Inbal E Biton1, Noa Stettner1, Ayelet Erez2, Alon Harmelin1, and Joel R Garbow3
1Department of Veterinary Resources, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel, 2Department of Biological Regulation, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel, 3Biomedical Magnetic Resonance Laboratory, Mallinckrodt Institute of Radiology, Washington University, St. Louis, MO, United States
Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is
characterized by uncontrolled inflammation of the gastrointestinal tract [1]. Determining
the inflammatory state of the colon is critical for defining the disease
activity. Endoscopy in human IBD allows visualization of mucosal inflammation
[2]. However, the technique is based on grading of the entire colon, which is
operator dependent. The mucosa is very fragile, therefore endoscopic evolution
is problematic. Therefore, the development of an improved, noninvasive,
objective MRI technique may provide a non-invasive assessment tool to depict
pathologies in the small intestinal mucosa and, more specifically, along the
colon, and to assess the bowel wall and surrounding structures. In this study,
dextran sodium sulphate (DSS) polymer treatment was used to induce acute
colitis in mice that was subsequently characterized by multi-slice MR
colonography.
