Article Document Academic Article Information Content Entity Continuant Continuant Journal Article Entity Entity Generically Dependent Continuant 2025-06-26T09:27:13 RDF description of Imaging human teeth by phosphorus magnetic resonance with nuclear Overhauser enhancement - http://repository.healthpartners.com/individual/document-rn317 2022-02-21T22:48:57.408-06:00 public <p>Three-dimensional phosphorus MR images ((31)P MRI) of teeth are obtained at a nominal resolution of 0.5 mm in less than 15 minutes using acquisition pulse sequences sensitive to ultra-short transversal relaxation times. The images directly reflect the spatially resolved phosphorus content of mineral tissue in dentin and enamel; they show a lack of signal from pulp tissue and reduced signal from de-mineralized carious lesions. We demonstrate for the first time that the signal in (31)P MR images of mineralized tissue is enhanced by a (1)H-(31)P nuclear Overhauser effect (NOE). Using teeth as a model for imaging mineralized human tissue, graded differences in signal enhancement are observed that correlate well with known mineral content. From solid-state NMR experiments we conclude that the NOE is facilitated by spin diffusion and that the NOE difference can be assigned to a higher water content and a different micro-structure of dentin. Thus, a novel method for imaging mineral content without ionizing radiation is proposed. This method has potential use in the assessment of de-mineralization states in humans, such as caries of teeth and osteoporosis of bones.<p> 14574 Imaging human teeth by phosphorus magnetic resonance with nuclear Overhauser enhancement 6 Dental Care 10.1038/srep30756 Scientific Reports document-rn317 Radiography 23728