Tuesday, May 13, 2025
5/13/2025
Next-generation 3 Tesla Human MRI System - PROJECT ABSTRACT This grant will support the purchase of a new Siemens 3 Tesla whole-body human MRI scanner to be used for basic, clinical and translational research at the Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, serving investigators at Mass General Brigham and other Boston area hospitals and academic institutions. The next- generation 3T whole-body system will serve as an upgrade of our existing, 16-year-old obsolete 3 Tesla MRI scanner that is reaching imminent end-of-support status by the vendor and has seen diminishing usage over the last 5 years. The proposed next-generation 3T system with high performance gradients will enable very high gradient strengths and slew rates (up to 200 mT/m and 200 T/m/s on each axis) for whole-body imaging. It will offer a substantial increase of performance for the wide range of research performed at Mass General Brigham and the greater Boston area, justified on a shared-use basis by over 25 investigators and 30 projects, the vast majority of which are NIH-funded. The breadth of supported research spans clinical and translational neuroimaging, cardiovascular, body, and oncologic imaging; fetal and pediatric brain imaging; cognitive, psychiatric, and basic neuroscience and brain mapping studies; and novel instrumentation development. While the 3 Tesla MRI research program at the Martinos Center has been very successful, the system to be replaced uses outdated hardware and software, placing substantial pressure on our other 3 Tesla systems, which cannot accommodate the advanced technological needs of our expanding user community. Because of the unique capabilities of the new state-of-the-art 3T whole-body MRI, the proposed Next Generation 3 Tesla Human MRI upgrade will offer new features for improved performance and data quality that will benefit existing projects and complement the other scanners at the Martinos Center. This upgrade features: higher performance gradients for high spatial resolution tractography and delineation of tissue microstructure in the brain, heart and prostate; enhanced RF system architecture with 128 receive channels and higher density specialized coils; streamlined workflows for greater ease of use; standardized hardware and software for compatibility with other sites; a faster image reconstruction computer enabling modern imaging techniques; integrated physiological monitoring; new sequence and application packages for accelerated, multi-contrast exams; and an up-to-date testbed for the unique instrumentation and technology development performed at the Martinos Center, including the latest software platform for pulse sequence programming and custom on-scanner image reconstruction. By serving a highly productive interdisciplinary group of NIH-funded investigators, the proposed upgrade will offer a cutting- edge research resource that will push the frontiers of investigating structure-function relationships at finer scales and higher sensitivity, thereby enhancing existing research programs and fostering opportunities for new projects and collaborations. This instrumentation upgrade will provide our investigators with the technological edge required for innovative clinical, translational, and basic research.
HHS’ Tracking Accountability in Government Grants System (TAGGS) website provides access to detailed descriptions of grants, loans, aggregated direct payments and other types of financial assistance awarded by the HHS Operating Divisions (OPDIVs) and the Office of the Secretary Staff Divisions (STAFFDIVs).