Development of a super-parallel MR microscope for construction of a 3D image database of human embryos

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Kyoto University has a large human embryo collection (〜50,000 specimens), which were collected from 1961 to 1974. Because such a collection will never be obtained again, their nondestructive 3Dmeasurements are highly desired. Kyoto and Tsukuba Universities have therefore started a project acquiring 3D MR microscopic images of about 1,200 embryos in two years to create a 3D anatomical database for human embryology. Human embryo specimens were chemically fixed in Bouin's fluid and stored in 10% formalin solution. The embryos were imaged in the formalin to avoid susceptibility effect, with a four-or eight-channel super-parallel MR microscope using a 2.34 T/40 cm superconducting magnet. All of the embryos (about 100 speciments for each stage) were measured using a T_1 weighted 3D SE sequence. The image matrix was 128 x 128 x 256 throughout the whole stages but the voxel size was varied from (40μm)^3 to (150μm)^3. Many anatomical structures were clearly visualized in the 3D images. This result demonstrates usefulness of the anatomical image database in human embryology.