pathophysiology of Chiari Malformation, 2) predict effects of surgery on neural dynamics, and 3) develop better methods of selecting patients for surgical treatment.

Biography:  John Oshinski, PhD is a Professor of Radiology & Imaging Sciences at Emory and Biomedical Engineering at Emory University and Georgia Tech.  He was trained as a mechanical Engineer and has spent 25 years using imaging and experimental and computational fluid mechanics to study the relationship between hemodynamics and vascular disease in the clinical environment.  His research program focuses on developing new imaging and modelling applications that improve the diagnosis of cardiovascular disease, influence patient care decisions, and enable a better understanding of basic cardiacvascular  physiology and pathophysiology.  Dr. Oshinski also serves as director of the Emory Center for Systems Imaging (CSI), and integrated core facility that houses all the research imaging equipment in the Emory school of Medicine (3T and 7T human MRI scanners, human PET/CT and PET/MR scanners, animal MRI and PET/CT, cyclotron, and Radiopharmacy).

~ BME Host: Vitaliy Rayz ~

Zoom link: https://purdue-edu.zoom.us/j/99721542345?pwd=SnpHdjhWWlFWTmVMSzd1WS9teC9NZz09

Note: Students registered for the seminar are expected to attend in-person.