White matter R2* imaging is sensitive to the fiber orientation with respect to the main magnetic field. This study compared fiber orientation dependent R2* of white matter in post mortem (pm) in situ and in vivo based on an identical technical approach using diffusion tensor imaging to estimate the fiber angle. R2* increased with increasing fiber angle in both groups, whereby a decreased R2* orientation sensitivity was observed post mortem compared to in vivo. This may be mainly caused by the decreased pm brain temperature compared to in vivo conditions leading to reduced diffusion and by tissue decomposition after death.
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