# 3D Cine Magnetic Resonance Fingerprinting for Rapid Phenotyping of Cardiomyopathy

> **NIH NIH R01** · CASE WESTERN RESERVE UNIVERSITY · 2024 · $646,399

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY/ABSTRACT
Cardiomyopathy (CM) encompasses a diverse group of diseases of the heart muscle that occur in 1 out of 500
adults and predispose to heart failure. Accurate determination of CM subtype (phenotyping) is essential to inform
downstream tests, risk stratification, and targeted treatments. Cardiac MRI has emerged as the non-invasive
standard for assessment of cardiac structure, function, and tissue properties in patients with suspected CM.
However, cardiac MRI only comprises 1% of all MRI exams in the US, largely due to the need for (1) long and
complex protocols where multiple images are collected with different contrast weightings, (2) unreliable and
uncomfortable strategies to reduce motion, and (3) a lack of reproducibility of certain tissue property
measurements. This multidisciplinary project between MRI scientists and cardiologists will validate 3D cine
Magnetic Resonance Fingerprinting (MRF) as a comprehensive all-in-one imaging technique for CM detection
and phenotyping. A streamlined and paradigm-changing cardiac MRI exam is proposed, consisting of a 5-minute
free-breathing and ungated 3D cine MRF scan that will be collected before and after administration of gadolinium
contrast. This technique will yield quantitative T1, T2, and spin density (M0) maps with 3D isotropic coverage over
the left (LV) and right (RV) ventricles. Additionally, measured tissue properties and MRI simulations will be used
to generate contrast-weighted cine and LGE images in an automated fashion, eliminating the need for multiple
acquisitions and manual scan adjustments. A multicontrast LGE approach is also proposed where bright-blood,
dark-blood, and novel “optimal-contrast” images will be generated to optimally highlight myocardial scar and
fibrosis. The 3D cine MRF exam is expected to have advantages over routine clinical imaging and existing rapid
imaging methods in terms of (1) improved accuracy/reproducibility of quantitative tissue properties, (2) shorter
exam times, (3) reduced operator dependence, and (4) high diagnostic accuracy for specific CM phenotypes.
Technical validation of 3D cine MRF in healthy subjects will be performed in Aim 1, including development of
cardiac/respiratory self-gating methods tailored for MRF and development of a “physics-informed” deep learning
reconstruction for artifact reduction and scan acceleration. Aim 2 will compare image quality and quantitative
measurements from 3D cine MRF to standard MRI methods in patients with established CM. Additionally,
quantitative thresholds for objective detection of specific CM phenotypes will be determined. In Aim 3, tissue
properties and synthetic images derived from 3D cine MRF for will be tested in a prospective cross-sectional
study to evaluate diagnostic accuracy for differentiating (1) ischemic vs nonischemic CM and (2) nonischemic
CM phenotypes, using a standard cardiac MRI protocol as reference. The overall expected outcome of this work
is an ultrafast all-in-on...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10854834
- **Project number:** 5R01HL163030-03
- **Recipient organization:** CASE WESTERN RESERVE UNIVERSITY
- **Principal Investigator:** JESSE Ian HAMILTON
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2024
- **Award amount:** $646,399
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2022-06-01 → 2027-05-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10854834

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10854834, 3D Cine Magnetic Resonance Fingerprinting for Rapid Phenotyping of Cardiomyopathy (5R01HL163030-03). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-25 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10854834. Licensed CC0.

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