Dr. Ahmed Khalil is an MD-PhD currently serving his residency in radiology at the Institute of Neuroradiology at Charité University Hospital in Berlin. Originally from Sudan, he has been doing pioneering work on resting-state BOLD latency mapping, a technique that reveals flow deficits in the brain associated with stroke. His research demonstrates that this approach compares favorably with the current clinical gold standard of dynamic susceptibility contrast imaging using gadolinium, while capturing useful data in as little as two minutes.

In this episode, Peter and Ahmed discuss his work translating advanced MRI techniques into clinical practice. They explore how BOLD latency mapping can detect perfusion deficits and compare with both traditional gadolinium-based methods and DTI for identifying stroke lesions. The conversation delves into the broader challenge faced by all promising research methods: what does it actually take to move from successful proof-of-concept to daily clinical practice on scanners around the world?

Ahmed and Peter also talk about the cultural gap between research-level image processing and the clinical preference for minimally processed, interpretable data and how AI might help bridge that divide. Along the way, Ahmed shares valuable advice for MD-PhD students on the importance of collaboration, learning from diverse experts, and maintaining curiosity across disciplines.

We hope you enjoy this episode!

Chapters:

00:00 - Introduction to Ahmed Khalil and His Work

05:02 - Journey into Medicine and Radiology

12:10 - The Challenges of Methods Development in Clinical Applications

22:15 - Research on Resting State BOLD Latency

37:27 - Clinical Implications of Perfusion Imaging in Stroke

43:52 - Challenges in Clinical Implementation of New Imaging Techniques

47:50 - The Role of AI in Radiology and Imaging Interpretation

52:42 - Future Aspirations and Research Directions in Imaging

01:01:03 - Collaborative Efforts in Physiologic MRI Book Project

01:03:25 - Advice for Aspiring MD-PhD Students

Works mentioned:

22:48 - https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23378326/

(Lv et al., 2013 - First paper showing BOLD delay in stroke with Arno Villinger)

23:08 - https://www.ahajournals.org/doi/10.1161/STROKEAHA.116.015566

(Khalil et al., 2017 - Stroke paper, Relationship between BOLD delay and DSC-MRI)

23:08 - https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30334657/

(Khalil et al., 2018 - JCBFM paper, Longitudinal changes in BOLD delay)

39:00 - https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34323339/

(Hu et al., 2021 - Human Brain Mapping paper with Daniel Margulies - ICA approach)

Episode producers:

Ömer Faruk Gülban, Xuqian Michelle Li