Muscle

Bildmorphologische Biomarker der menschlichen Skelettmuskulatur (Muskelmasse, morphologische und Textureigenschaften von Muskelgruppen desKörperstamms, Oberschenkels und Oberarms) bei Sarkopenie und kardiometabolischen Erkrankungen

01/01/2020 to 01/01/2023

Skeletal muscle, as one of the largest body compartments in humans, has a major influence on mobility and metabolic health and underlies ongoing changes in mass, composition and function with aging and under various disease conditions. The German National Cohort (GNC, NAKO-Gesundheitsstudie) provides a comprehensive magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) data set and comprises information on individual muscular activity and strength as well as risk indicators for e.g. cardiometabolic diseases. In the first three years of this project (requested in this application) automated image processing tools will be adapted and applied for quantitative morphological assessment and texture analysis (patterns of fatty and fibrous elements) of skeletal musculature in the body trunk, upper arm, and thigh. The analyzed muscle features will be correlated with subjects age and gender, physical activity and muscular strength. Furthermore, relationships between muscular properties as potential imaging biomarkers with obesity (BMI, waist-to-hip ratio) and risk markers for cardiometabolic disorders (OGTT, blood pressure) will be analyzed within the first phase of the project.