HIGH FIELD MR SCANNER FOR IN VIVO ANIMAL STUDIES

University Of Texas Hlth Sci Ctr Houston, Houston TX

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Linked publications & trials

Abstract

This application seeks partial funding for purchasing a 7 Tesla/30 cm bore magnetic resonance scanner for in vivo imaging and spectroscopy of animals. This scanner will be housed in the University of Texas-Houston Medical School, which is located in the Texas Medical Center, home of four major research institutions and five hospitals. This scanner can accommodate animals ranging from mice to rhesus monkeys. In addition to the normal standard imaging gradient coils (maximum gradient strength of 100 mT/m; slew rate of 200 mu's), this scanner will be equipped with a mini-imaging system (maximum gradient field of 200 mT/m; slew rate of 80 mu's) and RF probes for imaging structures such as spinal cords, and small animals such as mice with high resolution and high speed. The strong and fast gradients allow the implementation of advanced techniques such as diffusion tensor imaging (DTI), functional MRl (fMRI), and perfusion, all based on ultrafast imaging. The scanner will have all the RF coils and preamplifiers necessary for acquiring localized in vivo multi-nuclear (1H, 13C, 19F, 23Na, and 31P) spectroscopic data from relatively small volumes. The high field along with a high performance gradient system should allow the implementation of a variety of sophisticated in vivo imaging and spectroscopic techniques. In the current application five major users who are PI's on one or more MH grants and two minor users are identified. Seven projects that utilize this scanner are described. These are: l) spinal cord injuries in rodents, 2) brain structure-functional relationship in rhesus monkeys, 3) calcium blockers and related therapy for cerebral ischemia in rodents, 4) mechanism of memory deficits following brain injury in rodents, 5) therapeutic hypothermia for traumatic brain injury in rodents, 6) signaling in skeletal muscle hypertrophy in rodents, and 7) atherosclerosis and vascular biology using ex vivo tissues and phantoms. There are also a number of other investigators who are interested in using this facility to enhance their research. Institutional commitment and plans for long term maintenance of this instrument are documented. To the best of the PI's knowledge, this will be the only facility of its kind in the South West part of the country.