The Bruker (Karlshure, Germany) Biospec 7T/21cm MRI/MRS system with a full range of options is installed in our laboratory. The system operates on a Linux workstation and includes a full range of imaging and spectroscopy pulse sequences and associated analysis programs. The 2-channel RF system includes a 400W pulse power RF amplifier for the proton channel (300 MHz) and a broadband 1 Kw X-nucleus channel. The system includes actively decoupled proton transmit coil (7 cm ID) and a reception surface coils (two) optimized for rat and mouse brain studies, respectively. Also included are: (1) double tuned 3 cm surface coil for 1H/31P or 1H/13C investigations; (2) a high performance gradient insert for NMR microscopy studies; (3) three proton RF coils for imaging studies using the high performance gradient insert (15 mm, 25 mm and 35 mm ID); (4) an eight-channel physiological monitoring system (Bruker) integrated with the scanner to allow for gating and motion correction of images, which includes optically coupled EKG and respiratory monitors; (5) Unix workstations for offline data processing (See Computers for details); and (6) we have developed a suite of laboratory built animal holders and coils.

The Bruker Pharmascan system (7T/16 cm) includes a two channel actively decoupled volume transmit coil/surface coil system (Insight Neuroimaging Systems, Worcester MA), physiological monitoring system, and upgraded gradients and shim and actively shielded gradient system (BGA9 system, Bruker, gradient strength 360 mT/m, equipped with z0 , z2 , zx, zy, x2- y2, xy shims) and the Bruker spectroscopy and diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) packages. This will allow pertinent developments in mouse brain spectroscopic imaging and DTI to be directly applied to the new scanner.

One preclinical single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) and computed tomography (CT) dual scanner (GammaMedica-Ideas (GM-I) Flex Triumph Multimodal Preclinical Platform) equipped with multipinhole collimators, variable radius of rotation heads (1.5 cm to 17.5 cm) and four interchangeable patient beds to accommodate animals from mice to small primates. GM-I’s new VIVID (Volumetric Image Visualization, Identification and Display) software package has been developed specifically for FLEX Triumph with a streamlined user interface for automated fusion and display, automated loading of SPECT, PET and CT image data, and an automated visualization module for 2D, 3D, and single or multiple (fused) images.

Equipment Quantity:
1. Unix workstations and PCs for offline data analysis - 10
2. Linux servers – 4
3. Sun Fire x4500 servers – 3
4. Sun Blade 2500 systems – 4
5. Sun Fire V240 servers with fast access disk array (20 TB) – 2
6. Surface coils - 8
7. Volume coils - 6
8. Anesthesia machines - 6
9. Small animal ventilator - 1
10. Animal physiology monitors - 4
11. Laptop and desktop computer systems - 20