Educational Symposium: Mechanisms of longitudinal relaxation in the human brain

The longitudinal relaxation time of water protons (T1) is a sensitive biomarker for brain tissue composition reflecting local macromolecular and iron content. T1-contrast in the brain is widely applied for anatomical imaging, brain segmentation, cortical parcellation and as a biomarker for myelination. However, the relaxation mechanisms in the brain tissue are far from fully understood and no generative models of the underlying processes so far exist. This limits interpretation and specificity of T1-based myelination biomarkers. This workshop will bring together experts in quantitative MRI of the brain and provide an overview of current models of myelin- and iron-induced longitudinal relaxation in the human brain. The target audience are scientists, PhD students and postdocs working in the field of quantitative MRI and microstructural imaging of the human brain.