The Department of Radiology at UCSD has implemented a Small Animal Imaging Resource (SAIR) tosupport cancer research at UCSD and the San Diego bioresearch community. The SAIR is located in thevivarium at the Rebecca and John Moores UCSD Comprehensive Cancer Center (CC) on the La Jollacampus. This facility supports the efforts of the ICMIC investigators and the UCSD cancer researchinvestigators and then Campus and city-wide efforts. Some non-UCSD potential users include: SidneyKimmel CC, Scripps, Burnham and Salk Institutes, and the San Diego biotech companies.The UCSD SAIR will provide MRI, optical, CT, ultrasound, High-Resolution planar gamma imaging, andPET of rodents, as well as high-resolution digital autoradiography and fluorescent imaging of thin whole bodyrodent sections. Except for MRI, all modalities are at one site adjacent to the CC vivarium. Support andexpertise includes optical imaging, animal support, image computation, MR & optical hardware and software,diagnostic agent chemistry, radiochemistry including a cyclotron, analytical chemistry, kinetic modeling,informatics, histology, and a vascularized solid tumor model to cost-effectively screen imaging paradigms.Our primary emphasis will be the acquisition of images for kinetic modeling. For this reason the kineticmodeling service will develop automated data reduction schemes. Our previous experience with the use ofkinetic modeling for receptor density measurement from clinical studies has convinced us that the datareduction path from the image data set must be completely automated. There are two reasons for this: firstis high throughput, and second and more important is the absence of operator intervention and theelimination of operator bias. This latter quality is essential for rigorous statistical analysis (by the ICMICBiostatistics Service) of the imaging and biochemical/physiologic metrics.High-resolution ultrasound imaging will permit quantification of tumor size as well as measurement of leftventricular volume for recovery correction of PET sampled input functions. Most importantly, it will permit theuse of in situ tumor models. A key contribution of ultrasound to cancer research in mice is the ability to imagein sterile fashion and to do so without the need for anesthesia. This should permit frequent monitoring oftumor growth or regression following interventions.Members of the ICMIC Imaging Core will interact closely with colleagues of the Animal Models & Care andthe IMCIC Biostatistics Service. Our goal will be the identification of the most effective imaging model andthe efficient use of animals. This will be accomplished by weekly meetings of at least one member fromeach Core. These meetings will include: 1) meetings with new Pis to develop new imaging projects prior tocomposing new IACUC protocols, and 2) the review of completed IACUC protocols prior to IACUCsubmission.
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