Advanced Small Animal Ultrasound Imaging - Vevo F2

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PROJECT SUMMARY/ABSTRACT This proposal requests funds for the acquisition of a state-of-the-art Vevo F2 high-resolution ultrasound imaging system (FujiFilm-VisualSonics). This system would be integrated into and managed by the Pre-Clinical Cardiovascular (PCC) Core facility within the Division of Cardiology/Department of Medicine at the University of Colorado Denver Anschutz Medical Campus (AMC). Due to the highly advanced technology of the Vevo F2, this system would significantly expand the current capabilities of the PCC Core and would enhance on-going, system-wide collaborations at the University of Colorado. The long-term objective of this proposal is to provide advanced ultrasound capabilities that lead to a more detailed understanding of pathophysiological mechanisms and highlight potential therapeutic strategies that could be translated into innovative treatments for human diseases. Our goal is to do the best science possible and be guided by the data. Having a Vevo F2 instrument in our PCC Core would undoubtedly help us achieve this goal. A major focus of the PCC Core to facilitate studies employing mouse and rat models of cardiovascular, pulmonary, renal, metabolic and onocologic diseases. Our ultimate goal is to translate findings made in these pre-clinical models into novel therapeutics for the treatment of devastating diseases in humans. We collaborate closely with research groups across the campus, and the entire Denver metropolitan area, to understand the roles of heart:kidney and heart:lung cross-talk in the pathogenesis of cardiorenal disease and pulmonary vascular/right ventricular remodeling. Additionally, we have collaborations focused on vascular stiffening, impaired blood flow, metabolic disease, tumor metastasis, biomarker discovery and contrast imaging in rodent models (see Figure). All of these efforts would benefit from the acquisition of a Vevo F2 instrument, which would enable state-of-the-art, non-invasive, longitudinal measurements of cardiac structure and function, renal, cardiac and pancreatic blood flow, and tumor formation in mouse and rat models. In addition, this high-definition ultrasound system would provide an invaluable tool for monitoring localized delivery of cells and therapeutic agents via intra-cardiac or portal vein injection. The Vevo F2, which has many features in common with clinical instruments, would have a tremendous impact on NIH-funded research at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, and has the potential to facilitate translation of basic science discoveries into innovative treatments for human disease. In addition to the aforementioned collaborations, through fee-for-service arrangements, the PCC Core serves a diverse group of investigators, not only on the AMC, which has two separate animal facilities, but also in the Colorado Children's Hospital, the Rocky Mountain Regional VA Medical Center, and University of Colorado Boulder. We are also deeply committed to assisting early stage investigators obtain preliminary data to support their first NIH grant applications. For all of these studies we employ two Vevo 2100 instruments, which are located in a pathogen-free animal facility in Research Center 2 (RC2). The upgrade to the Vevo F2 is crucially needed to meet the increasing demands, and technical needs, of a multitude of projects, which have tested the limits of the Vevo 2100 instruments that we purchased in 2014. Not only is the technology of this instrument inferior to that of the Vevo F2, but the Vevo 2100 will no longer be serviced by FujiFilm-VisualSonics starting in 2023. Furthermore, the Vevo 2100 uses a Windows XP operating system, which is not compatible with the IT requirements of the University of Colorado. It is essential that we obtain a Vevo F2 to maintain and promote cutting edge biomedical research at the University of Colorado.