High-Resolution Multi-Contrast Template Construction of the Cervical Spinal Cord Using Anatomical and Diffusion MRI at 80 µm

Motivation: The current spinal cord templates contain only anatomical MRI contrasts and have relatively low resolution, such that fine morphology specific to each level appeared unclear. Goal(s): This study aims to construct a multi-contrast cervical spinal cord ex vivo template at 80 μm isotropic resolution of using anatomical and diffusion MRI data. Approach: The multi-contrast template was constructed using an optimised registration protocol using T1, b0, and FA images acquired at 9.4 T. Results: The new template displayed high anatomical delineation across the imaging contrasts, facilitating high-quality segmentation of cervical spinal cord grey and white matter structures. Impact: This high-resolution multi-contrast template can potentially improve anatomical and microstructural analysis disease-related changes. For example, besides measuring atrophies, clinicians could use the template to pin-point subtle changes in the GM motoneuron pool due to degeneration or injuries.