TY - JOUR
T1 - Whole cervix imaging of collagen, muscle, and cellularity in term and preterm pregnancy
AU - Wu, Wenjie
AU - Sun, Zhexian
AU - Gao, Hansong
AU - Nan, Yuan
AU - Pizzella, Stephanie
AU - Xu, Haonan
AU - Lau, Josephine
AU - Lin, Yiqi
AU - Wang, Hui
AU - Woodard, Pamela K.
AU - Krigman, Hannah R.
AU - Wang, Qing
AU - Wang, Yong
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© The Author(s) 2024.
PY - 2024/12
Y1 - 2024/12
N2 - Cervical softening and dilation are critical for the successful term delivery of a fetus, with premature changes associated with preterm birth. Traditional clinical measures like transvaginal ultrasound and Bishop scores fall short in predicting preterm births and elucidating the cervix’s complex microstructural changes. Here, we introduce a magnetic resonance diffusion basis spectrum imaging (DBSI) technique for non-invasive, comprehensive imaging of cervical cellularity, collagen, and muscle fibers. This method is validated through ex vivo DBSI and histological analyses of specimens from total hysterectomies. Subsequently, retrospective in vivo DBSI analysis at 32 weeks of gestation in ten term deliveries and seven preterm deliveries with inflammation-related conditions shows distinct microstructural differences between the groups, alongside significant correlations with delivery timing. These results highlight DBSI’s potential to improve understanding of premature cervical remodeling and aid in the evaluation of therapeutic interventions for at-risk pregnancies. Future studies will further assess DBSI’s clinical applicability.
AB - Cervical softening and dilation are critical for the successful term delivery of a fetus, with premature changes associated with preterm birth. Traditional clinical measures like transvaginal ultrasound and Bishop scores fall short in predicting preterm births and elucidating the cervix’s complex microstructural changes. Here, we introduce a magnetic resonance diffusion basis spectrum imaging (DBSI) technique for non-invasive, comprehensive imaging of cervical cellularity, collagen, and muscle fibers. This method is validated through ex vivo DBSI and histological analyses of specimens from total hysterectomies. Subsequently, retrospective in vivo DBSI analysis at 32 weeks of gestation in ten term deliveries and seven preterm deliveries with inflammation-related conditions shows distinct microstructural differences between the groups, alongside significant correlations with delivery timing. These results highlight DBSI’s potential to improve understanding of premature cervical remodeling and aid in the evaluation of therapeutic interventions for at-risk pregnancies. Future studies will further assess DBSI’s clinical applicability.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85199049150&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1038/s41467-024-48680-9
DO - 10.1038/s41467-024-48680-9
M3 - Article
C2 - 39030173
AN - SCOPUS:85199049150
SN - 2041-1723
VL - 15
JO - Nature communications
JF - Nature communications
IS - 1
M1 - 5942
ER -