MRI monitoring of macaque monkeys in neuroscience: case studies, resource and normative data comparisons

Information from Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) is useful for diagnosis and treatment management of human neurological patients. MRI monitoring might also prove useful for non-human animals involved in neuroscience research provided that MRI is available and feasible and that there are no MRI contra-indications precluding scanning. However, MRI monitoring is not established in macaques and a resource is urgently needed that could grow with scientific community contributions. Here we show the utility and potential benefits of MRI-based monitoring in a few diverse cases with macaque monkeys. We also establish a PRIMatE MRI Monitoring (PRIME-MRM) resource within the PRIMatE Data Exchange (PRIME-DE) and quantitatively compare the cases to normative information drawn from MRI data from typical macaques in PRIME-DE. In the cases, the monkeys presented with no or mild/moderate clinical signs, were well otherwise and MRI scanning did not present a significant increase in welfare impact. Therefore, they were identified as suitable candidates for clinical investigation, MRI-based monitoring and treatment. For each case, we show MRI quantification of internal controls in relation to treatment steps and comparisons with normative data in typical monkeys drawn from PRIME-DE. We found that MRI assists in precise and early diagnosis of cerebral events and can be useful for visualising, treating and quantifying treatment response. The scientific community could now grow the PRIME-MRM resource with other cases and larger samples to further assess and increase the evidence base on the benefits of MRI monitoring of primates, complementing the animals’ clinical monitoring and treatment regime

An Open Resource for Non-human Primate Imaging.

Non-human primate neuroimaging is a rapidly growing area of research that promises to transform and scale translational and cross-species comparative neuroscience. Unfortunately, the technological and methodological advances of the past two decades have outpaced the accrual of data, which is particularly challenging given the relatively few centers that have the necessary facilities and capabilities. The PRIMatE Data Exchange (PRIME-DE) addresses this challenge by aggregating independently acquired non-human primate magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) datasets and openly sharing them via the International Neuroimaging Data-sharing Initiative (INDI). Here, we present the rationale, design, and procedures for the PRIME-DE consortium, as well as the initial release, consisting of 25 independent data collections aggregated across 22 sites (total = 217 non-human primates). We also outline the unique pitfalls and challenges that should be considered in the analysis of non-human primate MRI datasets, including providing automated quality assessment of the contributed datasets

An Open Resource for Non-human Primate Imaging.

Non-human primate neuroimaging is a rapidly growing area of research that promises to transform and scale translational and cross-species comparative neuroscience. Unfortunately, the technological and methodological advances of the past two decades have outpaced the accrual of data, which is particularly challenging given the relatively few centers that have the necessary facilities and capabilities. The PRIMatE Data Exchange (PRIME-DE) addresses this challenge by aggregating independently acquired non-human primate magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) datasets and openly sharing them via the International Neuroimaging Data-sharing Initiative (INDI). Here, we present the rationale, design, and procedures for the PRIME-DE consortium, as well as the initial release, consisting of 25 independent data collections aggregated across 22 sites (total = 217 non-human primates). We also outline the unique pitfalls and challenges that should be considered in the analysis of non-human primate MRI datasets, including providing automated quality assessment of the contributed datasets

Accelerating the Evolution of Nonhuman Primate Neuroimaging

© 2019 Elsevier Inc. Nonhuman primate neuroimaging is on the cusp of a transformation, much in the same way its human counterpart was in 2010, when the Human Connectome Project was launched to accelerate progress. Inspired by an open data-sharing initiative, the global community recently met and, in this article, breaks through obstacles to define its ambitions