Irene Vavasour's PHYSICS RESEARCH Page
Return to the Vavasour family web site : Irene's home page

Current Research | B.Sc. Thesis | M.Sc. Thesis | Ph.D. Thesis | Publications | Books | Presentations | About PostScript

 

Current Research

As a Research Associate in the Radiology Research Group in the Dept. of Radiology (MRI) at UBC Hospital, my current research involves the application of magnetization transfer and T2 relaxation techniques to the in vivo MRI study of Multiple Sclerosis and other conditions. In our technique, we apply novel pulse sequences in order to distinguish between water environments in the brain. A focus of this method is to highlight demyelination which occurs in MS lesions and other pathologies. Ultimately, we would like to use MRI as a non-invasive method to determine underlying brain pathology.

For further information on our research, please visit our associates at the UBC High Field Magnetic Resonance Imaging Centre site, or email me.

 

B.Sc. (Hons.) Thesis

My 1991 B.Sc. thesis, from the Dept. of Physics at the University of New Brunswick under the supervision of Dr. Al Sharp, was titled "The Determination of the Phase Diagram for a DMPC/DSPC Lipid Mixture Using 2H NMR Difference Spectroscopy". The research itself was conducted under the supervision of Dr. Mike Morrow of the Dept. of Physics at Memorial University of Newfoundland as part of an NSERC Undergraduate Summer Research Award. The content of this thesis contributed to Ref. 1 below. The thesis can be viewed online, or downloaded here in two forms:

View Irene's B.Sc. Thesis online
Download Irene's B.Sc. Thesis in PostScript format (zipped)
Download Irene's B.Sc. Thesis in Adobe Acrobat (PDF) format (requires Acrobat Reader).

 

M.Sc. Thesis

My 1993 M.Sc. thesis, from the Dept. of Physics at the University of British Columbia under the supervision of Dr. Myer Bloom, was titled "The Effects of Polymer-Controlled Hydration on Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Parameters". The thesis can be viewed online, or downloaded here in two forms:

View Irene's M.Sc. Thesis online
Download Irene's M.Sc. Thesis in PostScript format (zipped)
Download Irene's M.Sc. Thesis in Adobe Acrobat (PDF) format (requires Acrobat Reader).

 

Ph.D. Thesis

My 1998 Ph.D. thesis, from the Dept. of Physics at the University of British Columbia under the supervision of Dr. Alex MacKay, was titled "Magnetic Resonance of Human and Bovine Brain". The contents of this thesis can be found in Refs. 3 and 4 below and more are in the works. The thesis can be viewed online, or downloaded here in two forms:

View Irene's Ph.D. Thesis online
Download Irene's Ph.D. Thesis in PostScript format (zipped)
Download Irene's Ph.D. Thesis in Adobe Acrobat (PDF) format (requires Acrobat Reader).

 

Refereed Publications

  1. D. Lu, I. Vavasour and M. Morrow, "Smoothed Acyl Chain Orientational Order Parameter Profiles in Dimyristoylphosphatidylcholine-Distearoylphosphatidylcholine Mixtures: A 2H-NMR Study. Biophysical Journal 68:574-583 (1995).
  2. I. Vavasour, N. Kitson, A. MacKay, "What's water got to do with it? A nuclear magnetic resonance study of molecular motion in pig stratum corneum." Journal of Investigative Dermatology, 3:101-104 (1998).
  3. I. Vavasour, K. Whittall, A. MacKay, D. Li, G. Vorobeychik, D. Paty, "A Comparison between Magnetization Transfer Ratios and Myelin Water Percentages in Normals and Multiple Sclerosis Patients." Magnetic Resonance in Medicine, 40:763-768 (1998).
  4. I. Vavasour, K. Whittall, D. Li, A. MacKay, "Different Magnetization Transfer Effects Exhibited by the Short and Long T2 Components of Human Brain." Magnetic Resonance in Medicine, 44:860-866 (2000).
  5. G. R. W. Moore, E. Leung, A. L. MacKay, I. M. Vavasour, K. P. Whittall, K. S. Cover, D. K. B. Li, S. A. Hashimoto, J. Oger, T. J. Sprinkle, D. W. Paty, "A pathology-MRI study of the short-T2 component in formalin-fixed multiple sclerosis brain." Neurology 55:1506-1510 (2000).
  6. [Invited paper] A. MacKay, C. Laule, B. Mädler, I. Vavasour, K. Whittall, "Magnetic Resonance Distinguishes Different Water Reservoirs in Brain." Phys. in Canada, March/April 2002, 58(2):135-143 (2002).
  7. K. P. Whittall, A. L. MacKay, D. K. B. Li, I. M. Vavasour, C. K. Jones, and D. W. Paty, "Normal-Appearing White Matter in Multiple Sclerosis Has Heterogeneous, Diffusely Prolonged T2." Magnetic Resonance in Medicine, 47:403-408 (2002).
  8. C. Laule, I. M. Vavasour, K. P. Whittall, J. Oger, D. W. Paty, D. K. B. Li, A. L. MacKay, D. L. Arnold, "Evolution of Focal and Diffuse Magnetisation Transfer Abnormalities in Multiple Sclerosis." J. Neurol. 250(8):924-931 (2003).
  9. S. W. Flynn, D. J. Lang, A. L. MacKay, V. Goghan, I. M. Vavasour, K. P. Whittall, G. N. Smith, V. Arango, J. J. Mann, A. J. Dwork, P. Falkai, W. G. Honer. "Abnormalities of myelination in schizophrenia detected in vivo with MRI, and post-mortem with analysis of oligodendrocyte proteins." Mol. Psychiatry. 8:811-820 (2003).
  10. C. Laule, I. M. Vavasour, G. R. W. Moore, J. Oger, D. K. B. Li, D. W. Paty, A. L. MacKay. "Water content and myelin water fraction in multiple sclerosis. A T2 relaxation study." J. Neurol. 251(3):284-293 (2004).
  11. D. Li, C. Laule, I. Vavasour, J. Vavasour, K. Whittall, A. MacKay. "Cervical cord atrophy assessment on magnetic Resonance Imaging: PROMiSe Trial," Mult. Scler. 10:S79-80 (2004).
  12. T. A. Bjarnason, I. M. Vavasour, C. L. L. Chia, A. L. MacKay. "Characterization of the NMR Behavior of White Matter in Bovine Brain," Magnetic Resonance in Medicine, 54:1072-1081 (2005).
  13. [Invited paper] A. MacKay, C. Laule, I. Vavasour, T. Bjarnason, S. Kolind, B. Madler. "Insights into brain microstructure from the T2 distribution," Magnetic Resonance Imaging, 24(4):515-525 (2006).
  14. I. M. Vavasour, C. M. Clark, D. K.B. Li, A. L. MacKay. "Reproducibility and reliability of MR measurements in white matter: Clinical implications," NeuroImage, 32(2):637-642 (2006).

 

Book Chapters

  1. R. Koopmans, D. Li, G. Zhao, E. Brief, A. MacKay, I. Vavasour, K. Whittall, D. Paty, "Effects of Interferon beta-1b on Multiple Sclerosis Lesions Evaluated by Magnetic Resonance Imaging and Other Magnetic Resonance Techniques," in Interferon Therapy of Multiple Sclerosis, ed. Athony T. Reder, Marcel Dekker Inc, New York, NY.

 

Presentations

(Note: presentations prior to July 1994 made as "I. M. Lees".)

  1. I. M. Lees, A. Sharp, "The Study of Methyl Cellulose Using NMR." 1990 Atlantic Undergraduate Physics Conference, Halifax, NS, Feb. 9-11, 1990.
  2. I. M. Lees, M. Morrow, "The Phase Diagram of a DMPC/DSPC Lipid Mixture Determined by 2H NMR." 26th Canadian Undergraduate Physics Conference, Université Laval, Quebec, PQ, Nov. 1-3, 1990.
  3. I. M. Lees, M. Morrow, "The Determination of the Phase Diagram for a DMPC/DSPC Lipid Mixture Using 2H NMR Difference Spectroscopy." 1991 Atlantic Undergraduate Physics Conference, University of New Brunswick, Fredericton, NB, Feb. 8-10, 1991.
  4. I. M. Lees, C. Morrison, "A Study on Hydration and Its Effect on Phospholipid Bilayers." XIth Conference of the International Society of Magnetic Resonance, Vancouver, BC, July 19-24, 1992.
  5. I. M. Lees, C. Morrison, "An NMR Study on the Effects of Hydration on Phospholipid Bilayers." 1993 CAP Congress, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, BC, June 13-16, 1993.
  6. I. M. Lees, K. P. Whittall, A. L. MacKay, "An NMR Exploration of Water in the Human Brain." 1994 CAP Congress, University of Regina, Regina, SK, June 26-29, 1994.
  7. I. M. Lees, N. Kitson, A. L. MacKay, "The Effects of Water on Molecular Motion in Pig Stratum Corneum." Annual Meeting of the Society for Investigative Dermatology, Chicago, IL, May, 1995.
  8. I. M. Vavasour, K. P. Whittall, A. L. MacKay and D. K. B. Li, "A Comparison of Magnetization Transfer and T2 Relaxation in Brain MRI." 50th Lumonics Student Talk Competition at CAP Congress, Université Laval, Quebec, PQ, June 11-16, 1995.
  9. I. M. Vavasour, A. L. MacKay, K. P. Whittall, D. K. B. Li, "A Comparison of T2 Relaxation and Magnetization Transfer in Brain MRI." 59th Annual Meeting of the Canadian Association of Radiologists, Vancouver, BC, June 9-12, 1996.
  10. G. Zhao, D. K. B. Li, A. L. MacKay, K. P. Whittall, E. Brief, I. M. Vavasour, W. X. Yang, Y. Chang, D. W. Paty, "In Vivo Assessment of Pathology: The Use of Multiple MR Techniques in Multiple Sclerosis." 59th Annual Meeting of the Canadian Association of Radiologists, Vancouver, BC, June 9-12, 1996.
  11. I. M. Vavasour, A. L. MacKay, K. P. Whittall, D. K. B. Li, G. Vorobeychik, D. W. Paty, "Magnetization Transfer and Its Application to Multiple Sclerosis." 59th Annual Meeting of the Canadian Association of Radiologists, Vancouver, BC, June 9-12, 1996.
  12. I. M. Vavasour, K. P. Whittall, G. Vorobeychik, D. W. Paty, D. K. B. Li, A. L. MacKay, "Magnetization Transfer vs T2 Relaxation in Brain MRI." COMP/CCPM Young Investigators Competition, Vancouver, BC, June 20-22, 1996.
  13. I. M. Vavasour, K. P. Whittall, A. L. MacKay, D. K. B. Li, G. Vorobeychik, D. W. Paty, "In Vivo Comparison of Magnetization Transfer and T2 Relaxation in Normal and MS Brain." 5th Annual Meeting of the International Society for Magnetic Resonance in Medicine, Vancouver, BC, April 12-18, 1997.
  14. I. M. Vavasour, A. L. MacKay, K. P. Whittall, D. K. B. Li, J. Oger, D. W. Paty, "A Serial MKagnetic Resonance Study of Multiple Sclerosis: T2 Relaxation, T1 Relaxation and Magnetization Transfer." 51st Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Neurology, Toronto, ON, April 17-24, 1999.
  15. I. M. Vavasour, K. P. Whittall, A. L. MacKay, D. K. B. Li, "Differential Magnetization Transfer Effects for the Short and Long T2 Components in White Matter." 7th Annual Meeting of the International Society for Magnetic Resonance in Medicine, Philadelphia, PA, May 22-28, 1999.
  16. I. M. Vavasour, K. P. Whittall, A. L. MacKay, D. K. B. Li, J. Oger, D. W. Paty, "A Serial T2 Relaxation, T1 Relaxation and Magnetization Transfer Study of Multiple Sclerosis Brain." 7th Annual Meeting of the International Society for Magnetic Resonance in Medicine, Philadelphia, PA, May 22-28, 1999.
  17. I. M. Vavasour, A. L. MacKay, "Can Cross Relaxation between Solid and Water Protons Account for T2 Relaxation Times in Brain?" 8th Annual Meeting of the International Society for Magnetic Resonance in Medicine, Denver, CO, April 12-18, 2000.
  18. I. M. Vavasour, K. P. Whittall, A. L. MacKay, D. K. B. Li, D. W. Paty, "Serial and Regional Water Content and Myelin Water Content in New Large Multiple Sclerosis Lesions." 9th Annual Meeting of the International Society for Magnetic Resonance in Medicine, Glasgow, Scotland, April 21-27, 2001.
  19. I. M. Vavasour, A. L. MacKay, "Can Cross Relaxation between Solid and Water Protons Account for T2 Relaxation Times in Brain?" 56th CAP Congress, Victoria, BC, June 17-20, 2001.
  20. I. M. Vavasour, K. P. Whittall, A. L. MacKay, D. K. B. Li, D. W. Paty, "Using Novel Techniques to Serial Examine MS." 1st International Workshop of the White Matter Study Group, Bordeaux, France, June 24-26, 2001.
  21. I. M. Vavasour, K. P. Whittall, A. L. MacKay, D. K. B. Li, D. W. Paty, "Evolution of New Multiple Sclerosis Lesions: What Extra Information Can Novel Magnetic Resonance Techniques Give Us?" 64th Annual Scientific Meeting of the Canadian Association of Radiologists, Vancouver, September 21-23, 2001.
  22. A. L. MacKay, K. P. Whittall, I. M. Vavasour, D. K. B. Li and D. W. Paty, "MRI Measures of Myelin Water Content and Total Water Content in Normal Appearing White Matter and Multiple Sclerosis Lesions." 64th Annual Scientific Meeting of the Canadian Association of Radiologists, Vancouver, September 21-23, 2001.
  23. C. Laule, I. M. Vavasour, J. Oger, D. K. B. Li, D. W. Paty, A. L. MacKay, D. L. Arnold, "Evolution of Diffuse and Focal Magnetization Transfer Abnormalities in Multiple Sclerosis." 37th Meeting of the Canadian Congress of Neurological Sciences, Vancouver, June 18-22, 2002.
  24. C. Laule, I. M. Vavasour, J. Oger, D. K. B. Li, D. W. Paty, A. L. MacKay, "T2 Relaxation Measurements of in vivo Water Content and Myelin Water Content in Normal Appearing White Matter and Lesions in Multiple Sclerosis." 37th Meeting of the Canadian Congress of Neurological Sciences, Vancouver, June 18-22, 2002.
  25. I. M. Vavasour, K. P. Whittall, A. L. MacKay, D. K. B. Li, D. W. Paty, "Evolution of New Multiple Sclerosis Lesions: What Extra Information Can Novel Magnetic Resonance Techniques Give Us?" 37th Meeting of the Canadian Congress of Neurological Sciences, Vancouver, June 18-22, 2002.
  26. C. Laule, I. M. Vavasour, J. D. Vavasour, J. Oger, D. W. Paty, A. L. MacKay, D. K. B. Li, "Cervical Cord Abnormalities in Primary Progressive Multiple Sclerosis: Atrophy and Myelin Water Changes" Poster presented at 19th Congress of the European Committee for Treatment and Research in Multiple Sclerosis, Milan, Italy, September 17th-20th, 2003.
  27. C. Laule, I. M. Vavasour, J. D. Vavasour, J. Oger, D. W. Paty, A. L. MacKay, D. K. B. Li, "Cervical Cord Abnormalities in Primary Progressive Multiple Sclerosis: Atrophy and Myelin Water Changes" Poster presented at 12th Meeting of the International Society for Magnetic Resonance in Medicine, Kyoto, Japan, May 15th-21th, 2004.
  28. I. M. Vavasour, D. K. B. Li, C. Laule, A. L. Traboulsee, A. L. MacKay, "Multi-parametric MR assessment of T1 black holes in multiple sclerosis: evidence that extracellular water is increased but myelin loss in not greater." Proceedings of the 14th Annual Meeting of the International Society for Magnetic Resonance in Medicine, Seattle, USA, May 6th-12th, 2006, p. 3118.
  29. I. M. Vavasour, D. K. B. Li, C. Laule, A. L. Traboulsee, A. L. MacKay, "Myelin water is an independent measure of pathology in multiple sclerosis." Proceedings of the 14th Annual Meeting of the International Society for Magnetic Resonance in Medicine, Seattle, USA, May 6th-12th, 2006, p. 3119.
  30. C. Laule, I. M. Vavasour, S. H. Kolind, A. L. Traboulsee, D. K. B. Li, A. L. MacKay, "Long-T2 Imaging: Evidence of a New Water Reservoir in Multiple Sclerosis." Proceedings of the 14th Annual Meeting of the International Society for Magnetic Resonance in Medicine, Seattle, USA, May 6th-12th, 2006, p. 446.
  31. D. K. B. Li, C. Laule, I. Vavasour, Y. Zhao, A. Traboulsee, J. Oger, J. D. Vavasour, A. MacKay, "2 Year Follow-up of Cervical Cord Volume and Myelin Water Fraction in Primary Progressive Multiple Sclerosis and Healthy Controls" Poster presented at 23rd Congress of the European Committee for Treatment and Research in Multiple Sclerosis, Prague, Czech Republic, October 11th-14th, 2007.
  32. C. Laule, I. M. Vavasour, Y. Zhao, A. L. Traboulsee, J. Oger, J. D. Vavasour, A. L. MacKay, D. K. B. Li., "2 Year Follow-up of Cervical Cord Volume and Myelin Water Fraction in Primary Progressive Multiple Sclerosis and Healthy Controls" Platform oral presentation at The Canadian endMS Research Conference, Banff, Canada, December 10th-13th, 2007.

 

Viewing PostScript Files

If you want to view PostScript files on your PC, I recommend downloading Aladdin Ghostscript and GSView.

All content ©2001 Irene Vavasour. Updated January 13, 2008.