 Functional cardiopulmonary imaging
Functional studies pose challenges beyond spatial resolution. Compared to humans, mice are 4000X smaller and have heartbeats 10X faster. Ventilatory and cardiac gating regulate the animal to allow higher-resolution imaging.
Our lab develops tools for ultra-high resolution imaging of the heart and lungs with volume resolution down to 100x100x200 microns and temporal resolution at 10 ms.
Magnetic resonance histology
Our lab coined the term "MR histology" for using MR microscopy to characterize tissue structure. Special stains differentiate soft tissue without traditional sectioning.
We continue to make impressive gains in image resolution and developments to improve tissue contrast that allow isotropic resolution down to 10 microns—greater than 1,000,000-times higher resolution than conventional clinical MR imaging.
Biological support and monitoring
During live animal imaging, custom-built anesthesia and ventilator systems, along with dedicated physiologic monitoring systems support animals during surgery and through the imaging process.
For live animal research studies, we continue to enhance our biological support systems, including custom-built ventilators, a custom-built, gas-powered micro-injector capable of delivering micro-liters/ms of contrast agent, and a transport system to move animals between imaging modalities (MRM, microPET, microCT, microX-ray). Future enhancements to the lab will include barrier facilities to support longitudinal imaging of immuno-compromised animals.
Technology
We continue to bring new imaging modalities into the Center, and perfect our techniques for MRM, microPET, microCT, microX-ray, and digital subtraction analysis.
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Previous research projects at the Center for In Vivo Microscopy
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| Functional cardiopulmonary imaging |
Functional phenotyping of the heart
Dynamics of lung function in rats
Measurement of regional lung function in rats using hyperpolarized 3He dynamic MRI
Cine MRM of the rat heart using cardiorespiratory-synchronous projection reconstruction imaging
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| Magnetic resonance histology |
MRM of chick embryo hearts
Improved preparation of chick embryonic samples of MR microscopy
Approaching cardiac development in three dimensions by MR microscopy
Rat embryogenesis in four dimensions
Diffusion tensor imaging to characterize tissue architecture
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| Technology |
Variable encoding of large array data sets
Lung imaging with hyperpolarized gas
A high-temperature superconducting solenoid probe for MRM
Physics of MR microscopy
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| Visual informatics |
Optimized contrast for neurohistology in the mouse brain using MRM
A rat brain slicer
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