Project: Harmonized Hippocampal Subfield Segmentation Working Group
| Acronym | HSG (Reference Number: JPCOFUND_FP-940-006) |
| Duration | 01/10/2016 - 31/03/2017 |
| Project Topic | Hippocampal subfield segmentation is a central focus for studies of neurodegeneration. Improved specificity of subfield volume may be used as sensitive diagnostic criteria to determine pathology as the subfields show differential vulnerability in aging and disease. Convergence of evidence across studies is hampered by substantial disagreement among extant segmentation protocols. To resolve this major barrier, HSG will develop a valid, reliable, and harmonized protocol for in vivo hippocampal subfield segmentation that can be adopted as the gold standard for neurodegenerative research. Due to the complexity of the structure, the HSG determined a multistage method that will 1st develop a protocol for the hippocampal body (the largest, mid-section of the hippocampus) using high-resolution T2-weighted 3 Tesla MRI scans before developing the protocol in the remainder of the hippocampus. Neuroanatomists (Amunts, Augustinack, Insausti) contributed 3 different labeled ex vivo datasets, serving as additional reference atlases of subfield boundary definition, while accounting for interindividual and across-lab variability. Next, the HSG will 1) determine whether the Harmonized Hippocampal Protocol (HarP; developed for whole structure volumetry) can be applied to high-resolution T2-weighted scans as the outer boundary, and 2) propose and test boundaries between adjacent subfields based upon reference atlases, the advice of the consulting neuroanatomists, and the expertise of the HSG in vivo MRI imaging members. Delphi procedure will be used to solicit feedback and establish consensus among the larger HSG community (~150 participants from > 15 countries), following which six expert raters will perform a formal reliability analysis. Finally, the protocol will be disseminated through conference presentations and a published manuscript. Following the completion of the hippocampal body protocol, the working group will apply the same methods to the development, reliability testing, and dissemination of a subfield segmentation protocol for the hippocampal head and tail (the anterior and posterior part of the hippocampus). |
| Network | JPco-fuND |
| Call | Working Groups for Harmonisation and Alignment in Brain Imaging Methods for Neurodegeneration |