Isotropic High Resolution Diffusion Imaging of Human Habenula In Vivo at 7T

Barbara Strotmann¹, Alfred Anwander¹, Robin Heidemann¹, Eugenia Solano-Castiella¹, Arno Villringer¹, Robert Turner¹

The habenula has an important controlling role within the reward system. Overactivation is associated with depression. The habenula is positioned next to the third ventricle and is 5-9 mm in diameter. The combination of zoomed imaging with parallel imaging ZOOPPA enables DWI acquisitions with 1 mm isotropic resolution at 7T. The data show distinct nuclei of the human habenula in vivo. We identified lateral and medial nuclei with their connecting fibre bundles to the forebrain and the brainstem. The nuclei are clearly visible on the quantitative T1 map. with a high myelinisation of the LHB and the HBC. Further study of the habenular subdivisions and their role in brain function is likely to improve understanding of the pathophysiology of a wide range of neurologic and psychiatric disorders.