Post-mortem changes of anisotropic mechanical properties in the porcine brain assessed by MR elastography

Abstract

In this study, MRE and DTI in the minipig were combined to estimate, for the first time, anisotropic mechanical properties in the living brain and in the same brain after death. Significant differences were observed in the anisotropic behavior of brain tissue post-mortem. These results demonstrate the importance of measuring brain tissue properties <i>in vivo</i> as well as <i>ex vivo,</i> and provide new quantitative data for the development of computational models of brain biomechanics.