BATS

BATS generates high-resolution perfusion-weighted and quantitative arterial spin labeling (ASL) templates and simulates ASL contrasts for neuroimaging analyses.

Key Features:

• High-resolution perfusion templates: Provides high-resolution perfusion-weighted and quantitative perfusion templates.
• Arterial transit time and anatomical contrasts: Includes arterial transit time (ATT) maps and multiple anatomical contrasts aligned to Montreal Neurological Institute space.
• Template construction framework: Constructs templates using the Advanced Normalization Toolbox's multivariate template nonlinear framework.
• Acquisition data sources: Built from high-resolution fast spin echo acquisitions from a cohort of 10 healthy volunteers, including single-delay and multi-delay ASL data, T1-weighted magnetization prepared rapid acquisition gradient echoes, and T2 fluid attenuated inversion recovery data.
• Registration examples: Includes examples for registering ASL data acquired with various sequences.
• ASL simulator with kinetic models: Implements an ASL simulator that uses standard kinetic models to generate synthetic ASL contrasts from user-defined parameters.

Scientific Applications:

• Cerebral blood flow and perfusion analysis: Provides templates and contrasts for neuroimaging studies focused on cerebral blood flow and perfusion analysis.
• Studies without structural scans: Enables ASL-based analyses for studies that do not acquire structural scans by supplying ASL templates and contrasts.
• Simulation and hypothesis testing: Allows simulation of perfusion data under controlled parameter settings to study ASL dynamics and support hypothesis testing.
• Harmonization of multi-sequence datasets: Facilitates registration of ASL acquisitions across diverse acquisition protocols.

Methodology:

Template construction using the Advanced Normalization Toolbox multivariate template nonlinear framework; ASL simulation using standard kinetic models; examples for registration of ASL contrasts and ATT maps to Montreal Neurological Institute space.