The diabetic group showed significant reductions in body weight, grip strength, and myofiber size (p < 0.001).
MRI texture analysis could effectively differentiate between diabetic sarcopenic rats and normal controls.
Seven texture features from MRI scans showed high repeatability and significant differences between the two groups.
Lower values of TWI_Entropy and higher values of TWI_Mean and TWI_Variance were observed in the diabetic sarcopenia group compared to controls.
Strong correlations exist between MRI texture parameters and both muscle strength and myofiber size.
Simplified
BACKGROUND: Type 1 diabetes mellitus is associated with accelerated skeletal muscle aging and , a condition characterized by muscle mass and function loss. Early and noninvasive evaluation of muscle microstructural damage is critical for managing sarcopenia in diabetes. This study evaluated the potential of MRI texture analysis as a noninvasive imaging tool to assess myofiber size and grip strength alterations in a rat model of diabetic sarcopenia.
MATERIALS AND METHODS: Twenty SD rats were randomly and evenly allocated to the control (CON) and diabetic sarcopenia (DS) groups. Blood glucose, body weight, and forelimb grip strength were measured weekly. In the eighth week, axial TWI and TWI scans were performed to extract 16 texture features of the gastrocnemius muscle. The size of the fibers, including the cross-sectional area, perimeter, and minFeretDiam, was calculated from the HE-stained images. Differences between the two groups were analyzed via t tests or Mann‒Whitney U tests. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis was conducted to evaluate the diagnostic performance of MRI texture features. Associations between MRI texture features, grip strength, and myofiber size were assessed via Spearman correlation analysis. 1 2
RESULTS: The DS group presented significant reductions in body weight, grip strength, and myofiber size (p < 0.001). Seven texture features demonstrated high repeatability. Among them, TWI_Entropy and TWI_Entropy were significantly lower, whereas TWI_Mean, TWI_Mean, and TWI_Variance were greater in the DS group than in the control group (p < 0.05 to p < 0.001). ROC analysis revealed that the MRI texture features performed well in differentiating the DS and CON groups (AUC 0.830 ~ 1.000). Strong correlations were found between MRI texture parameters and muscle strength and myofiber size. 1 2 1 2 2
CONCLUSION: Muscle texture analysis based on TWI and TWI effectively differentiated type 1 diabetic sarcopenic rats from normal controls and revealed strong associations with muscle strength and myofiber size. These findings indicate that MRI texture parameters serve as potential biomarkers for diagnosing muscle damage in type 1 diabetic sarcopenia patients, suggesting that MRI texture parameters are promising noninvasive tools for early detection and monitoring of myofiber atrophy in diabetic sarcopenia. 1 2
Key numbers
712.350 ± 92.570 gf
Decrease
in the group
2306.760 ± 481.864 μm²
Myofiber Size Reduction
Myofiber size in the group
301.600 ± 20.748 g
Body Weight Reduction
Body weight in the group
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