{
  "abstract": "Bone marrow (BM) adiposity changes radically through the lifespan, but this phenomenon is poorly characterized and understood in humans. Large datasets of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans of the head have been collected to study the human brain, but also contain unexploited information about other organs. We developed an artificial neural network that localizes calvarial BM in T1-weighted MRI head scans, enabling us to study its composition in several large MRI datasets, and to model sex-dimorphic age trajectories, including the effect of menopause. We revealed high heritability in single-nucleotide polymorphism and twin data, and identified 41 genetic loci significantly associated with the trait, including six sex-specific loci. Integrating mapped genes with existing BM single-cell RNA-sequencing data revealed patterns of adipogenic lineage differentiation and lipid loading. Finally, we identified significant genetic correlations with several human traits, including cognitive ability and Parkinson’s disease, which is intriguing in light of the recently discovered channels that link calvarial BM to the meninges.",
  "abstract_shown": true,
  "affiliations": [
    "Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Tübingen Center for Mental Health, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany",
    "German Center for Mental Health (DZPG), Partner Site Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany",
    "Norwegian Centre for Mental Disorders Research, Division of Mental Health and Addiction, Oslo University Hospital and Institute of Clinical Medicine, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway",
    "Department of Medical Genetics, Oslo University Hospital, Oslo, Norway",
    "Department of Psychiatric Research, Diakonhjemmet Hospital, Oslo, Norway",
    "Department of Pharmacy, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway",
    "KG Jebsen Centre for Neurodevelopmental Disorders, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway",
    "Department of Psychology, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway"
  ],
  "article_type": "research article",
  "arxiv": null,
  "author_total": 10,
  "authors": [
    {
      "affs": [
        0,
        1,
        2
      ],
      "name": "Tobias Kaufmann",
      "orcid": "0000-0002-4003-1018"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        3
      ],
      "name": "Pål Marius Bjørnstad",
      "orcid": "0000-0001-6217-7467"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        3
      ],
      "name": "Martin Falck",
      "orcid": "0000-0002-6519-1800"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        2,
        4
      ],
      "name": "Stener Nerland",
      "orcid": "0000-0001-8771-8856"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        2
      ],
      "name": "Kevin O'Connell",
      "orcid": "0000-0002-6865-8795"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        2,
        5
      ],
      "name": "Oleksandr Frei",
      "orcid": "0000-0002-6427-2625"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        2,
        6
      ],
      "name": "Ole A Andreassen",
      "orcid": "0000-0002-4461-3568"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        2,
        6,
        7
      ],
      "name": "Lars T Westlye",
      "orcid": "0000-0001-8644-956X"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        2,
        3
      ],
      "name": "Srdjan Djurovic",
      "orcid": "0000-0002-8140-8061"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        2,
        3
      ],
      "name": "Timothy Hughes",
      "orcid": "0000-0002-8022-6012"
    }
  ],
  "bibtex": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/ezby4mxv7e4dn.bib",
  "cited_by": 0,
  "doi": "10.7554/elife.101499",
  "fulltext_url": "https://elifesciences.org/articles/101499",
  "id": "ezby4mxv7e4dn",
  "issns": [
    "2050-084X"
  ],
  "landing_url": "https://elifesciences.org/articles/101499",
  "language": null,
  "licence": "CC-BY-4.0",
  "licence_label": "CC BY 4.0",
  "licence_source": "article",
  "licence_url": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/",
  "metadata_licence": null,
  "native_subjects": [
    [
      "elife",
      "genetics-genomics"
    ],
    [
      "elife",
      "medicine"
    ],
    [
      "openalex",
      "2737|Adipose Tissue and Metabolism"
    ]
  ],
  "openalex": "W4404568823",
  "pdf_url": "https://cdn.elifesciences.org/articles/101499/elife-101499-v1.pdf",
  "pmcid": null,
  "pmid": null,
  "published": "2026-11-04",
  "publisher": "eLife Sciences Publications",
  "ris": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/ezby4mxv7e4dn.ris",
  "sources": [
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-11-04T12:20:56Z",
      "native_id": "101499",
      "source": "elife",
      "url": "https://elifesciences.org/articles/101499"
    }
  ],
  "subjects": [
    {
      "field": "biology",
      "origin": "elife:genetics-genomics",
      "subfield": "genetics-genomics"
    },
    {
      "field": "medicine",
      "origin": "elife:medicine",
      "subfield": "general"
    }
  ],
  "title": "Estimating bone marrow adiposity from head MRI and identifying its genetic architecture",
  "title_text": "Estimating bone marrow adiposity from head MRI and identifying its genetic architecture",
  "type": "peer-reviewed",
  "updated_at": "2026-11-04T12:20:56Z",
  "url": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/ezby4mxv7e4dn",
  "venue": "eLife",
  "versions": []
}