CYCLOTRON, PET AND MRI FACILITY IMPROVEMENT: A SCIENTIFIC RESOURCE FOR ARIZONA -
DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): This application requests funds for the renovation of existing space as well as for a small building addition that will allow us to relocate and expand our nearly 20 year old cyclotron and radiochemistry laboratory, Positron Emission Tomography (PET) imaging and computational image-analysis suites as well as provide future space for Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) and an additional PET system. The urgent need for this request is due to the significant inadequacy of the current cyclotron and radiochemistry facility, not only in meeting current and pending manufacturing requirements, but also in meeting investigator demand for new PET tracers. Banner Health was one of the first non-university based hospital systems to purchase a cyclotron. Its PET Center became a leader in brain-imaging research, a resource to researchers throughout Arizona and a major catalyst to the development of the Banner Alzheimer's Institute (BAI), Arizona Alzheimer's Consortium, and Arizona Bioscience Roadmap. We plan to renovate the new facility to centralize these activities, purchase additional built-in radiochemistry equipment, and increase our total laboratory space from 6,378 to 16,520 gross square feet (GSF) to support our rapidly growing research needs. Research control of imaging devices, such as the PET and proposed MRI allows us to assure rigorous quality control and the avoidance of elective hardware changes that might reduce statistical power or introduce confounds in longitudinal studies and long clinical trials, greatly increasing MRI research productivity. The renovated facility permits us to expand our research programs at the BAI, as well as Banner's recently acquired Sun Health Research Institute, and will catalyze the development of research in the recently approved MD Anderson Banner Cancer Center, and other institutions in the state. It would maximize communication among radiochemistry, PET, MRI and scientific researchers and improve research participant scheduling, convenience, and throughput in our various research studies. The facility improvement will lead to significant new biomedical research investments at Banner Health and other Arizona institutions, provide a vital statewide scientific resource, as well as maintain and create jobs. The proposed design improves the quality of the environment by utilizing green technology and enhances safety for staff and the general public through specialized security measures and novel radioactive control devices. Shell space built as a part of this application will allow for growth of the imaging center. The need for a second PET research scanner is anticipated within 3 years while the need for a dedicated research MRI scanner is imminent. It would galvanize PET and MRI research in Alzheimer's disease, oncology, obesity, diabetes, as well as age-related disorders and normal aging, and the development of new image-acquisition and image-analysis methods. Specifically, to Alzheimer's disease the facility would permit us to maintain and enhance our leadership role in the application of brain-imaging techniques to pre-symptomatic study, detection, and tracking of Alzheimer's disease and the evaluation of disease-slowing treatments.
