David M. Morris1,2, Caroline Wright3,
Philip N. Baker4, Ian P. Crocker3, Penny A. Gowland5,
Geoff J. Parker1,2, Colin P. Sibley3
1Imaging Science and Biomedical
Engineering, School of Cancer and Imaging Sciences, University of Manchester,
Manchester, United Kingdom; 2The University of Manchester
Biomedical Imaging Insitute, University of Manchester, Manchester, United
Kingdom; 3Maternal & Fetal Health Research Centre, University
of Manchester, Manchester, United Kingdom; 4Faculty of Medicine
& Dentistry, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada; 5Sir
Peter Mansfield Magnetic Resonance Centre, University of Nottingham,
Nottingham, United Kingdom
Fetal
growth retardation (FGR) is a serious condition affecting babies in utero
that can be identified by means of a placental phenotype related to
structural and functional changes in the placenta. Magnetic resonance imaging
(MRI) measured the relaxation times T1 and T2 as
possible biomarkers of this condition and placentas were collected for the
histological verification of FGR pathology. We show for the first time that
both in utero T1 and T2 demonstrate a significant
negative correlation with the gestational age at 1.5 T and that relaxation
times correlate with histological biomarkers of placental development.