MRI: Acquisition of a 7T magnetic resonance system for high resolution imaging of brain connectivity and dynamics

向加州理工学院颁发了一项合同，购买最先进的设备，用于7特斯拉的磁共振成像（MRI）仪器进行大脑成像。该仪器将在加州理工学院脑成像中心（CBIC）进行尖端的基础研究以及研究密集型培训，旨在研究一系列动物物种的大脑结构和功能。这项研究将涉及加州理工学院的十几个不同的实验室，其中包括大量的博士后研究员，研究生，本科生和高中暑期学生。将特别强调增加妇女和代表性不足的少数民族学生在教育和研究中的代表性。这包括加州理工学院的博士学位。项目以及暑期本科生研究员项目和WAVE项目，该项目欢迎来自加州理工学院以外的学生，并专注于增加科学，技术，工程和数学领域代表性不足的学生的参与。它还包括加州理工学院课堂连接，一个科学教育推广计划，加州理工学院的科学家与K-当地公立学校系统的12名教师为K-12学生提供暑期研究经验。 在课程中使用这一工具将产生更多的教育影响。此外，MRI仪器将提供给大洛杉矶地区的学术机构。通过这项研究获得的对大脑结构和功能的见解，并通过公共宣传传播，将广泛促进科学素养。 支持研究的具体目标是阐明大脑结构，功能和功能障碍的基本原则;测试，开发和比较用于研究大脑的协同技术;并在这奋进培养下一代学生和科学家。具体目标将调查大脑的结构和功能连接，知识是必不可少的制定和测试大脑功能的计算模型，并允许物种之间的比较。融合技术也将用于研究大脑，包括使用功能性MRI，超声和光声断层扫描。该研究将开发下一代用于MRI的遗传编码分子探针，并将在细胞和电路水平上实现更精确的成像和生物功能操纵。这项研究将利用与加州理工学院人类MRI扫描仪研究的独特联系，实现跨物种大脑结构和功能研究的新进展。研究结果将在同行评审的出版物和科学会议上传播。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

An award is made to the California Institute of Technology to purchase state-of-the-art equipment for a 7-Tesla magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) instrument for brain imaging. This instrument will enable cutting-edge basic research, as well as research-intensive training, at the Caltech Brain Imaging Center (CBIC) aimed at investigating brain structure and function in a range of animal species. The research will engage more than a dozen different labs at Caltech pursuing basic scientific questions, including a large number of postdoctoral fellows, graduate students, undergraduates and high school summer students. Special emphasis will be placed on increasing the representation of women and underrepresented minority students in education and research. This includes Caltech's Ph.D. programs as well as its Summer Undergraduate Research Fellows program and WAVE program, which welcome students from outside Caltech and focus on increasing the participation of underrepresented students in science, technology, engineering and math. It also includes the Caltech Classroom Connection, a science education outreach program partnering Caltech scientists with K-12 teachers in the local public school system to provide summer research experiences for K-12 students. Additional educational impact will come from the use of this instrument in connection with courses. In addition, the MRI instrument will be made available to academic institutions in the Greater Los Angeles area. The insights into the structure and function of the brain obtained through this research and communicated through public outreach will contribute broadly to scientific literacy. The specific goals of the supported research are to elucidate fundamental principles of brain structure, function and dysfunction; to test, develop, and compare synergistic technologies for investigating the brain; and to train the next generation of students and scientists in this endeavor. Specific aims will investigate the structural and functional connectivity of the brain, knowledge that is essential for formulating and testing computational models of brain function and allowing comparisons among species. Convergent technologies will also be used to investigate the brain, including the use of functional MRI, ultrasound and photoacoustic tomography. The research will develop the next generation of genetically encoded molecular probes for MRI, and will enable more precise imaging and manipulation of biological function at the cellular and circuit level. This research will leverage unique connections to studies conducted on Caltech's human MRI scanners, enabling novel advances in the study of brain structure and function across species. Results from the research will be disseminated in peer-reviewed publications and at scientific meetings.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.