Future Direction of AI, Neuroimaging Research: Michael Dwyer, PhD

WATCH TIME: 3 minutes

"The next frontier is to be able to leverage these giant databases we have. Now that we have tools to work on quality clinical scans, we essentially have unlocked these databases for mining these metrics."

The Buffalo Neuroimaging Analysis Center (BNAC) has been at the forefront at developing new precision neuroimaging techniques and reevaluating the standard methods that have been in place for decades. There are several ongoing projects at the center, with therapeutic areas that include, but are not limited to, demyelinating diseases, neuromuscular diseases, and neurodegenative diseases. One notable study, CASA-MS, will compare advanced-stage patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) to age-, sex-, and disease-duration-matched patients with MS, in hopes to establish a comprehensive framework within which to study the unique needs of those severely impacted by MS.

Michael Dwyer, PhD, director of IT and Neuroinformatics Development, BNAC, specializes in quantitative neuroimaging analysis methods, as well as the use of artificial intelligence (AI). His highlights include the development and validation of a method for detecting and quantifying demyelination and remyelination in vivo, the development of a method dramatically improving on the precision of conventional tissue-specific atrophy measurement in clinical routine, and the investigation of the MRI “connectome” on cognition in patients with MS.

In an interview with NeurologyLive, Dwyer discussed the highly anticipated work being done at the center as well as some of the most pressing needs within the space. He highlighted a previously conducted study using a deep gray matter approach and its association with MS disease progression.