# MRI-guided biopsy of pelvic bone marrow edema lesions in axial spondyloarthritis

> **NIH NIH R21** · BRIGHAM AND WOMEN'S HOSPITAL · 2021 · $222,938

## Abstract

Project Summary
Subchondral bone marrow edema lesions are a characteristic magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) finding
of sacroiliitis in patients with axial spondyloarthritis (SpA). The histopathological equivalent of bone marrow
edema in axial SpA is unknown. Based on studies in rheumatoid arthritis, we hypothesize that the bone
marrow edema lesions in axial SpA represent inflammatory infiltrates. In this pilot study, patients with axial
SpA and healthy controls will undergo MRI-guided bone marrow biopsy to determine the histopathology of
bone marrow edema lesions detected on MRI and identify major immune cell subsets present in these
lesions. The results from these experiments will determine feasibility and guide larger scale investigations
into the pathogenesis of axial SpA in the future. Understanding SpA pathogenesis at the level of the
diseased tissue is a key requirement for the development of strategies to cure or prevent this disease.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10288006
- **Project number:** 1R21AR079691-01
- **Recipient organization:** BRIGHAM AND WOMEN'S HOSPITAL
- **Principal Investigator:** Joerg Ermann
- **Activity code:** R21 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2021
- **Award amount:** $222,938
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2021-08-01 → 2023-07-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10288006

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10288006, MRI-guided biopsy of pelvic bone marrow edema lesions in axial spondyloarthritis (1R21AR079691-01). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-25 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10288006. Licensed CC0.

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