This application seeks support for an animal neuroimaging package which will allow us to adapt a brand new state-of-the-art human 3 Tesla MRI scanner for small animal neuroimaging. Funds are requested to obtain customized rat and mouse coils fully compatible with our new 3 Tesla human scanner that are designed for high resolution brain and spinal cord imaging. The 3 Tesla human MRI will be devoted exclusively to research. The machine and coils will form the basis for a """"""""Small Animal MR Imaging Core Facility"""""""" at Temple University School of Medicine which will primarily serve the needs of NIH funded researchers from the Departments of Microbiology, Neuroscience, Pharmacology, and Radiology at Temple University School of Medicine, the Department of Computer Science at Temple University's College of Science and Technology, and the Department of Psychology at Temple University's College of Liberal Arts. Additionally, access will be granted to secondary users from the Departments of Neurology, Neurosurgery, and Physiology in the School of Medicine. The primary and secondary users of this core facility focus their research efforts on a broad range of paradigms including pharmacotherapeutic, behavioral, and physiological changes in neurological disorders as well as molecular pathogenesis of neuronal dysfunction, demyelination, CNS neoplasia, and the development of novel molecular imaging agents and post-process techniques. The Small Animal MR Imaging Core Facility will have priority usage of the human 3 Tesla MRI and allocation of core resources will be made by an Advisory Committee. Institutional commitment for the Small Animal MR Imaging Core Facility has been secured insuring its maximum usage and efficiency for in vivo translational research. The ability to perform high resolution neuroimaging and longitudinal studies on a human 3 Tesla magnet will give us the ability to directly translate our findings in animal models to non-invasive diagnostic, molecular, and functional neuroimaging in the clinic.
The proposed magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) equipment will allow us to use a human MRI to scan our small animal models of neurological disorders at high power. In vivo imaging of these models will allow us to test and validate non-invasive novel diagnostic and therapeutic strategies that can be directly used in the clinic.
