New imaging method makes fMRI quieter and clearer for brain–behavior research
Functional magnetic resonance imaging, or fMRI, gives researchers a powerful way to study brain activity. But the scans can be incredibly noisy for patients and research subjects, with peak sound levels reaching 120 to 138 decibels—about as loud as a jackhammer.
Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) is a valuable tool for studying brain activity, but the scans can be noisy, causing stress and interference for patients and research subjects. Yen-Yu Ian Shih, a neurology professor at the UNC School of Medicine, has developed a new method called SORDINO to address this issue. SORDINO, which stands for Steady-state On-the-Ramp Detection of INduction-decay with Oversampling, is an fMRI acquisition sequence that significantly reduces acoustic noise, electromagnetic interference, and stress-related hormones, resulting in clearer and more accurate images.
The method has been successfully tested in mouse models and has enabled researchers to study complex behaviors, such as voluntary skilled movements and social interactions, without the disruptive effects of conventional fMRI. SORDINO has been granted a U.S. patent and could potentially bring similar advances to human MRI studies.
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