# Ultrashort Echo Time (UTE) Magnetic Resonance Imaging of Bone

> **NIH NIH R01** · UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, SAN DIEGO · 2020 · $688,861

## Abstract

7. Abstract
 Metabolic bone diseases including osteoporosis (OP), osteopenia, osteomalacia and renal osteodystrophy
(ROD) affect more than 55 million Americans with an annual cost of more than $17B. The gold standard, dual
energy X-ray absorptiometry (DEXA) measures bone mineral density (BMD). However, the majority of bone,
the organic matrix and water which together occupy ~60% of bone by volume, is inaccessible. A recent study
of over 14,613 participants found that ~80% of all non-vertebral fractures occurred among individuals with
BMD above the WHO definition of OP. Furthermore, the etiologies and treatments for OP/osteopenia (reduced
bone content) and osteomalacia/ROD (reduced mineralization) are different, but DEXA cannot differentiate
between these diseases. More comprehensive techniques are needed for the evaluation of cortical and
trabecular bone quantity/quality with information not only about mineral, but about organic matrix and water.
 Bone is “invisible” with clinical MRI sequences due to its short T2*. Ultrashort echo time (UTE) sequences
with minimal TEs of 8 µs make it possible to detect signal from bone. In the first four years of this award (1R01
AR068987, 09/2015 – 08/2019), we investigated 3D UTE Cones imaging of bound and pore water content as
well as T1, T2* and magnetization transfer (MT) ratio. However, those biomarkers showed only low to moderate
correlation with biomechanics, likely due to inaccurate measure of bound and pore water as well as incomplete
assessment of organic matrix and mineral in bone. UTE with a soft-hard composite pulse suppresses chemical
shift artifact, thus allowing more accurate measure of total water. Double adiabatic inversion recovery UTE
(DIR-UTE) provides more complete suppression of pore water, thus allowing more accurate measure of bound
water. UTE with MT (UTE-MT) modeling measures collagen proton fraction, exchange and relaxation. UTE
with quantitative susceptibility mapping (UTE-QSM) maps bone susceptibility, providing information about
BMD. Our goal is to develop a package for fast and accurate mapping of total, bound and pore water, collagen
proton fraction, exchange, relaxation, and mineral, and to apply it to OP, osteopenia and ROD patients. Aim 1
targets UTE techniques for fast and accurate mapping of water, collagen and mineral in femur (midshaft, head
and neck), using µCT, histomorphometry, Raman and gravimetry as reference standard. Aim 2 will evaluate
UTE techniques for water, collagen and mineral in femur from donors with OP (n=20), osteopenia (n=20) and
ROD (n=20), with UTE biomarkers correlated with µCT, histomorphometry, Raman and biomechanical testing.
Aim 3 targets translational UTE sequences to measure water, collagen and mineral in femur of young (<40y,
n=30) and older women (>70y) with (n=30) and without (n=30) OP, with osteopenia (n=30) and with ROD
(n=30). UTE biomarkers in different groups will be compared, and correlated with BMD, biochemical markers
and fracture his...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 9981928
- **Project number:** 2R01AR068987-05A1
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, SAN DIEGO
- **Principal Investigator:** Jiang Du
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $688,861
- **Award type:** 2
- **Project period:** 2015-09-17 → 2025-03-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/9981928

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 9981928, Ultrashort Echo Time (UTE) Magnetic Resonance Imaging of Bone (2R01AR068987-05A1). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-23 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/9981928. Licensed CC0.

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