Abstract

Although functional MRI traditionally has been applied mainly to study changes in task-induced brain function, evolving acquisition methodologies and improved knowledge of signal mechanisms have increased the utility of this method for studying responses to pharmacological stimuli, a technique often dubbed "phMRI". The proliferation of higher magnetic field strengths and the use of exogenous contrast agent have boosted detection power, a critical factor for successful phMRI due to the restricted ability to average multiple stimuli within subjects. Receptor-based models of neurovascular coupling, including explicit pharmacological models incorporating receptor densities and affinities and data-driven models that incorporate weak biophysical constraints, have demonstrated compelling descriptions of phMRI signal induced by dopaminergic stimuli. This report describes phMRI acquisition and analysis methodologies, with an emphasis on data-driven analyses. As an example application, statistically efficient data-driven regressors were used to describe the biphasic response to the mu-opioid agonist remifentanil, and antagonism using dopaminergic and GABAergic ligands revealed modulation of the mesolimbic pathway. Results illustrate the power of phMRI as well as our incomplete understanding of mechanisms underlying the signal. Future directions are discussed for phMRI acquisitions in human studies, for evolving analysis methodologies, and for interpretative studies using the new generation of simultaneous PET/MRI scanners. This article is part of the Special Issue Section entitled 'Neuroimaging in Neuropharmacology'.