Page 59 - AIH-2-1

Artificial Intelligence in Health

ORIGINAL RESEARCH ARTICLE
Algorithm development and metal oxide

nanoparticle analysis in magnetic resonance
imaging: Advancing neurodegenerative disease

diagnostics

Daniela Gomes Bornal 1† , Hulder Henrique Zaparoli 1† ,
Marina Piacenti-Silva 2 , Paulo Noronha Lisboa-Filho 2 ,
2
and Marcela de Oliveira *
1 Postgraduate Program in Science and Technology of Materials - POSMAT, School of Sciences/São
Paulo State University, Bauru, São Paulo, Brazil
2 Department of Physics and Meteorology, School of Sciences/São Paulo State University, Bauru,
São Paulo, Brazil
(This article belongs to the Special Issue: Artificial intelligence for diagnosing brain diseases)

Abstract

† These authors contributed equally Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is critical in the diagnosis of neurodegenerative
to this work. diseases, enabling the detection of brain lesions. Recent research has examined metallic
*Corresponding author: nanoparticles (NPs) as MRI contrast agents (CAs) that can enhance lesion visibility by
Marcela de Oliveira altering relaxation times. This study investigates the effects of metal oxide NPs on MRI
(marcela.oliveira@unesp.br)
relaxation times and brain lesion signals and proposes an algorithm for automated
Citation: Bornal DG, relaxation time determination using these NPs. The utilized NPs were synthesized using
Zaparoli HH, Piacenti-Silva M,
Lisboa-Filho PN, de Oliveira M. the sol‒gel method and characterized using Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy
Algorithm development and metal and X-ray diffraction. MRI scans were performed on a phantom infused with varying
oxide nanoparticle analysis in concentrations of each metal oxide NP to assess changes in pixel signal intensities and
magnetic resonance imaging:
Advancing neurodegenerative relaxation rates. Our analysis involved segmenting the MRI images to focus on regions
disease diagnostics. Artif Intell with different NP concentrations. The algorithm computed the longitudinal relaxation
Health. 2025;2(1):53-67. time for each region, revealing that Fe O NPs exhibited the most substantial effect on
doi: 10.36922/aih.3947 2 3
signal intensity and relaxation time. The results indicated a high correlation (r = 0.9977),
Received: June 14, 2024 demonstrating strong agreement and confirming the reliability of our method. Our
Revised: August 1, 2024 findings suggest that metallic oxide NPs, particularly Fe O , can considerably alter
2
3
magnetization and act as effective negative CAs in MRI. These capabilities can improve
Accepted: August 28, 2024
the monitoring and treatment efficacy of neurodegenerative diseases. Our method for
Published Online: October 9, 2024 quantifying longitudinal relaxation times can potentially enhance routine clinical MRI
Copyright: © 2024 Author(s). assessments, offering a promising tool for future clinical applications.
This is an Open-Access article
distributed under the terms of the
Creative Commons Attribution Keywords: Magnetic resonance imaging; Algorithm; Longitudinal relaxation time (T1);
License, permitting distribution, Signal intensity
and reproduction in any medium,
provided the original work is
properly cited.
Publisher’s Note: AccScience
Publishing remains neutral with 1. Introduction
regard to jurisdictional claims in
published maps and institutional Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is a vital diagnostic imaging tool in the medical field,
1,2
affiliations. particularly for diagnosing various neurodegenerative diseases. MRI can differentiate

Volume 2 Issue 1 (2025) 53 doi: 10.36922/aih.3947