Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) has been widely used in preclinical research producing preclinical imaging on experimental small animals, and is currently one of the premier research tools available to probe and validate structure and function of the biosystem, at cellular or molecular level.
Studies using small animal MRI techniques and preclinical imaging techniques have typically been targeted at understanding the patophysiological status and evaluating the efficacy/side effects of newly developed treatments, especially those that involve characterization of disease progression and response to therapy.
Preclinical MRI studies and preclinical imaging typically require high magnetic field strengths, yielding high signal-to-noise ratios (SNRs) and soft tissue contrast compared to other available modalities.
What is the difference between clinical scanners and small animal dedicated scanners?
There are two main differences between dedicated animal scanners and clinical whole body systems: spatial resolution and signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), corresponding to the field strength of the scanner.
In a clinical setting, high field whole body scanners (usually of 3 Tesla) improves the achievable MR signal in comparison to regular clinical systems with 1.5T or below. Additionally, the SNR can be improved by using small dedicated animal.
Preclinical imaging MRI applications:
The range of preclinical imaging MRI applications includes brain imaging,detection of small sized tumors, disease progression and functional imaging.
Advantages of pre-clinical MRI:
Image resolution - Improved spatial resolution in high magnetic fields.
High-level Image contrast that may assist in distinguishing between healthy normal tissues and pathological/damaged tissues.
High range of applications – preclinical MRI provides a range of non-invasive measures for visualization of morphological/anatomical structures of the body, and is extremely beneficial in observing changes at the organ, tissue, cell and molecular level.
Safety- preclinical MRI utilizes a magnetic field, thus making it a much safer imaging technique compared to other radiation based imaging modalities.
Weaknesses:
Cost – due to high magnetic field requirements, preclinical MRI scanners are usually very expensive ranging from $1 million to over $6 million
Long image acquisition time. This is especially important when studying animal models longitudinally, having an overall negative impact.
Rapid snapshots - making real-time processes difficult to trace
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mall animals, and is currently one of the premier research tools available to probe and validate structure and function of the biosystem, at cellular or molecular level.