Direct visualization and characterization of the human zona incerta and surrounding structures

Authors

Jonathan C. Lau, The University of Western Ontario
Yiming Xiao, Robarts Research Institute
Roy A.M. Haast, Robarts Research Institute
Greydon Gilmore, The University of Western Ontario
Kâmil Uludağ, Sungkyunkwan University
Keith W. MacDougall, The University of Western Ontario
Ravi S. Menon, Robarts Research InstituteFollow
Andrew G. Parrent, The University of Western Ontario
Terry M. Peters, The University of Western OntarioFollow
Ali R. Khan, The University of Western Ontario

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

11-1-2020

Journal

Human Brain Mapping

Volume

41

Issue

16

First Page

4500

Last Page

4517

URL with Digital Object Identifier

10.1002/hbm.25137

Abstract

The zona incerta (ZI) is a small gray matter region of the deep brain first identified in the 19th century, yet direct in vivo visualization and characterization has remained elusive. Noninvasive detection of the ZI and surrounding region could be critical to further our understanding of this widely connected but poorly understood deep brain region and could contribute to the development and optimization of neuromodulatory therapies. We demonstrate that high resolution (submillimetric) longitudinal (T1) relaxometry measurements at high magnetic field strength (7 T) can be used to delineate the ZI from surrounding white matter structures, specifically the fasciculus cerebellothalamicus, fields of Forel (fasciculus lenticularis, fasciculus thalamicus, and field H), and medial lemniscus. Using this approach, we successfully derived in vivo estimates of the size, shape, location, and tissue characteristics of substructures in the ZI region, confirming observations only previously possible through histological evaluation that this region is not just a space between structures but contains distinct morphological entities that should be considered separately. Our findings pave the way for increasingly detailed in vivo study and provide a structural foundation for precise functional and neuromodulatory investigation.

Notes

© 2020 The Authors. Human Brain Mapping published by Wiley Periodicals LLC.

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