Neural Regeneration Research ›› 2016, Vol. 11 ›› Issue (7): 1185-1190.doi: 10.4103/1673-5374.187065

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Dose response and time course of manganese-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging for visual pathway tracing in vivo

Wei-ling Wang1, 2, Hui Xu3, Ying Li4, Zhi-zhong Ma4, Xiao-dong Sun5, *, Yun-tao Hu1, 4, *   

  1. 1 Department of Ophthalmology, Beijing Tsinghua Changgung Hospital, Tsinghua University Medical Center, Beijing, China 2 Department of Ophthalmology, General Hospital of Ningxia Medical University, Yinchuan, Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, China 3 Department of Radiology, Peking University Third Hospital, Beijing, China 4 Peking University Eye Center, Peking University Third Hospital, Key Laboratory of Vision Loss and Restoration, Ministry of Education, Beijing, China 5 Department of Ophthalmology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University Affiliated First People’s Hospital, Shanghai, China
  • Online:2016-07-30 Published:2016-07-30
  • Contact: Yun-tao Hu or Xiao-dong Sun, ythu@mail.tsinghua.edu.cn or xdsun@sjtu.edu.cn.
  • Supported by:
    This study was supported by a grant from the National Basic Research Program of China (973 Program), No. 2011CB707506; the Seed Fund from the Peking University Third Hospital of China, No. YZZ08-9-13; and the Linghu Fund from the Peking University Third Hospital of China, No. 64508-01.

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Abstract: Axonal tracing is useful for detecting optic nerve injury and regeneration, but many commonly used methods cannot be used to observe axoplasmic flow and synaptic transmission in vivo. Manganese (Mn2+)-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging (MEMRI) can be used for in vivo longitudinal tracing of the visual pathway. Here, we explored the dose response and time course of an intravitreal injection of MnCl2 for tracing the visual pathway in rabbits in vivo using MEMRI. We found that 2 mM MnCl2 enhanced images of the optic nerve but not the lateral geniculate body or superior colliculus, whereas at all other doses tested (5–40 mM), images of the visual pathway from the retina to the contralateral superior colliculus were significantly enhanced. The images were brightest at 24 hours, and then decreased in brightness until the end of the experiment (7 days). No signal enhancement was observed in the visual cortex at any concentration of MnCl2. These results suggest that MEMRI is a viable method for temporospatial tracing of the visual pathway in vivo. Signal enhancement in MEMRI depends on the dose of MnCl2, and the strongest signals appear 24 hours after intravitreal injection.

Key words: nerve regeneration, manganese, magnetic resonance imaging, visual pathway, optic nerve, tracing, in vivo, intravitreal injection, time, dose, neural regeneration