Zhiliang Wei, PhD

Associate Professor of Radiology and Radiological Science

Alzheimer's Disease, Brain Physiology, Disease Models, MR Imaging with Novel Molecular Mechanism, Vascular Dementia

Dr. Wei’s research focuses on advancing quantitative neurovascular magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to unravel the vascular and metabolic mechanisms underlying physiological dysfunction in preclinical models of Alzheimer’s disease, small-vessel disease, and neuroinflammation etc. He develops and applies innovative, non-contrast-agent MRI methods capable of resolving key physiological parameters in small animals, including oxygen extraction fraction (OEF), cerebral blood flow (CBF), cerebral metabolic rate of oxygen (CMRO₂), cerebrovascular reactivity (CVR), blood-brain barrier (BBB) permeability, and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) dynamics. Through methodological innovations in high-field microvascular imaging, Dr. Wei has established a comprehensive imaging platform for multiparametric characterization of microvascular functions. In the clinical domain, He integrates advanced MRI with histopathological analyses to identify novel pathways that mediate pathophysiological alterations, thereby uncovering functional mechanisms that offer promising targets for therapeutic intervention.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/myncbi/1lKu2ZKUVLEERD/bibliography/public/

• Yang X, Li Y, Yao M, Bibic A, Duan W, Lu H, Wei Z. Vascular smooth muscle cell loss, but not neuroinflammation, drives cerebrovascular reactivity impairment in Alzheimer's disease. Alzheimers Dement 2026; 22: e71209.
• Yang X, Li Y, Bibic A, Mora Alvarez MG, Lu H, Wei Z. Bidirectional crusher gradient method to estimate the labeling efficiency of pseudo-continuous arterial spin labeling MRI in mice. Magn Reson Med 2026; 95: 912-926.
• Kumar S, Yang X, Li Y, Bibic A, Wei Z. Longitudinal MRI characterization of T1 and T2 relaxation times in an amyloid mouse model of Alzheimer’s disease at 11.7T. NMR Biomed 2026; 39: e70187.
• Wei Z, Liu H, Lin Z, Yao M, Li R, Liu C, Li Y, Xu J, Duan W, Lu H. Non-contrast assessment of blood-brain barrier permeability to water in mice: An arterial spin labeling study at cerebral veins. NeuroImage 2023; 268: 119870.
• Wei Z, Chen L, Lin Z, Jiang D, Xu J, Liu P, van Zijl PCM, Lu H. Optimization of phase-contrast MRI for the estimation of global cerebral blood flow of mice at 11.7T. Magn Reson Med 2019; 81: 2566-2575.