Quantitative Analysis of Magnetoferritin-Induced Relaxivity Enhancement in MRI |
| O. Strbaka, L. Balejcikovab, M. Mihalikovac, P. Kopcanskyd, D. Dobrotac
aBiomedical Center Martin, Jessenius Faculty of Medicine in Martin, Comenius University in Bratislava, Mala Hora 4, 036 01 Martin, Slovakia bInstitute of Hydrology, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Dubravska cesta 9, 841 04 Bratislava, Slovakia cDepartment of Medical Biochemistry, Jessenius Faculty of Medicine in Martin, Comenius University in Bratislava, Mala Hora 4, 036 01 Martin, Slovakia dInstitute of Experimental Physics, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Watsonova 47, 040 01 Kosice, Slovakia |
| Full Text PDF |
| Various disorders, including neurodegenerative diseases, are associated with iron accumulation. Ferritin particles are believed to be a precursor of pathological iron core transformation and iron accumulation, forming so-called pathological ferritin. Magnetoferritin is currently considered as the most suitable model system of pathological ferritin. It is described as apoferritin containing a magnetite nanocrystal. The magnetic moment of magnetoferritin is significantly larger than the magnetic moment of native ferritin containing ferrihydrite crystal. Theoretically, the effect of magnetoferritin on longitudinal and transverse relaxivity should also be significantly higher. Therefore, we provide a quantitative analysis of the magnetoferritin-induced enhancement of longitudinal and transverse relaxivity. However, our results at 7 T MRI indicate that a transverse relaxation significantly prevails in magnetoferritin compared to native ferritin. Such a quantitative analysis is essential for developing the MRI methodology required for non-invasive diagnostics of pathological processes associated with iron accumulation. |
DOI:10.12693/APhysPolA.137.720 topics: ferritin, magnetoferritin, MRI, relaxivity, non-invasive diagnostics |