Time averaging and fitting of nonlinear metabolic changes: the issue of the time index choice applied to 31P MRS investigation of muscle energetics

We present an exact analytical method dedicated to fitting time-dependent exponential-like changes in MR spectra. As an illustration, this method has been applied to fitting metabolic changes recorded by 31P MRS in human skeletal muscle occurring during a rest-exercise-recovery protocol. When recording metabolic changes with the accumulative method, the time averaging of the MR signals implies the choice of a time index for fitting any changes in the features of the associated MR spectra. A critical examination of the different ways (constant, linear, and exponential) of choosing the time index is reported. By numerical analysis, we have calculated the errors generated by the three methods and we have compared their sensitivity to noise. In the case of skeletal muscle, both constant and linear methods introduce large and uncontrolled errors for the whole set of metabolic parameters derived from [PCr] changes. In contrast, the exponential method affords a reliable estimation of critical parameters in muscle bioenergetics in both normal and pathological situations. This method is very easy to implement and provides an exact analytical solution to fitting changes in MR spectra recorded by the accumulative method.     

Absolute metabolite quantification by in vivo NMR spectroscopy: I. introduction,objectives and activities of a concerted action in biomedical research

By utilizing achievements and results of two previous concerted research projects on magnetic resonance imaging and spectroscopy (MRS), the EU BIOMED 1 Concerted Action on “Cancer and brain disease characterization and therapy assessment by quantitative MRS” was specifically aimed at: 1) developing at a multicentre level harmonized methodologies and protocols for quantitative and reproducible MRS measurements, as a basis for validating these procedures in well controlled clinical and experimental conditions; and 2) providing multicentre critical reviews on the present understanding of the significance of MRS parameters as possible new markers of diagnosis, prognosis and response to therapy. The programme comprised the following main areas of collaborative research and multicentre evaluation: a) development of methods and protocols for quality assessment, calibration and absolute metabolite quantification in in vivo localized, volume-selective MRS; b) design and validation of a new method for assessing localization performance in spectroscopic imaging (MRSI); c) interlaboratory comparison of different methods of signal processing and data analysis, for improving signal quantification in vivo and in vitro MRS spectra; d) quality assessment of high resolution MRS analyses of biological fluids; e) protocol for assembling a pilot data base of MR spectra of tumour extracts for pattern recognition analysis; f) multicentre review on evaluation of the significance of MRS parameters in monitoring lipid metabolism and function in cancer; and g) multicentre review on evaluation of drug pharmacokinetics and metabolism using MRS. The main results and conclusions of four multi-centre trials on items (a), (b) and (c), which involved 24 teams, are reported in the accompanying papers of this series.     

Parametric methods for frequency-selective MR spectroscopy-a review

Accurate quantitation of the spectral components in a pre-selected frequency band for magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) signals is a frequently addressed problem in the MR community. One obvious application for such a frequency-selective technique is to lower the computational burden in situations when the measured data sequence contains too many samples to be processed using a standard full-spectrum method. Among the frequency-selective methods previously proposed in the literature, only a few possess the two features of primary concern: high robustness against interferences from out-of-band components and low computational complexity. In this survey paper we consider five spectral analysis methods which can be used for MRS signal parameter estimation in a selected frequency band. We re-derive the filter diagonalization method (FDM) in a new way that allows an easy comparison to the other methods presented. Then we introduce a frequency-selective version of the method of direction estimation (MODE) which has not been applied to MR-spectroscopy before. In addition, we present a filtering and decimation technique using a maximum phase bandpass FIR-filter and relate it to a similar ARMA-modeling approach known as SB-HOYWSVD (sub-band high-order Yule-Walker singular value decomposition). Finally, we study the numerical performances of these four methods and compare them to that of the recently introduced SELF-SVD (Singular Value Decomposition-based method usable in a SELected Frequency band) in several examples using simulated MR data, and discuss the benefits and disadvantages of each technique.     

Dielectric relaxation studies of aqueous sucrose in ethanol mixtures using time domain reflectometry

Time domain reflectometry method has been used in the frequency range of 10 MHz to 10 GHz to determine dielectric properties of aqueous sucrose in ethanol. The dielectric parameters, i.e., static dielectric constant and relaxation time were obtained from the complex permittivity spectra using the non-linear least squares fit method. The Luzar theory is applied to compute the cross-correlation terms for the mixtures. It adequately reproduces the experimental values of static dielectric constants. The Bruggeman model for the non-linear case has been fitted to the dielectric data for mixtures.     

A method for on-line background subtraction in frequency domain fluorometry

Time-resolved fluorescence determinations on biochemical samples are often complicated by contributions from background. In the time-correlated single-photon counting method, background subtraction is a routine procedure. A limitation of frequency domain fluorometry, however, arises from the difficulty of performing this operation. This limitation has become increasingly significant as frequency domain methods are being applied to evermore complex biological systems using the higher-frequency capabilities of modern instrumentation. We have devised a method for such a correction in the frequency domain, regardless of the complexity of the background decay, based on measurement of the background phasor and subsequent subtraction from the sample phasor. This method is applicable to both lifetime and dynamic polarization measurements, and it can be readily implemented on commercially available frequency domain fluorometers. Decay curves may be accurately recovered from samples containing background contributions ranging from less than 5% to greater than 90% of the total signal intensity.     

Multi-channel magnetic resonance spectroscopy through time domain multiplexing

Time domain multiplexing (TDM) is presented as a viable approach to increasing the sensitivity and efficiency of magnetic resonance spectroscopic (MRS) experiments through multi-channel signal acquisition. By switching very rapidly between coils of a receive phased array, TDM receiver extensions allow the acquisition of multiple, independent spectra through a single channel magnetic resonance console. A TDM receiver extension designed for imaging and spectroscopy is described, and the impact of this hardware extension on the processing and quantitation of MRS data is addressed. The primary complication involves the use of fixed bandwidth RF band-pass filters that can not be adjusted to match the spectral width of the desired MRS experiment.MRS sequences whose bandwidths are narrower than the bandwidth provided by TDM band-pass filters can be acquired through TDM with minimal loss of SNR as long as two constraints are met. The first constraint requires that the entire bandwidth of the band-pass filters be sampled at or more rapidly than the Nyquist rate associated with their bandwidth, to prevent extra noise from aliasing into the final spectrum. The second requirement is that spectral resolution be held constant to that of the desired experiment.Results from a two-channel multiplexed MRS experiment, conducted according to these guidelines, illustrate that TDM can be used to allow acquisition of multi-channel MRS experiments through single channel console systems with a minimal loss in SNR.     

Automatic frequency alignment and quantitation of single resonances in multiple magnetic resonance spectra via complex principal component analysis

Several algorithms for automatic frequency alignment and quantitation of single resonances in multiple magnetic resonance (MR) spectra are investigated. First, a careful comparison between the complex principal component analysis (PCA) and the Hankel total least squares-based methods for quantifying the resonances in the spectral sets of magnetic resonance spectroscopy imaging (MRSI) spectra is presented. Afterward, we discuss a method based on complex PCA plus linear regression and a method based on cross correlation of the magnitude spectra for correcting frequency shifts of resonances in sets of MR spectra. Their advantages and limitations are demonstrated on simulated MR data sets as well as on an in vivo MRSI data set of the human brain.     

嵌入式薄片模型在时域有限差分算法中的应用

将一等效薄片模型嵌入到时域有限差分算法（FDTD）中,以快速而有效地解决复合材料薄片在电磁计算中的多尺度问题。在该嵌入式薄片模型中,薄片不需要被剖分网格,而是被嵌入到相邻的网格间,从而可以使用相对较大的网格剖分周围物体,进而可节省大量的计算资源。在这一模型中,薄片被等效为一段传输线,并用其频域的导纳矩阵代替。使用数字滤波器理论以及逆Z变换可将频域的导纳矩阵转换到时域,并将其嵌入到时域有限差分算法中。该嵌入式薄片模型被用来计算一单层碳纤维复合材料薄片的反射以及透射性能,并与其解析解进行对比,从而验证该模型的准确性、收敛性以及高效性。该模型被用来计算三种具有不同电参数的单层碳纤维复合材料薄片的屏蔽性能,以研究各电参数对其屏蔽性能的影响。     

Time domain algorithm for calculating spatially measured dispersion in optical fibers

Simple and fast algorithm for calculating spatially fiber chromatic dispersion is discussed. This method is applied on the data collected from measuring the Stokes wave of the back-reflected Rayleigh scattered signal in optical fiber under test. The data analysis is performed in the time domain contrary to already known analysis in frequency domain. The results achieved in the time domain match well with those in the frequency domain.     

Estimation of ultrasound attenuation and dispersion using short time Fourier transform

Determination of the acoustic attenuation and dispersion has important applications in ultrasound tissue characterization and non-destructive material testing. Current signal processing methods Fourier transform of ultrasound signals to get the spectra of amplitude and phase to estimate respectively the attenuation and dispersion of a given medium. These methods are frequency domain method and obsessed with ambiguity issue in the phase unwrapping calculation. Conventional ultrasound velocity measuring method detects the time of arrival of a pulse (or echo) signal, which is a time domain method to compute group velocity (not phase velocity). This paper presents a novel approach based on the short time Fourier transform (STFT)--a time-frequency analysis, to estimate the ultrasonic dispersion and attenuation. Only the amplitude information of the pulse-signal spectra is used. Based on the time-frequency presentation, the attenuation coefficient of the signal is obtained by computing the amplitude decay of pulse spectrum in time domain, while phase velocities are obtained based on the "time-of-flight" (TOF) of the mono frequency component of the pulse signals. As a result, we eliminate the ambiguity issue in phase angle calculation. Furthermore, the proposed method makes the phase velocity pedagogically intuitive for novice users. The paper presents experiments to evaluate demonstrate the performance of the proposed method.     

Comparison of frequency,field, and time domain ferromagnetic resonance methods

We present vector network analyzer ferromagnetic resonance measurements of epitaxial Fe films having a thickness of 16 monolayers. Our objective is to test the reliability of this novel frequency domain technique with respect to frequency and damping. For this purpose we compare vector network analyzer ferromagnetic resonance to pulsed inductive microwave magnetometry, time resolved magneto-optic Kerr effect (both methods in the time domain), and conventional ferromagnetic resonance (measured in the field domain) in terms of position and width of the ferromagnetic resonance. In addition, we compare the various techniques with respect to the signal to noise ratio of the raw data. All data is obtained using the same well characterized ultrathin magnetic Fe/GaAs (0 0 1) film. Finally, we demonstrate the potential of the vector network analyzer ferromagnetic resonance technique for the investigation of nano-structured magnetic elements having nonuniform magnetization configuration. The absorption spectrum of Permalloy disks with a diameter of 200 nm and a thickness of 15 nm shows up to eight distinct resonance peaks. The spatial structure of the corresponding modes was derived from numerical calculations and reveals that azimuthal modes up to the fifth order have been observed inductively.     

Time-domain quantification of multiple-quantum-filtered (23)Na signal using continuous wavelet transform analysis

The application of continuous wavelet transform (CWT) analysis technique is presented to analyze multiple-quantum-filtered (MQF) (23)Na magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) data. CWT acts on the free-induction-decay (FID) signal as a time-frequency variable filter. The signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) and frequency resolution of the output filter are locally increased. As a result, MQF equilibrium longitudinal magnetization and the apparent fast and slow transverse relaxation times are accurately estimated. A developed iterative algorithm based on frequency signal detection and components extraction, already proposed, was used to estimate the values of the signal parameters by analyzing simulated time-domain MQF signals and data from an agarose gel. The results obtained were compared to those obtained by measurement of signal height in frequency domain as a function of MQF preparation time and those obtained by a simple time-domain curve fitting. The comparison indicates that the CWT approach provides better results than the other tested methods that are generally used for MQF (23)Na MRS data analysis, especially when the SNR is low. The mean error on the estimated values of the amplitude signal and the apparent fast and slow transverse relaxation times for the simulated data were 2.19, 6. 63, and 16.17% for CWT, signal height in frequency domain, and time-domain curve fitting methods, respectively. Another major advantage of the proposed technique is that it allows quantification of MQF (23)Na signal from a single FID and, thus, reduces the experiment time dramatically.     

基于时/频域分析的光电吊舱稳定精度测试方法研究北大核心CSCD

稳定精度作为光电吊舱的关键性能指标之一,开展瞄准线稳定精度测试方法研究对于光电吊舱测试与验收具有重要意义。结合粗精组合稳定光电系统,提出一种基于时/频域分析的稳定精度测试方法。通过采集随机振动环境下惯性速率传感器和光学补偿元件的角位置信号,基于信号时域分析,得到图像漂移角速率、抖动及概率分布情况;基于信号频域分析,得到瞄准线角位置信号的功率谱密度。提出频段稳定精度贡献度,用于评估不同频段对稳定精度的影响程度;采用二级稳定效能提升度,评价二级稳定在不同频段对系统稳定性能的提升程度。该方法可以直观展示图像抖动及概率分布情况,同时给出影响瞄准线稳定精度的频率要素,对于指导机电系统设计具有重要的工程应用价值。     

Time-domain quantification of series of biomedical magnetic resonance spectroscopy signals.

Quantification of individual magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) signals is possible in the time domain using interactive nonlinear least-squares fitting methods which provide maximum likelihood parameter estimates under certain assumptions or using fully automatic, but statistically suboptimal, black-box methods. In kinetic experiments time series of consecutive MRS spectra are measured in which information concerning the time evolution of some of the signal parameters is often present. The purpose of this paper is to show how AMARES, a representative example of the interactive methods, can be extended to the simultaneous processing of all spectra in the time series using the common information present in the spectra. We show that this approach yields statistically better results than processing the individual signals separately.     

A time domain correction method for Doppler-distortion signal from acoustic moving source

Doppler effect widely exists in the signal from the moving acoustic source. In order to solve such problems as frequency shift and frequency band expansion, a time domain cor- rection method is presented in this paper. First, the discrete time vector for interpolation and the amplitude restoration formula is derived based on the moving relationship and the Morse acoustic theory, then the amplitude weights are corrected and the distortion signal is interpolated. Every point of the discrete signal is operated separately in time domain. Compared with the existing frequency domain methods, this method does not need to know the characteristic frequency beforehand and would not be influenced by the blending of the frequency band. Hence, this method can be employed to correct multiple frequency signals and it is also a simple and effective Doppler effect reduction method.     

运动声源多普勒畸变信号的一种时域校正方法

运动声源信号中广泛存在多普勒效应的影响,为了解决其引起的频移、频带扩展问题,提出了一种时域信号校正方法。该方法首先从运动关系和莫尔斯声学理论出发推导得出离散插值时间序列和幅值还原公式,然后对畸变信号进行幅值还原和插值拟合。仿真信号和实验信号处理结果表明多普勒效应带来的频移和频带扩展问题得到了较好的解决,畸变信号得到了有效校正。该方法在时域内对离散信号进行单点操作,与以往的频域处理方法相比具有无需已知声源特征频率、不受频带混叠因素影响的优点,该方法能够处理多频信号,是一种简单有效的多普勒效应消除方法。      

光脉冲编码对基于拉曼放大的布里渊光时域分析系统的影响

报道了光脉冲编码对基于拉曼放大的布里渊光时域分析系统(BOTDA)的影响. 实验表明,光脉冲编码能够在保证较高空间分辨率的同时减小布里渊频移的不确定性. 实验实现了49.6 km传感距离, 在整段传感光纤上温度分辨率1 ℃,空间分辨率2.5 m. 本文实验测量并分析了系统的信噪比和光功率分布特性. 关键词： 分布式光纤传感 受激拉曼散射 布里渊增益 布里渊光时域分析系统(BOTDA)     

Alzheimer''s disease histologically proven studied by MRI and MRS: Two cases

Two patients affected by severe Alzheimer's disease (AD) were investigated by MRI and image-guided ³¹P MRS. In one case, ¹H MRS was additionally performed. In both cases the diagnosis of AD was confirmed, post mortem, by the pathologist. The spectral parameters of the ³¹P MR spectra were estimated by fitting the ³¹P MR signals in the time domain. Our ³¹P MRS results suggest that it is possible to detect the membrane catabolism, as indexed with the level of PDE resonances visible in in vivo ³¹P MRS, at least in severe AD cases. The ¹H spectrum from AD brain showed a marked decrease of NAA signal respect to choline.     

Classification of brain tumours using short echo time 1H MR spectra

The purpose was to objectively compare the application of several techniques and the use of several input features for brain tumour classification using Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy (MRS). Short echo time 1H MRS signals from patients with glioblastomas (n = 87), meningiomas (n = 57), metastases (n = 39), and astrocytomas grade II (n = 22) were provided by six centres in the European Union funded INTERPRET project. Linear discriminant analysis, least squares support vector machines (LS-SVM) with a linear kernel and LS-SVM with radial basis function kernel were applied and evaluated over 100 stratified random splittings of the dataset into training and test sets. The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) was used to measure the performance of binary classifiers, while the percentage of correct classifications was used to evaluate the multiclass classifiers. The influence of several factors on the classification performance has been tested: L2- vs. water normalization, magnitude vs. real spectra and baseline correction. The effect of input feature reduction was also investigated by using only the selected frequency regions containing the most discriminatory information, and peak integrated values. Using L2-normalized complete spectra the automated binary classifiers reached a mean test AUC of more than 0.95, except for glioblastomas vs. metastases. Similar results were obtained for all classification techniques and input features except for water normalized spectra, where classification performance was lower. This indicates that data acquisition and processing can be simplified for classification purposes, excluding the need for separate water signal acquisition, baseline correction or phasing.     

近红外光谱的小波特性研究

通过对在柴油近红外光谱中加入模拟噪声和模拟背景构成的模拟光谱进行小波分析,考察了模拟噪声和模拟背景(线性、二阶和三阶非线性漂移)在小波时-频区域的分布。结果表明,近红外光谱的背景主要分布在低频部分,尤其是逼近部分;噪声主要分布在高频细节部分;反映柴油性质变化的信号主要分布在中间频率细节部分。利用小波变换可同时有效地扣除背景和噪声;选取中间频率细节的小波系数作为多元校正变量进行柴油性质分析,有利于提高分析精度和分析速度。