This NSF MRI grant provides funding for the purchase of a Siemens 3T MAGNETOM Prisma Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) scanner for human structural and functional neuroimaging research. Boston University has made a major commitment to expand and strengthen neuroscience research, including the construction of a new Integrated Life Sciences and Engineering research building. A new Cognitive Neuroimaging Center and Center for Systems Neuroscience will be located within this new building. Acquisition of a MRI scanner will provide Boston University neuroscience researchers and students with access to advanced neuroimaging instrumentation. The instrumentation location within Boston University's new multidisciplinary research building will facilitate close collaborations between BU's neuroscience, engineering, and computational faculty and students. The cognitive and systems neuroscience investigators at Boston University share a commitment to training the next generation of scientists, and are focused on increasing the representation of underrepresented groups in STEM fields. The investigators are active in K-12 outreach programs, have developed courses in cognitive neuroscience and brain mapping, actively train undergraduate researchers, contribute to undergraduate and graduate training programs in neuroscience, and work to increase minority representation in STEM areas. The acquisition of a new MRI scanner will broaden resources for research and training at Boston University.
One of the shared goals of Boston University's new Cognitive Neuroimaging Center and the Center for Systems Neuroscience is to increase our understanding of brain function by linking across multiple systems levels. Development of these research facilities will provide Boston University neuroscience researchers with state-of-the-art facilities as a shared, core facility for research, with the goal of developing an understanding of brain function that bridges across scales - from the cellular level, to the systems level, to the level of human cognition and behavior. The aim is to gain insight into cognition and behavior in terms of understanding the underlying brain networks, the neural circuits within these brain systems, and the cellular and molecular components of these circuits. To reach this goal will require multidisciplinary interaction between scientists developing and using cutting-edge research experimental methodologies with advanced computational techniques, including advanced neuroimaging technology. BU researchers have developed strong collaborations, which bridge the gap from animal to human level research. The Boston University investigators have publications and a proven track record of multidisciplinary collaborations that cut across traditional boundaries and allow for integration of data across levels. The acquisition of a Siemens 3T MAGNETOM Prisma MRI system and its placement within a multidisciplinary center will foster neuroscience research that does not adhere to the traditional human/animal divide, allowing the development of models that link the understanding of neural circuits to cognition and behavior.
