# Probes and Methods for Clinical Oximetry

> **NIH NIH R01** · DARTMOUTH COLLEGE · 2021 · $2,298,187

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY
EPR oximetry has been established in preclinical models to be a very reliable method for the direct and repeated
measurement of tissue oxygen levels. Ongoing clinical studies in cancer patients have confirmed that EPR
oximetry can be extended to human subjects very effectively, thus addressing a critical, but unmet, need—the
ability to make repeated measurements of tissue oxygen concentration in the clinic. These studies have also
revealed the potential shortcomings of the technology and informed further developments that are needed to
achieve the full clinical potential of EPR oximetry for cancer therapy. The current EPR scanners are based on
the traditional CW (continuous wave, frequency-domain) mode of operation using magnetic-field seep and
modulation, both of which are necessary for measuring paramagnetic probes with much shorter relaxation times
(typically on the order of nanoseconds), for which a pulse (time-domain) mode of operation is prohibitively
difficult. The CW EPR oximetry requires stringent magnetic field homogeneity, longer data acquisition time,
motion-induced artifacts in the data, and, more importantly, a cumbersome operation. On the other hand, pulse
EPR technology, which uses spin echo-based relaxation-time measurements for oximetry, is a simple and
straightforward approach that is more efficient, faster, and less dependent on field homogeneity and object
motions. This proposal will combine pulse technology with a suite of oxygen-sensing probes (OxyChip and
related materials) developed as part of the PI’s current NIH funding program to develop an advanced pulse EPR
scanner, as well as procedures for the scanner’s use in human subjects in a clinical setting. We propose the
following specific aims to achieve the overall objective of developing an advanced pulse EPR scanner for the
repeated measurement of oxygen concentration in human subjects: (1) Development of a multi-modal EPR
scanner for clinical oximetry and imaging. (2) Validation of the multi-modal pulse EPR scanner for repeated
measurements of oxygen concentration using tissue phantoms and animal models of tumor. (3) Clinical
evaluation of the pulse EPR scanner, for the measurement of oxygen concentration in healthy and cancer
patients. The availability of this capability would be a new addition to clinical medicine that would immediately
and significantly enhance the treatment of various disease states and malignancies.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10119370
- **Project number:** 2R01EB004031-13A1
- **Recipient organization:** DARTMOUTH COLLEGE
- **Principal Investigator:** PERIANNAN KUPPUSAMY
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2021
- **Award amount:** $2,298,187
- **Award type:** 2
- **Project period:** 2004-07-01 → 2025-07-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10119370

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10119370, Probes and Methods for Clinical Oximetry (2R01EB004031-13A1). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-23 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10119370. Licensed CC0.

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