Substantially thinner internal granular layer and reduced molecular layer surface in the cerebellum of the Tc1 mouse model of Down Syndrome - a comprehensive morphometric analysis with active staining contrast-enhanced MRI

Down Syndrome is a chromosomal disorder that affects the development of cerebellar cortical lobules. Impaired neurogenesis in the cerebellum varies among different types of neuronal cells and neuronal layers. In this study, we developed an imaging analysis framework that utilizes gadolinium-enhanced ex vivo mouse brain MRI. We extracted the middle Purkinje layer of the mouse cerebellar cortex, enabling the estimation of the volume, thickness, and surface area of the entire cerebellar cortex, the internal granular layer, and the molecular layer in the Tc1 mouse model of Down Syndrome. The morphometric analysis of our method revealed that a larger proportion of the cerebellar thinning in this model of Down Syndrome resided in the inner granule cell layer, while a larger proportion of the surface area shrinkage was in the molecular layer

Scanning beyond the limits of standard OCT with a Fourier domain optical coherence tomography integrated into a slit lamp: the SL SCAN-1

PURPOSE: With a new Fourier domain optical coherence tomography (FD OCT) device, SL SCAN-1 (Topcon Europe Medical BV, Capelle a/d IJssel, The Netherlands), integrated into a slit-lamp OCT, scans can be obtained through a handheld lens. The necessary adjustment of the reference arm is possible by fast Z-alignment. This study was performed to prove the capability of SL SCAN-1 to scan through a three-mirror contact lens, scanning the peripheral retina and anterior chamber angle. METHODS: Different representative pathologies of the peripheral retina and anterior chamber were simultaneously observed and scanned with the SL SCAN-1. The scans of peripheral retinal lesions were obtained both through a handheld lens and through a three-mirror contact lens. The anterior chamber angle was scanned directly with the SL SCAN-1 in anterior mode, and through the gonio-mirror of a three-mirror contact lens with the SL SCAN-1 in posterior mode. RESULTS: OCT scans could be obtained with the SL SCAN-1 of the peripheral retina through both, a common handheld lens and a three-mirror contact lens. The scans obtained through a three-mirror contact lens were of better quality, visualizing details of the different layers of the retina more clearly. The scans of the anterior chamber, obtained through the gonio-mirror of a three-mirror contact lens, visualized the open anterior chamber angle, with details of fine structures. CONCLUSIONS: The SL SCAN-1 is a unique FD OCT system, which is able to scan not only the posterior pole and anterior segment but also the anterior chamber angle and the more peripheral retina. These four modalities combined into one device could make the SL SCAN-1 a very powerful aid in daily practice