A National Centre for Translational Hyperpolarised Magnetic Resonance

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We have developed a new imaging method that has the potential to increase the signal in a magnetic resonance (MR) image by up to 100,000 fold. This method can potentially be used on any hospital MR scanner. Our method works by magnetically labelling substances we seek to probe without affecting their molecular structure and is therefore non-toxic. With this method it is possible to label both drugs and substances that occur naturally in the body, making the method widely applicable. In previously and currently funded work, we are developing the technical aspects of this method and seek to test it in healthy subjects. As part of the current grant application, we will create the infrastructure needed to apply this method in patients within 5 years, focussing on patients with heart disease, cancer and joint disease. Our new method has the potential to speed up and improve MR imaging in a very wide range of diseases and help in the development of new drugs.