Perturbed development of rhesus macaque fetal cerebral cortex and white matter in an IUGR pregnancy, secondary to placental insufficiency, characterized by in utero diffusion MRI

In utero diffusion and anatomical MRI measurements were performed on a naturally occurring intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR) and 3 control pregnant rhesus monkeys. Water diffusion anisotropy (FA) within fetal cerebral cortex as well as white matter was used to characterize abnormal development in the IUGR fetal brain. Markedly higher cortical FA, indicating aberrent morphogenesis of cortical neurons, was observed in the IUGR fetal brain compared to controls. In addition, significantly reduced FA in a number of white matter tracts was also found in the IUGR fetal brain, reflecting perturbed white matter development.