Abstract

Background

The German multicenter research consortium BipoLife aims to investigate the mechanisms underlying bipolar disorders. It focuses in particular on people at high risk of developing the disorder and young patients in the early stages of the disease. Functional and structural magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) data was collected in all participating centers. The collection of neuroimaging data in a longitudinal, multicenter study requires the implementation of a comprehensive quality assurance (QA) protocol. Here, we outline this protocol and illustrate its application within the BipoLife consortium.

Methods

The QA protocol consisted of (1) a training of participating research staff, (2) regular phantom measurements to evaluate the MR scanner performance and its temporal stability across the course of the study, and (3) the assessment of the quality of human MRI data by evaluating a variety of image metrics (e.g., signal-to-noise ratio, ghosting level). In this article, we will provide an overview on these QA procedures and show exemplarily the influence of its application on the results of standard neuroimaging analysis pipelines.

Discussion

The QA protocol helped to characterize the various MR scanners, to record their performance over the course of the study and to detect possible malfunctions at an early stage. It also assessed the quality of the human MRI data systematically to characterize its influence on various analyses. Furthermore, by setting up and publishing this protocol, we define standards that must be considered when analyzing data from the BipoLife consortium. It further promotes a systematic evaluation of data quality and a definition of subject inclusion criteria. In the long term, it will help to increase the chance of achieving clinically relevant results.

Details

Title
The German research consortium for the study of bipolar disorder (BipoLife): a quality assurance protocol for MR neuroimaging data
Author
Vogelbacher, Christoph 1 ; Sommer, Jens 2 ; Bopp, Miriam H. A. 3 ; Falkenberg, Irina 4 ; Ritter, Philipp S. 5 ; Bermpohl, Felix 6 ; Attar, Catherine Hindi 6 ; Einenkel, Karolin E. 7 ; Gruber, Oliver 7 ; Juckel, Georg 8 ; Flasbeck, Vera 8 ; Hautzinger, Martin 9 ; Pfennig, Andrea 5 ; Matura, Silke 10 ; Reif, Andreas 10 ; Grotegerd, Dominik 11 ; Dannlowski, Udo 11 ; Kircher, Tilo 12 ; Bauer, Michael 5 ; Jansen, Andreas 13 

 Philipps University of Marburg, Department of Psychology, Marburg, Germany (GRID:grid.10253.35) (ISNI:0000 0004 1936 9756); University of Marburg and Justus Liebig University Giessen, Center for Mind, Brain and Behavior (CMBB), Giessen, Germany (GRID:grid.8664.c) (ISNI:0000 0001 2165 8627) 
 University of Marburg, Core-Facility Brainimaging, Faculty of Medicine, Marburg, Germany (GRID:grid.10253.35) (ISNI:0000 0004 1936 9756) 
 University of Marburg and Justus Liebig University Giessen, Center for Mind, Brain and Behavior (CMBB), Giessen, Germany (GRID:grid.8664.c) (ISNI:0000 0001 2165 8627); University of Marburg, Department of Neurosurgery, Marburg, Germany (GRID:grid.9026.d) (ISNI:0000 0001 2287 2617) 
 University of Marburg, Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Marburg, Germany (GRID:grid.9026.d) (ISNI:0000 0001 2287 2617) 
 Carl Gustav Carus University Hospital, Technische Universität Dresden, Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Dresden, Germany (GRID:grid.4488.0) (ISNI:0000 0001 2111 7257) 
 Campus Charité Mitte, Department of Psychiatry and Clinical Neuroscience, Berlin, Germany (GRID:grid.6363.0) (ISNI:0000 0001 2218 4662); St. Hedwig Hospital, Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Berlin, Germany (GRID:grid.6363.0) (ISNI:0000 0001 2218 4662); Corporate Member of Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität Zu Berlin, and Berlin Institute of Health, Berlin, Germany (GRID:grid.7468.d) (ISNI:0000 0001 2248 7639) 
 Heidelberg University, Section for Experimental Psychopathology and Neuroimaging, Department of General Psychiatry, Heidelberg, Germany (GRID:grid.7700.0) (ISNI:0000 0001 2190 4373) 
 LWL University Hospital, Ruhr-University, Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Preventive Medicine, Bochum, Germany (GRID:grid.5570.7) (ISNI:0000 0004 0490 981X) 
 Eberhard Karls University, Department of Psychology Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, Tübingen, Germany (GRID:grid.10392.39) (ISNI:0000 0001 2190 1447) 
10  Goethe University Frankfurt, University Hospital, Department of Psychiatry, Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy, Frankfurt, Germany (GRID:grid.7839.5) (ISNI:0000 0004 1936 9721); Fraunhofer Institute for Translational Medicine and Pharmacology ITMP, Frankfurt, Germany (GRID:grid.510864.e) 
11  University of Münster, Institute for Translational Psychiatry, Münster, Germany (GRID:grid.5949.1) (ISNI:0000 0001 2172 9288) 
12  University of Marburg and Justus Liebig University Giessen, Center for Mind, Brain and Behavior (CMBB), Giessen, Germany (GRID:grid.8664.c) (ISNI:0000 0001 2165 8627); University of Marburg, Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Marburg, Germany (GRID:grid.9026.d) (ISNI:0000 0001 2287 2617) 
13  Philipps University of Marburg, Department of Psychology, Marburg, Germany (GRID:grid.10253.35) (ISNI:0000 0004 1936 9756); University of Marburg and Justus Liebig University Giessen, Center for Mind, Brain and Behavior (CMBB), Giessen, Germany (GRID:grid.8664.c) (ISNI:0000 0001 2165 8627); University of Marburg, Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Marburg, Germany (GRID:grid.9026.d) (ISNI:0000 0001 2287 2617) 
Pages
33
Publication year
2024
Publication date
Dec 2024
Publisher
Springer Nature B.V.
e-ISSN
21947511
Source type
Scholarly Journal
Language of publication
English
ProQuest document ID
3110135163
Copyright
© The Author(s) 2024. This work is published under http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ (the “License”). Notwithstanding the ProQuest Terms and Conditions, you may use this content in accordance with the terms of the License.