4.7T MRI Scanner for Small Animal Imaging Applications

描述（由申请人提供）： 将MRI技术应用于啮齿动物是一个前所未有的机会，可以彻底改变疾病动物模型的设计和监测。高场、小动物MRI允许可视化深入到结构中，并允许这种可视化在长时间内进行，而不会对动物造成伤害。该提案的具体目的是获得资金购买4.7特斯拉（T）磁共振成像（MRI）扫描仪，用于对小动物（主要是啮齿动物）进行成像。随着威斯康星州分子成像中心（WIMIC），威斯康星州（UW）综合癌症中心和放射科，医学物理系，威斯康星大学已成为MRI技术开发和应用于各种疾病状态和器官系统的领导者。然而，这些研究仅限于使用临床MRI扫描仪。数据质量受到临床梯度和RF硬件的限制，因此研究仅限于较低分辨率研究（> 0.25 mm）。购买高场MRI扫描仪将使参与众多项目的研究人员能够以前所未有的分辨率（100 mu/m平面内）探索体内解剖学和生理学。华盛顿大学工作的一个独特方面是基础科学家和临床医生之间的密切联系。使用4.7T MRI扫描仪生成的数据将显着增强当前的科学工作，其分辨率可用于探索小鼠和大鼠的疾病模型。这些数据在指导和解释人类MRI研究方面至关重要。 新的高场MRI扫描仪将被安置在位于UW医院的UW综合癌症中心。这个位置是理想的，因为它将很容易接近许多癌症中心的用户，它也将隔壁的微型CT扫描仪。由于CT和MRI是互补的方式，我们预见到许多机会的研究之间移动两个扫描仪。一个专门的科学咨询委员会，由著名的MRI成像研究人员和使用小动物模型的主要研究人员组成，将提供行政，科学和技术专业知识。 该系统的潜在用户所代表的广泛研究领域包括：心脏、肾脏和肌肉生理学、动物学、生物医学工程、发育生物学、肿瘤学、神经科学、肿瘤学、病理学和干细胞研究。如果有一个高场MRI系统，这些用户的研究计划将大大提前。4.7T扫描仪的收购将补充校园内现有的微成像资源，包括微型PET和微型CT扫描仪，并将为整个UW-Madison校园的生物和物理科学家开辟新的研究途径。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): The adaptation of MRI technology to use in rodents represents an unprecedented opportunity to revolutionize the design and monitoring of animal models of disease. High-field, small-animal MRI allows visualization deep into structures and permits this visualization to be carried out over extended periods of time with no damage to the animal. The Specific Aim of this proposal is to acquire funds to purchase a 4.7 Tesla (T) Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) scanner for imaging small animals (primarily rodents). With the Wisconsin Molecular Imaging Center (WIMIC), the University of Wisconsin (UW) Comprehensive Cancer Center and the Departments of Radiology, and Medical Physics, the UW has become a leader in MRI technique development and application to a wide variety of disease states and organ systems. However, these studies have been limited to using clinical MRI scanners. The quality of the data has been limited by the clinical gradient and RF hardware and therefore studies have been restricted to lower resolution studies (>0.25mm). Acquisition of a high-field MRI scanner will allow researchers involved in numerous projects to explore in vivo anatomy and physiology with unprecedented resolution (100 mu/m in-plane). A unique aspect of the work at the UW is the close linkage between basic scientists and clinicians. The data generated with a 4.7T MRI scanner will markedly enhance current scientific efforts with the resolution required to explore disease models in both mice and rats. These data will be critical in guiding and interpreting human MRI studies. The new high-field MRI scanner will be housed in the UW Comprehensive Cancer Center located in the UW Hospital. This location is ideal because it will be readily accessible to the many Cancer Center users and it will also be next door to the micro-CT scanner. Because CT and MRI are complementary modalities, we foresee many opportunities for studies to be moved between the two scanners. A dedicated scientific advisory committee, made up of prominent MRI imaging researchers and principle investigators who use small animal models, will provide the administrative, scientific, and technical expertise. Among the broad research areas represented by potential users of the system are: cardiac, renal and muscle physiology, zoology, biomedical engineering, developmental biology, oncology, neuroscience, oncology, pathology, and stem cell research. The research programs of many of these users will be advanced significantly if a high field MRI system is available to them. The acquisition of the 4.7T scanner will complement the existing micro-imaging resources on campus including micro-PET and micro-CT scanners, and it will open new avenues of investigation for biological and physical scientists from across the UW-Madison campus.