January 2024 Announcements

The MRRC Is excited to announce new members of the MRRC Staff / Department of Radiology. These experts bring the first wave of revitalization of the MRRC program, and a new focus on MRI IMAGE ANALYSIS!!!

1. MRRC Physician/Clinical Director - Dr. Jimmy S. Lee (M.D., Ph.D.), Department of Radiology. Dr. Lee is an expert Neuro Radiologist with exceptional expertise in MRI of the head and neck, with specialty in MS, cardiac and Covid-related pathology, water fraction/myelin bases MRI analyses and modulators of the immune response.
2. MRRC Associate Director, Data Analysis - Dr. David Zhu, Ph.D. Dr. Zhu brings with him many years of experience as an MRI imaging Scientist with exceptional expertise in Cognitive Imaging. Dr. Zhu founded the Cognitive Imaging Research Center at Michigan State University (http://www.circ.msu.edu/)

Dr. Lee and Dr. Zhu join the existing faculty of the MRRC (Dr. Tim Duong, Dr. Mark Washul, Dr. Min-Hui Cui, Dr. Chris Peng, Mr. Wade Koba and Dr. Craig A. Branch). Additional Staff positions are currently available -please see the postings below:

The MRRC hosts 3 pieces of Imaging Equipment, a 3T Philips Ingenia / Elition Multi-Nuclear MRI for Human Research, a 9.4 T Agilent Rodent MRI and a Siemens Rodent PET/SPECT/CT system.

The Gruss MRRC recently (2023) received a $2,000,000 High-End Instrumentation Award (HEI Award) From the National Institutes of Health to replace the existing Agilent MRI small animal system and its associated magnet. The Department of Radiology and Albert Einstein College of Medicine have partnered to fund installation of this new Instrument in the Gruss MRRC.

The decommissioning of the old system, purchased in 2002, has already begun, paving the way for construction (which began, January 2024). The old iron shield which housed the old magnet is being torn out, paving the way for a new, “actively” (magnetic field) shielded and “cryopumped” Bruker 7.0 Tesla Magnetic Resonance Imaging and Spectroscopy system.

Anticipated Delivery Date for the new Magnet: Mid-April, 2024
Anticipated Construction Completion: Late-May, 2024

In addition to the new MRI, the MRRC will continue to provide:

• Scientific Consultation, Collaboration and Implementation
• A Trained Operator for all day-time use
• Data Archival and processing on the Einstein High Performance Computing Cluster
• Animal Housing (in Gruss 1st floor MRI Facility, for short < 3 day stays)
• Animal Housing (in the 3rd Floor of the MRRC / Gruss building, for longer stays)
  • Preparation hood
  • Operating Microscope (x2)
  • Animal Ventilation Units (mouse and rat)
  • Surgical Autoclave
  • Surgical / aseptic area
  • Anesthesia support (O2, N2, Co2, isoflurane vaporizers, Medical Room Air)
  • Anesthesia Chambers and heaters
  • Infusion Pumps for Rodents
  • Other Equipment: TBI, hematology measurement, centrifuges, blood gasses, tissue collection, slide microscope.
  • Data collection for real-time physiology measurement.

The new 7.0 Tesla Bruker BioSpec 70/20 high field MR instrument will enable:

• easier use, due to a user-friendly interface
• greater flexibility due to an optimized imaging platform
• wider portfolio of imaging and spectroscopy capabilities, including 3D functional and physiological imaging.
• Optimized imaging coil platform with small animal handling and physiology monitoring.

The new system will widen the user access:

• Investigators may train their select staff to operate the MRI system, saving money and time.
• User access after-hours (at reduced cost) will also be available, for investigator operated savings.

The new 7T MRI will include:

• Bruker’s AVANCE NEO MRI architecture
• Zero helium boil-off technology
• 20 cm bore diameter
• Stray magnetic fields limited to 1.5 m axial, and radial, increasing access space.
• Standard Gradient Performance (using the BGA 12S high performance gradient) will enable imaging with 44 Gauss/cm using standard amplifiers with rise times of 127 ms.
• Using the High Power Gradient Amplifier, performance of 66 Gauss/cm with rise times of 144 ms will be attainable. This will enable Diffusion, Perfusion and neurite orientation dispersion not previously attainable.
• Parallel Imaging
  • 2 TX and 4 RX channels (4 channels)
  • GRAPPA MRI
• Non-Proton MRI (Fluorine 19, Phosphorus 31, Carbon 13, etc) Imaging and Spectroscopy
• 1H Decoupling
• Bruker Integrated Imaging Coils
  • Volume Transmit coils
  • Volume TX/RX coils
  • Rat head / mouse body circularly polarized coils (60mm, 40mm, 23mm, 16 mm)
  • Arterial Spin Labeling Coil (rats)
  • 4 Channel Parallel receive Coils (rat and mouse head)
  • 4 Channel Parallel receive Coils (mouse heart and body)
  • Rat and mouse brain surface RX coils (10 and 20 mm ID)
  • Proton/X nuclei coils
  • Surface Coil preamplifiers
• OEM coil interface
  • Doty Surface and brain volume coils
• Body Temperature Conditioning System
• SAI Instruments Physiology Monitoring System
  • Respiration
  • Cardiac rate
  • Pulseoximetry
  • Temperature
  • EKG
  • Gating from any measured signal
• ManPac Animal Transport and Positioning system
  • Mice
  • Rats
  • Supports anesthesia, physiological measurement, anatomy positioning
• Bruker Application Support (all inclusive)
  • DTI (2D and 3D SE-DTI, EPI-DTI, Spiral-DTI)
  • Relaxation (T1, T1, T2* EPI, GRE, SE)
  • Perfusion (CASL-EPI, FAIR-EPI, FAIR-RARE Spiral)
  • Cardiac Imaging (FLASH, UTE)
  • Angiography
  • Short Echo Imaging (UTE, UTE3D, ZTE, RAREst)
  • SPECTROSCOPY (PRESS, STEAM, ISIS)
  • Chemical Shift imaging (CSI, EPSI)
• Source Code for all Imaging
• Method Development Framework (ParaVision 360)
• ParaVision 360 Processing Workplace
  • Reconstruction and Visualization
  • Sequence Development
  • Data Management
  • Data Processing
• A LABSCAPE COMPLETE Maintenance Agreement

Please Contact the MRRC (Deyanira.mendoza@einsteinmed.edu) for additional information and updates on construction/installation progress!!