# Functional and Radiomic Magnetic Resonance Profiling in Normal and Hypertensive Placentas

> **NIH NIH K23** · UT SOUTHWESTERN MEDICAL CENTER · 2024 · $140,397

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY
One in 3 pregnant women with chronic hypertension (CHTN) deliver preterm from complications of
superimposed preeclampsia or fetal growth restriction (FGR). The specific aims are: 1) prospectively evaluate
the placental longitudinally via functional magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in healthy pregnant women and
pregnant women with CHTN; 2) extract radiomics texture features in normal and hypertensive placentas and 3)
execute technical refinement toward automated segmentation for regions of interest to delineate patterns in
placental abnormalities. We will study 20 normal pregnant women and 40 pregnant women with CHTN across
gestation. MRI will be performed in the early and late second trimester to assess perfusion via arterial spin
labeling (ASL), diffusion via intra-voxel incoherent motion (IVIM) diffusion weighted imaging (DWI) and DWI-
derived apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) mapping, and oxygenation via T2* from blood-oxygen level
dependent (BOLD) MRI. Radiomics texture features also be extracted from MR imaging and automated
segmentation applied for more subjective placental assessment. This career development award will establish
Dr. Herrera as a clinical investigator focused on non-invasive imaging assessment of placental development
and dysfunction. The award will provide her with the support needed to develop expertise in 3 areas: 1) clinical
research 2) application and interpretation of advanced imaging modalities, and 3) technical skills of post-
processing and deep learning. To achieve these goals, Dr. Herrera has assembled an interdisciplinary team
with expertise in clinical investigation, placental imaging, and post-processing and automated segmentation
techniques. Her primary mentor, Dr. Catherine Spong, has a long track record of successful clinical,
translational, and basic science research including over 270 peer review publications and mentoring faculty to
become independent investigators. The focus of this proposal is on the human placenta. Despite 150+ years of
placental research, the role of the placenta in the pathology of pregnancy-related disease remains poorly
understood. Understanding normal placental development and changes present in placental disease will
provide a foundation to facilitate clinical prediction of pathologic conditions during pregnancy and provide an
opportunity to test interventions. In this study, we will address the unmet clinical need to characterize both
normal placental development and placental dysfunction in vivo. We have chosen to compare normal pregnant
women with pregnant women with chronic hypertension as these women are increased risk for placental-
mediated disease. Successful completion of this project will allow for better understanding of the placenta in
normal pregnancy and pregnancy affected by chronic hypertension. We will also correlate our results with
clinical outcomes of preeclampsia and FGR. Given the increased risk of superimposed preeclampsia and FGR
in pre...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10911950
- **Project number:** 5K23HD103876-03
- **Recipient organization:** UT SOUTHWESTERN MEDICAL CENTER
- **Principal Investigator:** Christina Lynn Herrera
- **Activity code:** K23 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2024
- **Award amount:** $140,397
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2022-09-02 → 2027-08-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10911950

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10911950, Functional and Radiomic Magnetic Resonance Profiling in Normal and Hypertensive Placentas (5K23HD103876-03). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-24 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10911950. Licensed CC0.

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