Neuroinflammation can be monitored using fluorine-19 (19F)-containing
nanoparticles and 19F MRI. Previously we studied neuroinflammation in
experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE) using room temperature (RT)
19F radiofrequency (RF) coils and low spatial resolution 19F MRI to overcome
constraints in signal-to-noise ratio (SNR). This yielded an approximate
localization of inflammatory lesions. Here we used a new 19F transceive
cryogenic quadrature RF probe (19F-CRP) that provides the SNR necessary to
acquire superior spatially-resolved 19F MRI. First we characterized the
signal-transmission profile of the 19F-CRP. The 19F-CRP was then benchmarked
against a RT 19F/1H RF coil. For SNR comparison we used reference compounds
including 19F-nanoparticles and ex vivo brains from EAE mice administered with
19F-nanoparticles. The transmit/receive profile of the 19F-CRP diminished with
increasing distance from the surface. This was counterbalanced by a
substantial SNR gain compared to the RT coil. Intraparenchymal inflammation in
the ex vivo EAE brains was more sharply defined when using 150 μm isotropic
resolution with the 19F-CRP, and reflected the known distribution of EAE
histopathology. At this spatial resolution, most 19F signals were undetectable
using the RT coil. The 19F-CRP is a valuable tool that will allow us to study
neuroinflammation with greater detail in future in vivo studies