摘要： Background: Clinical imaging modalities including optical coherence tomography (OCT) and di?usion tensor imaging (DTI) are vital in Multiple Sclerosis (MS), but their relationships during the di?erent phases of Retinal ganglion cell (RGC) degeneration are not clear. We hypothesize that initial injury in optic nerve causes axonal degeneration leading to RGC loss in retina, which can be characterized by a combination of DTI and OCT. Our objective was to examine the correlation between noninvasive and histological data to chronicle the degeneration pro?le of RGCs in the retina and optic nerve in a mouse model of MS. Materials and methods: Experimental Autoimmune Encephalomyelitis (EAE) was induced in 11 C57Bl/6 mice, with 8 mice reserved as controls. OCT and DTI was conducted 2–8 weeks after induction of EAE. The thickness of the retinal ganglion cell complex (GCC) was measured using OCT and compared to DTI indices measured in optic nerves. End-stage histology was used to quantify axon/myelin loss in the optic nerve and retinal thinning/RGC loss in the retina. Results: Signi?cant changes in DTI-derived Axial Di?usivity (AD, ?17.2%) and Trace Di?usivity (TR, ?18.3%) began after 2 weeks of EAE. Later signi?cant reductions in Fractional Anisotropy (FA) and AD, with increases in Radial Di?usion (RD) were apparent after 4 and 8 weeks. OCT-derived measures of GCC thickness were reduced after 4 weeks, and reached signi?cant reduction after 8 weeks. Among EAE mice, DTI (FA, AD and RD measures) and OCT measures were all signi?cantly correlated after 4 and 8 weeks. Among histology measures, RGC density (?23%), RGC size (?27%), and the number of SMI31+ axons (?54%) were reduced signi?cantly. DTI measures of FA and AD along with GCC thinning were the best independent predictors of axon loss. Conclusions: DTI and OCT measures are tightly correlated during the chronic phase of axonal degeneration (4–8 weeks) in EAE mice. After 8 weeks of EAE, both OCT and DTI measures are strong predictors of axon loss in the Optic Nerve.