Susie Huang, MD, PhD, is a board-certified neuroradiologist and physician-scientist specializing in the development and translation of novel MRI techniques for investigating structure, function and pathology within the brain. Her doctoral training in physical chemistry and subsequent residency in radiology and postdoctoral training at MGH provided her with a strong foundation in biophysical modeling, basic and clinical neuroscience, and the design and evaluation of hardware, software and pulse sequences for pushing the limits of contrast and sensitivity in MRI.
Her current research centers on the development and translation of advanced diffusion MRI methods for probing tissue microstructure in the central nervous system. As part of the NIH Blueprint-funded Human Connectome Project, she contributed to the first publications showcasing the unprecedented sensitivity and resolution of axonal microstructure made possible by the 300 mT/m gradients on the MGH Connectome MRI scanner. She has since developed methods for mapping axon diameter and density across white matter tracts throughout the living human brain, which offer insight into white matter damage in disease processes such as multiple sclerosis, aging and Alzheimer’s disease. Based on the success of these efforts, she now serves as the lead Principal Investigator on a $14-million NIH BRAIN Initiative multi-institutional collaborative grant to develop the next-generation Connectome MRI scanner for multiscale imaging of the human brain.
Education
MD, Harvard Medical School
PhD in Physical Chemistry, University of California, Los Angeles
Select Publications
1. Huang SY, Nummenmaa A, Witzel T, Duval T, Cohen-Adad J, Wald LL, McNab JA. The impact of gradient strength on in vivo diffusion MRI estimates of axon diameter. NeuroImage. 2015 Feb 1;106:464-72.
2. Huang SY, Tian Q, Fan Q, Witzel T, Wichtmann B, McNab JA, Bireley JD, Machado N, Klawiter EC, Mekkaoui C, Wald LL, Nummenmaa A. High-gradient diffusion MRI reveals distinct estimates of axon diameter index within different white matter tracts in the in vivo human brain. Brain Structure and Function. 2020 May;225(4):1277-1291. PMID: 31563995.
3. Huang SY, Witzel T, Keil B, Scholz A, Davids M, Dietz P, Rummert E, Ramb R, Kirsch JE, Yendiki A, Fan Q, Tian Q, Ramos-Llordén G, Lee HH, Nummenmaa A, Bilgic B, Setsompop K, Wang F, Avram AV, Komlosh M, Benjamini D, Magdoom KN, Pathak S, Schneider W, Novikov DS, Fieremans E, Tounekti S, Mekkaoui C, Augustinack J, Berger D, Shapson-Coe A, Lichtman J, Basser PJ, Wald LL, Rosen BR. Connectome 2.0: Developing the next-generation ultra-high gradient strength human MRI scanner for bridging studies of the micro-, meso- and macro-connectome. Neuroimage. 2021 Nov;243:118530.
Highlights
- MGH Claflin Distinguished Scholar Award
- I. I. Rabi Young Investigator Award Finalist, ISMRM
- Young Investigator Award, European Society for Magnetic Resonance in Medicine and Biology