Synopsis

A myriad of physiological and biophysical changes in soft tissues can occur with aging and pathology due to inflammation, demyelination, iron aggregation, etc. These changes can be captured using various MRI modalities especially the transverse relaxation times (T2 and T2*). In this presentation, I will discuss the biophysical basis of these relaxations, provide a few examples of various or widely used preclinical and clinical techniques as well as their advantages and limitations, and finally details some applications of T2 and T2* mapping to probe tissue microstructure and iron content with a focus on brain tisue.