Template images for nonhuman primate neuroimaging: 2. Macaque

Neuroimaging studies are increasingly performed in macaque species, includi ng the pig-tailed macaque (Macaca nemestrina). At times experimental questi ons can be answered by analysis of functional images in individual subjects and reference to a structural image in that subject. However, coregistrati on of functional brain images across many subjects offers the experimental advantage of enabling voxel-based analysis over multiple subjects and is th erefore widely used in human studies. Voxel-based coregistration methods re quire a high-quality 3D template image. We created such templates, derived from T1-weighted MRI and blood-flow PET images from 12 nemestrina monkeys. We designed the macaque templates to be maximally compatible with the baboo n template images described in a companion paper, to facilitate cross-speci es comparison of functional imaging data. Here we present data showing the reliability and validity of automatic image registration to the template. A lignment of selected internal fiducial points was accurate to within 1.9 mm overall (mean) even across species. The template images, along with copies aligned to the UCLA nemestrina brain atlas, are available on the Internet (purl.org/net/kbmd/n2k) and can be used as targets with any image registrat ion software. (C) 2001 Academic Press.