Newcastle Magnetic Resonance Centre

Muscle

Muscle Research

Research

Magnetic resonance provides several important tools for the investigation of human muscle, allowing assessment of structure, metabolism and function.

Muscles are controlled by motor units, we have developed a method to non-invasively image motor unit activity which we call motor unit MRI (MUMRI). MUMRI makes it possible to study motor unit firing rates, sizes and shapes of active areas of muscle, and whole muscle and single motor unit twitch dynamics. We have applied MUMRI in multiple studies to investigate motor unit activity in patients with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis and in healthy controls to investigate how muscle activity changes with ageing. We have the capability to use MUMRI to study motor unit activity in conjunction with in-scanner electrical stimulation and voluntary activity.

The Centre has developed advanced methodology for measuring tissue energetics at rest and during periods of muscle exercise (31P MRS) together with 13C measures of muscle glycogen as well as conventional images to measure structure and muscle fat infiltration. These techniques are being applied to a wide range of studies ranging from investigating healthy controls through to patient groups with genetic mutations.

We have developed and applied pCASL based leg perfusion measurement.

These studies are supported by a variety of funders including:

  • the MRC
  • the NIHR Biomedical Research Centre
  • Diabetes UK

View Prof Pete Thelwall, Dr Matt Birkbeck, Dr Kieren Hollingsworth and Ian Wilson  staff profile.

Muscle projects

Publications

2022

  • Reyngoudt, H., F. E. Smith, E. Caldas de Almeida Araújo, I. Wilson, R. Fernández-Torrón, M. K. James, U. R. Moore, J. Díaz-Manera, B. Marty, N. Azzabou, H. Gordish, L. Rufibach, T. Hodgson, D. Wallace, L. Ward, J. M. Boisserie, J. Le Louër, H. Hilsden, H. Sutherland, A. Canal, J. Y. Hogrel, M. Jacobs, T. Stojkovic, K. Bushby, A. Mayhew, V. Straub, P. G. Carlier, and A. M. Blamire. "Three-Year Quantitative Magnetic Resonance Imaging and Phosphorus Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy Study in Lower Limb Muscle in Dysferlinopathy." J Cachexia Sarcopenia Muscle 13, no. 3 (Jun 2022): 1850-63. https://dx.doi.org/10.1002/jcsm.12987.
  • Heskamp, L., A. R. Miller, M. G. Birkbeck, J. Hall, I. S. Schofield, A. M. Blamire, and R. G. Whittaker. "In Vivo 3d Imaging of Human Motor Units in Upper and Lower Limb Muscles." Clin Neurophysiol 141 (Sep 2022): 91-100. https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.clinph.2022.05.018.

2021

  • Birkbeck, M. G., A. M. Blamire, R. G. Whittaker, A. A. Sayer, and R. M. Dodds. "The Role of Novel Motor Unit Magnetic Resonance Imaging to Investigate Motor Unit Activity in Ageing Skeletal Muscle." J Cachexia Sarcopenia Muscle 12, no. 1 (Feb 2021): 17-29. https://dx.doi.org/10.1002/jcsm.12655 
  • Heskamp, L., M. G. Birkbeck, R. G. Whittaker, I. S. Schofield, and A. M. Blamire. "The Muscle Twitch Profile Assessed with Motor Unit Magnetic Resonance Imaging." NMR Biomed 34, no. 3 (Mar 2021): e4466. https://dx.doi.org/10.1002/nbm.4466.

2020

  • Birkbeck, M. G., L. Heskamp, I. S. Schofield, A. M. Blamire, and R. G. Whittaker. "Non-Invasive Imaging of Single Human Motor Units." Clin Neurophysiol 131, no. 6 (Jun 2020): 1399-406. https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.clinph.2020.02.004.
  • Porcari, P., M. G. Hall, C. A. Clark, E. Greally, V. Straub, and A. M. Blamire. "Time-Dependent Diffusion Mri as a Probe of Microstructural Changes in a Mouse Model of Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy." NMR Biomed 33, no. 5 (May 2020): e4276. https://dx.doi.org/10.1002/nbm.4276.

2019

  • Whittaker, R. G., P. Porcari, L. Braz, T. L. Williams, I. S. Schofield, and A. M. Blamire. "Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging of Human Motor Unit Fasciculation in Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis." Ann Neurol 85, no. 3 (Mar 2019): 455-59. https://dx.doi.org/10.1002/ana.25422.

2018

  • Porcari, P., M. G. Hall, C. A. Clark, E. Greally, V. Straub, and A. M. Blamire. "The Effects of Ageing on Mouse Muscle Microstructure: A Comparative Study of Time-Dependent Diffusion Mri and Histological Assessment." NMR Biomed 31, no. 3 (Mar 2018). https://dx.doi.org/10.1002/nbm.3881.
  • Díaz-Manera, Jordi, Roberto Fernandez-Torron, Jaume Llauger, Meredith James, Anna Mayhew, Fiona Elizabeth Smith, Ursula Moore, Andrew Blamire, Pierre Carlier, Laura Rufibach, Plavi Mittal, Michelle Eagle, Marni Jacobs, Tim Hodgson, Dorothy Wallace, Louise Ward, Mark Smith, Roberto Stramare, Alessandro Rampado, and Volker Straub. "Muscle Mri in Patients with Dysferlinopathy: Pattern Recognition and Implications for Clinical Trials." Journal of neurology, neurosurgery, and psychiatry 89 (05/07 2018). https://dx.doi.org/10.1136/jnnp-2017-317488.

2014

  • Hollingsworth KG, Higgins DM, McCallum M, Ward L, Coombs A, Straub V. Investigating the quantitative fidelity of prospectively undersampled chemical shift imaging in muscular dystrophy with compressed sensing and parallel imaging reconstruction. Magn Reson Med. 2014 Dec;72(6):1610-9. doi: 10.1002/mrm.25072. Epub 2013 Dec 17.
  • Hollingsworth KG. Quantitative MRI in muscular dystrophy: An indispensable trial endpoint? Neurology. 2014 Sep 9;83(11):956-7. doi: 10.1212/WNL.0000000000000785. Epub 2014 Aug 6.
  • Willis TA, Hollingsworth KG, Coombs A, Sveen ML, Andersen S, Stojkovic T, Eagle M, Mayhew A, de Sousa PL, Dewar L, Morrow JM, Sinclair CD, Thornton JS, Bushby K, Lochmuller H, Hanna MG, Hogrel JY, Carlier PG, Vissing J, Straub V. Quantitative magnetic resonance imaging in limb-girdle muscular dystrophy 2I: a multinational cross-sectional study. PLoS One. 2014 Feb 28;9(2):e90377. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0090377. eCollection 2014.

2013

  • Hollingsworth KG, Garrood P, Eagle M, Bushby K, Straub V. Magnetic resonance imaging in duchenne muscular dystrophy: Longitudinal assessment of natural history over 18 months. Muscle Nerve. 2013 Oct;48(4):586-8. doi: 10.1002/mus.23879. Epub 2013 Aug 30. PubMed PMID: 23620230. 
  • Willis TA, Hollingsworth KG, Coombs A, Sveen ML, Andersen S, Stojkovic T, Eagle M, Mayhew A, de Sousa PL, Dewar L, Morrow JM, Sinclair CD, Thornton JS, Bushby K, Lochmüller H, Hanna MG, Hogrel JY, Carlier PG, Vissing J, Straub V. Quantitative muscle MRI as an assessment tool for monitoring disease progression in LGMD2I: a multicentre longitudinal study. PLoS One. 2013 Aug 14;8(8):e70993. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0070993. eCollection 2013.
  • Sinha A, Hollingsworth KG, Ball S, Cheetham T. Improving the vitamin d status of vitamin d deficient adults is associated with improved mitochondrial oxidative function in skeletal muscle.
    J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 2013 Mar;98(3):E509-13. doi: 10.1210/jc.2012-3592. Epub 2013 Feb 7.
  • He J, Hollingsworth KG, Newton JL, Blamire AM. Cerebral vascular control is associated with skeletal muscle pH in chronic fatigue syndrome patients both at rest and during dynamic stimulation. NeuroImage 2013 Jan 5;2:168-73. doi: 10.1016/j.nicl.2012.12.006. PubMed PMID: 24179772.
  • Ford AH, Duncan GW, Firbank MJ, Yarnall AJ, Khoo TK, Burn DJ, O'Brien JT.Rapid eye movement sleep behavior disorder in Parkinson's disease: Magnetic resonance imaging study. Mov Disord. 2013 Feb 28. doi: 10.1002/mds.25367. [Epubahead of print] PubMed PMID: 23450684.

2011

  • Kinali M, Arechavala-Gomeza V, Cirak S, Glover A, Guglieri M, Feng L, Hollingsworth KG, Hunt D, Junbluth H, Roper HP, Quinlivin RM, Gosalakkal JA, Jayawant S, Nadeau A, Hughes-Carre L, Manzur AY, Mercuri E, Morgan JE, Straub V, Bushby K, Sewry C, Rutherford M, Muntoni F. Muscle histology va MRI in Duchenne muscular dystrophy. Neurology. 2011 Jan 25;76(4):346-53.
  • Hallsworth K, Fattakhova G, Hollingsworth KG, Thoma C, Moore S, Taylor R ,Day CP, Trenell MI. Resistance exercise reduces liver fat and its mediators in non-alcoholic fatty liver disease independent of weight loss. Hepatology Gut 2011;60:1278e1283. doi:10.1136/gut.2011.242073.
  • Yu-Wai-Man P, Trenell MI, Hollingsworth KG, Griffiths PG, PF. C. OPA1 mutations impair mitochondrial function in both pure and complicated dominant optic atrophy Brain. 2011; Apr;134(Pt 4):e164.Epub 2010 Oct 14.
  • Klein A, Jungbluth H, Clement E, Lillis S, Abbs S, Munot P, Pane M, Wraige E, Schara U, Straub V, Mercuri E and Muntoni F. Muscle Magnetic Resonance Imaging in Congenital Myopathies Due to Ryanodine Receptor Type 1 Gene Mutations, Archives of Neurology, 2011, 68(9), pp. 1171-1179.

2010

  • Jones D, Hollingsworth K, Taylor R, Blamire A, Newton J. Abnormalities in pH Handling by Peripheral Muscle and Potential Regulation by the Autonomic Nervous System in Chronic Fatigue Syndrome. Journal of Internal Medicine 2010; 267(4):394-401.
  • Hollingsworth KG, Newton JL, Robinson L, Taylor R, Blamire AM, Jones DE. Loss of capacity to recover from acidosis in repeat exercise is strongly associated with fatigue in Primary Biliary Cirrhosis J Hepatol 2010;53:155-161.
  • Yu-Wai-Man P, Trenell MI, Hollingsworth KG, Griffiths PG, PF. C. OPA1 mutations impair mitochondrial function in both pure and complicated dominant optic atrophy Brain. 2010(Oct. 14).

2009

  • Garrood P, Hollingsworth K, Eagle M, Aribisala B, Birchall D, Bushby K, et al. MR imaging in Duchenne muscular dystrophy: quantification of T1-weighted signal, contrast uptake and the effects of exercise. Journal of Magnetic Resonance Imaging. 2009 Nov;30(5):1130-8.
  • Stevenson EJ TP, Thomas K, Smith F, Brand-Miller J, Trenell MI. Dietary glycemic index influences lipid oxidation but not muscle or liver glycogen oxidation during exercise. Am J Physiol Endocrinol Metab 2009; 296(5):E1140-7. Epub 2009 Feb 17.

2008

  • Trenell MI, Thelwall P, Thomas K, Stevenson E. Effect of high and low glycaemic index diets on skeletal muscle and liver substrate storage and utilisation during exercise. Diabetologia 2008;51 248.
  • Hollingsworth KG, Newton JL, Taylor R, McDonald C, Palmer JM, Blamire AM, et al. Pilot study of peripheral muscle function in primary biliary cirrhosis: potential implications for fatigue pathogenesis. Clin Gastroenterol Hepatol. 2008 Sep;6(9):1041-8.
  • Trenell MI, Stevenson E, Stockmann K, Brand-Miller J. Effect of high and low glycaemic index recovery diets on intramuscular lipid oxidation during aerobic exercise. British Journal of Nutrition. 2008 Feb;99(2):326-32. Epub 2007 Aug 15.

2007

  • Garrood P, Hollingsworth K, Thelwall P, Birchall D, Eagle M, Bushby K, et al. MRI in Duchenne muscular dystrophy: Quantification of fat infiltration and gadolinium uptake using whole-muscle regions of interest. Neuromuscular Disorders 2007; 17(9-10):816-7.