3 tesla magnetic resonance imaging and multiplanar reconstruction of the brain and its associated structures in sheep

The purpose of the study was to scan the brain and related structures in sheep with high-resolution magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and three-dimensional (3D) multiplanar reconstruction for defining the anatomical regions. Six adult sheep, three of six were male and three of six were female used as cadaver, were utilized in this research. Heads were scanned at 3 Tesla Siemens Magnetom Spin-Echo MRI devices using the human head coil. The processes were acquired in both T1 and T2 weighted slices and were reconstructed by using Leonardo workstation. The cranioencephalic structures and anatomical details were defined and labeled in all slice of 3 planes that were obtained 1 mm thickness sequential images in sagittal, frontal, and transversal planes. According to the MRI measurements obtained intracranially from the brain, the average value of length, height, and width of the brain were 87.1 ± 0.3, 46.8 ± 0.7, and 62.2 ± 0.4 mm, respectively. It was observed that in T1 weighted images were more effective to identify deep brain structures and anatomical details. On 3D reconstructed images obtained from the study can be used as a reference in head and brain MR scans in multidisciplinary studies where sheep are used as animal models.