Grant: Discovery Grants Program - Individual

I am developing magnetic resonance (MR) imaging techniques to study the central nervous system (CNS) in mice. In particular, I am developing and using high-resolution techniques capable of visualizing changes smaller than (100 um)^3 inside living brains. To overcome the inherent limited signal of MR methods, faster pulse sequences are used to collect the images, and produce images with higher signal-to-noise. The mouse has become the laboratory mammal of choice for studying the basic biology of mammalian systems, for creating models of human disease and for testing new therapeutic approaches in these models largely because of the availability of sophisticated methods for genetic manipulation. Non-invasive imaging technologies can provide a window into the biology of the living mouse, affording the unique possibility of making repeated measurements of biologic function and specific molecular or genetic events within a single animal over time. A number of groups, including mine, have been developing high-resolution imaging technologies designed around the mouse with the goal of integrating the opportunities created through research in mouse biology and genetics with the power of non-invasive or non-destructive imaging at the organ or whole-mouse level. I am collaborating in high-resolution studies of mouse CNS with scientists across Canada and envision my five-year program to be the continued development of novel imaging methods for the study of mouse models as collaborations continue to be formed. The Winnipeg experimental animal MR lab, for which I have received CFI funding for a major upgrade, is an excellent laboratory for forging such collaborations because many researchers from across Canada already use the facility, sometimes in collaboration with me or other MR physicists. In fact, through this lab, I have recently established collaborations with scientists from St. Boniface Research Centre, McGill University, the National Research Council Canada Institute for Biodiagnostics, and the University of Saskatchewan.