# Grey matter sublayer thickness estimation in themouse cerebellum

## TL;DR

This paper presents a new MRI-based framework for measuring the thickness of cerebellar grey matter layers in mice, aiding neurodegenerative disease research.

## Contribution

It introduces a novel method to extract cerebellar layers from high-resolution MRI, focusing on the Purkinje layer, which was previously under-studied.

## Key findings

- Reduced layer thicknesses in Down's syndrome mouse model
- First MRI-based measurement of cerebellar layers in mice
- Framework enables detailed cerebellar morphology analysis

## Abstract

The cerebellar grey matter morphology is an important feature to study neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's disease or Down's syndrome. Its volume or thickness is commonly used as a surrogate imaging biomarker for such diseases. Most studies about grey matter thickness estimation focused on the cortex, and little attention has been drawn on the morphology of the cerebellum. Using ex vivo high-resolution MRI, it is now possible to visualise the different cell layers in the mouse cerebellum. In this work, we introduce a framework to extract the Purkinje layer within the grey matter, enabling the estimation of the thickness of the cerebellar grey matter, the granular layer and molecular layer from gadolinium-enhanced ex vivo mouse brain MRI. Application to mouse model of Down's syndrome found reduced cortical and layer thicknesses in the transchromosomic group.