pH-weighted MRI in Multiple Sclerosis: A Surrogate Marker of Tissue Metabolic Stress

Twenty subjects (10 patients and 10 age-matched control volunteers) will be recruited for this study. MRI scans will take place on a 3T MRI Scanner (Skyra or Prisma, Siemens Medical Solutions) located at The NYU Center for Biomedical Imaging. MRI scans will consist of a 1-hour brain scan for both patients and controls. In the first 6 months of the study, investigators will develop and test a uMT-based APT imaging for brain tissue pH measurement and use a hypercapnia paradigm to validate the tissue pH changes between breathing room air and 5% CO2 (by increasing tissue acidity) inhalation. With implementation of hypercapnia MRI, pH-weighted imaging will be validated for its robustness and reproducibility.