Jae Mo Park, Ph.D.

Dr. Park received both his undergraduate and graduate degrees in Electrical Engineering. His doctoral work at Stanford University was focused on technical developments of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and spectroscopic imaging (MRSI) with application to preclinical glioma brain tumor metabolism. Following completion of his Ph.D. in 2012, he broadened his research into advanced biomedical imaging as a postdoctoral research fellow and a research associate in the Department of Radiology at Stanford School of Medicine. He joined the UT Southwestern as an Assistant Professor in 2016 and became an Associate Professor (with tenure) in 2022.

Dr. Park's lab has been focused on methodological developments and clinical translation of metabolic imaging, particularly of mitochondria, enabling in vivo assessment of metabolic fluxes in individual enzyme-catalyzed reactions. As metabolic processes and their regulation are complex, numerous transient physiological conditions, including nutritional states and exercise, impact metabolism. Chronic diseases such as cancer and type 2 diabetes may also have profound effects. For accurate and selective imaging of metabolism and function of interests, his lab develops imaging concepts and schemes by developing a network of ideas in MR pulse sequence, physiology, chemistry, and clinical translation.

Graduate School

Stanford University (2009), Electrical Engineering

Graduate School

Stanford University (2012), Electrical Engineering

• Cancer metabolism
• Development of hyperpolarized MR spectroscopic imaging methods
• Metabolic imaging agents
• Metabolic imaging of cardiomyopathy
• Neurological disorders and neuroinflammation
• Quantitative neuroimaging techniques

Featured Publications

Functional activation of pyruvate dehydrogenase in human brain using hyperpolarized [1-13C]pyruvate

Zaidi M, Ma J, Thomas BP, Pena S, Harrison CE, Chen J, Lin SH, Derner K, Baxter JD, Liticker J, Malloy CR, Bartnik-Olson B, Park JM Magn Reson Med 2024 In press

Investigating the origin of the ¹³ C lactate signal in the anesthetized healthy rat brain in vivo after hyperpolarized [1-¹³ C]pyruvate injection.

Zhu M, Jhajharia A, Josan S, Park JM, Yen YF, Pfefferbaum A, Hurd RE, Spielman DM, Mayer D, NMR Biomed 2023 Nov e5073

Longitudinal assessment of mitochondrial dysfunction in acute traumatic brain injury using hyperpolarized [1-13C]pyruvate

Hackett EP, Chen J, Ingle L, Al Nemri S, Barshikar S, Pinho MC, Plautz EJ, Bartnik-Olson BL, Park JM Magn Reson Med 2023 6 90 2432-2442

Hyperpolarized [1-13C]acetyl-L-carnitine probes TCA cycle activity in vivo

Chen J, Singh TK, Al Nemri S, Zaidi M, Billingsley KL, Park JM ACS Sens 2023 8 8 2927-2932

Design and Characterization of Hyperpolarized ¹⁵N-BBCP as a H₂O₂-Sensing Probe.

Park H, Chen J, Dimitrov IE, Park JM, Wang Q, ACS Sens 2022 Oct

Profiling carbohydrate metabolism in liver and hepatocellular carcinoma with 13C-glycerate probes.

Chen J, LaGue E, Li J, Yang C, Hackett EP, Mendoza M, Alger JR, DeBerardinis RJ, Corbin IR, Billingsley KL, Park JM, Analysis & Sensing 2021 Nov 4 1 196-202

13C-labeled diethyl ketoglutarate derivatives as hyperpolarized probes of 2-ketoglutarate dehydrogenase activity.

Singh J, Suh EH, Sharma G, Chen J, Hackett EP, Wen X, Sherry AD, Khemtong C, Malloy CR, Park JM, Kovács Z, Analysis & Sensing 2021 Nov 4 1 156-160

Dynamic ¹³ C MR spectroscopy as an alternative to imaging for assessing cerebral metabolism using hyperpolarized pyruvate in humans.

Ma J, Pinho MC, Harrison CE, Chen J, Sun C, Hackett EP, Liticker J, Ratnakar J, Reed GD, Chen AP, Sherry AD, Malloy CR, Wright SM, Madden CJ, Park JM, Magn Reson Med 2021 Oct

Dual-phase imaging of cardiac metabolism using hyperpolarized pyruvate.

Ma J, Malloy CR, Pena S, Harrison CE, Ratnakar J, Zaha VG, Park JM, Magn Reson Med 2021 Oct

Hyperpolarized NMR study of the impact of pyruvate dehydrogenase kinase inhibition on the pyruvate dehydrogenase and TCA flux in type 2 diabetic rat muscle.

Park JM, Josan S, Hurd RE, Graham J, Havel PJ, Bendahan D, Mayer D, Chung Y, Spielman DM, Jue T, Pflugers Arch 2021 Aug

 Featured Books

Insights on lactate metabolism in skeletal muscle based on 13C dynamic nuclear polarization studies. In Dynamic Hyperpolarized Nuclear Magnetic Resonance. Handbook of Modern Biophysics

Park JM, Jue T (2021). Springer, Cham

Kinetic modeling of enzymatic reactions in analyzing hyperpolarized NMR data. In Dynamic Hyperpolarized Nuclear Magnetic Resonance. Handbook of Modern Biophysics

Spielman DM, Park JM (2021). Springer, Cham

Assessing pyruvate carboxylase flux as a mechanistic biological marker in fasting. In Biomarkers in Nutrition

Chen J, Park JM (2022). Springer Nature

• Gambhir-RSL Grant
  Stanford University (2015-2016)
• Junior Fellow
  International Society of Magnetic Resonance in Medicine (2014-2014)
• Radiology Department Research Funding Award
  Stanford University (2013-2014)
• Cambridge Foundation Fellowship
  Graduate Scholarship (2007-2009)

• American Heart Association (2023)
• International Society of Magnetic Resonance in Medicine (2009)
• National Neurotrauma Society (2023)