Abstract #1230

Mapping ocular dominance columns in humans using GE-EPI, SE-EPI and SS-SI-VASO at 7 T

Daniel Haenelt^1,2, Nikolaus Weiskopf¹, Lenka Vaculciakova^1,2, Roland Mueller¹, Shahin Nasr^3,4, Jonathan Polimeni^3,4, Roger Tootell^3,4, Laurentius Huber⁵, Martin Sereno⁶, and Robert Trampel¹

¹Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Leipzig, Germany, ²International Max Planck Research School on Neuroscience of Communication: Function, Structure, and Plasticity, Leipzig, Germany, ³Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Boston, MA, United States, ⁴Department of Radiology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States, ⁵Department of Cognitive Neuroscience, Maastricht Brain Imaging Center, Maastricht, Netherlands, ⁶Department of Psychology, San Diego State University, San Diego, CA, United States

Functional MRI studies classically rely on the use of GE-EPI sequences. However, the GE-based signal is inherently sensitive to large veins, which impairs its use in high-resolution fMRI application. Other BOLD- and CBV-based approaches like SE-EPI and SS-SI-VASO, respectively, promise a higher specificity at the expense of sensitivity. In the present work, we tested if ocular dominance columns (ODCs) can be detected using GE-EPI, SE-EPI and SS-SI-VASO at 7 T. ODCs could be reliably mapped using all three acquisition methods. Furthermore, we could show for the first time ODCs in humans by exploiting the functional CBV response using SS-SI-VASO.

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