Janusz Hankiewicz, PhD

CU New Inventor of the Year

Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Thermometry- Temperature is a fundamental parameter reflecting the biological status of the body and individual tissues. Clinical studies have indicated that localized temperature measurements could be a useful method for detection of a variety of health problems including certain cancers and inflammations. Precise determination of tissue temperature is also important in different medical interventional procedures such as hyperthermia treatment and thermal ablation. Additionally temperature mapping is critical for monitoring temperature of tissue around medical metallic implants during standard magnetic resonance imaging and caused by fast switching magnetic gradients and radio-frequency (RF) pulses.

Magnetic Resonance Elastography- MRE is a new diagnostic method that uses phase contrast magnetic resonance imaging to detect organ tissue response to low energy mechanical waves for an in vivo, noninvasive and quantitative determination of tissue elasticity. Low-amplitude harmonic oscillations (of less than 10 microns) at acoustic frequencies (typically several hundred Hz) are introduced to the body by means of electromagnetic, piezoelectric or pneumatic driven actuators. The propagation of the wave can be recorded using standard MRI protocols with the association of additional motion sensitizing gradients (MSG). The spatial direction of the gradients can be changed to obtain a true three-dimensional vector of the tissue displacement. The temporal and spatial elements of the wave field are then analyzed to provide a meaningful transformation of the wave data to form an image of the tissue stiffness.

The most important medical applications of this novel method of measurement of tissue stiffness currently include:

1. Examination of brain development, injury and pathophysiology
2. Liver fibrosis and inflammation
3. Study of impaired contractility
4. Breast cancer surveillance
5. Assessments of skeletal muscle mechanical properties in training and physical therapies
6. Microprobes for nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy
7. NMR in local magnetic Field

1. Hankiewicz, J.H., Stoll, J.A., Stroud, J., Davidson, J., Livesey, K.L., Tvrdy, K., Roshko, A., Russek, S.E., Stupic, K., Bilski, P., Camley, R.E., and Celinski, Z.J. (2019) Nano-sized ferrite particles for magnetic resonance imaging thermometry. Journal of Magnetism and Magnetic Materials. 469. 550-557. DOI:10.1016/j.jmmm.2018.09.037
2. Alghamdi N.A., Hankiewicz J. H., Anderson N. R., Stupic K. F., Camley R. E., Przybylski M., Zukrowski J., Celinski Z. (2018), Development of Ferrite-based temperature sensors for magnetic resonance imaging: a study of Cu1-x ZnxFe2O4,  Phys. Rev. Applied. 9: 054030.
3. Hankiewicz, J.H., Alghamdi, N., Hammelev, N.M., Anderson, N.R.,  Camley, R.E., Stupic, K. F., Przybylski, M., Zukrowski, J., and Celinski, Z.J. (2017) Zinc Doped Copper Ferrite Particles as Temperature Sensors for Magnetic Resonance Imaging. AIP Advances 7, 056703. DOI: 10.1063/1.4973439
4. Hankiewicz, J.H., Celinski J.Z., Stupic, K.F., Anderson, N.R. and Camley, R.E., 2016. Ferromagnetic Particles as Magnetic Resonance Imaging Temperature Sensors. Nature Communications. DOI: 10.1038/NCOMMS12415.
5. Hankiewicz J.H., Celinski Z., Smiley, K. and Majewski S. 2014. Combined 1H MRI, PET and Multinuclear MRS hybrid imaging system. EJNMMI Physics. 1(Suppl.1) A6. DOI:10.1186/2197-7364-1-S1-A6.
6. Hankiewicz J.H., Yasar T.K., Royston T.J. and Lewandowski E.D., In vivo Magnetic Resonance Elastography (MRE) in Mouse Heart at Ultra-High Magnetic Field Poster, Conference on Cardiovascular Research, Chicago, August 2011.
7. Hankiewicz J.H., Banke H.N., Farjah M. and Lewandowski E.D. Early impairment of transmural principal strains in the left ventricle wall following short-term, high fat feeding of mice predisposed to cardiac steatosis. Circulation: Cardiovascular Imaging 3:710-717, 2010. PMID: 20837747.
8. Hankiewicz J.H., Hausler Banke N. and Lewandowski E.D. Critical level of intramyocardial lipid impairs transmural principal strains in hearts of low overexpressing PPARa mice due to high fat diet. American Heart Association Scientific Sessions, Orlando Fl, 2009 (Abstract).
9. Hankiewicz J.H., and Lewandowski E.D. (2007) Improved Cardiac Tagging Resolution at Ultra-High Magnetic Field Elucidates Transmural Differences in Principal Strain in the Mouse Heart and Reduced Stretch in Dilated Cardiomyopathy. J. Cardiovasc. Magn. Reson. 9:891-898,PMID: 18066748.
10. Hankiewicz J.H., Goldspink P.H., Buttrick P.M., and Lewandowski E.D. (2008), Principal strain changes precede ventricular wall thinning during transition to heart failure in a mouse model of dilated cardiomyopathy. American Journal of Physiology. Heart and Circulatory Physiology. 294:H330-H336, PMID: 17965277.

1. "Development of Contrast for Magnetic Resonance Imaging for Non-Invasive in vivo Temperature Measurement" from Bioscience Discovery Evaluation Program (with Robert Camley and Zbigniew Celinski)
2. "Magnetic Resonance Imaging thermometry using ferromagnetic particles"; Sponsor: NSF-ICorps; 01/2017-06/2017; with Z. Celinski and T. Boult
3. "Fabrication of Gadolinium particles", sponsored by Argonne National Laboratory, Center for Nanoscale Materials - Proposal #50984,(with Z. Celinski, R. Camley, V. Novosad and E. Rozhkova)
4. “Development of Contrast Agent for Magnetic Resonance Thermometry of Adipose Tissue”; sponsor – EUSMI, European Soft Matter Infrastructure
5. “Improving MRI Guided Thermal Therapies by Designed Magnetic Nanoparticles”; sponsor - NSF SBIR (with Robert Camley and Zbigniew Celinski)